Author Archives: Michael Casten

Our daughter with SMA, Ella, had a doctor’s appointment with her pulmonologist recently. Her grandparents took her to the appointment because my wife, Lindsay, and I were working. Ella and her grandparents started their day early and returned by mid-afternoon. During the day, we received…

Our daughter Ella, who is 10, recently enjoyed the last few days of summer before school started again. During the last of her free time, she played outside, used her iPad, and chatted with friends. She watched TV and stayed up late. And she slept in and…

My daughter with SMA, Ella, has a knack for making friends. She naturally draws people to her and always finds the good in them. Last week, Ella’s older brother, Henry, and her older sister, Ava, both had friends over at the house. Although Ella…

The house is full of chatter while our kids — Ava, 13, Henry, 11, and Ella, 10 — talk to each other and play video games. The doorbell rings as one of Henry’s friends arrives. Henry puts his shoes on and is out the…

As the fall approaches, we are getting ready for school and extracurricular activities. All of our kids — Ava, 13, Henry, 11, and Ella, 10 — are musically gifted. Ava has played the violin since she was in fourth grade. She takes lessons privately through…

Ella will be entering fifth grade this fall. We opted for the online learning model at school, but right after we submitted our request, school officials announced that the entire district would be doing online learning. We were relieved that Ella will be…

The time finally came for our family to make a decision about the type of schooling our children would choose this fall. The school district had offered two choices: a hybrid model in which students would attend in person two or three…

The day boasted a brilliant sun. The warm winds blew through the trees and white, fluffy clouds adorned the sky. We packed up our car, loaded our two dogs, Ginny and Radcliffe, into the van, and headed out. We were on our way to Grandma and Grandpa’s…

School will start in a month or so, and Ella will be entering fifth grade, while her brother, Henry, starts sixth grade, and her sister, Ava, starts eighth grade. The local school system is presenting families with two options for this year. The first…

Ella is 10 and will start fifth grade this fall. She has “magic” adjustable rods in her back that give her height. But she has exhausted the length of the rod and will need a new one put in soon. She weighs 36 pounds, a dramatic…