Making Lemonade: Parents Transforming Special Needs

When life gives you lemons, how you approach, process, and transform them makes all the difference. Especially for parents facing the sour experiences of raising a child with developmental, behavioral, and/or health needs. Incorporating practical strategies from a Christian worldview and the emotional stories of parents, including the author, busy in the kitchen of life, readers will find hope and encouragement as they face their own lemons.

Mirroring the steps of a recipe for making lemonade, the book opens with the wide variety of lemons parents face, the initial pucker reaction, and the juicing process where it can feel as though one's guts are being ripped out. The next ingredient, sugar, is compared to hope and faith in the knowledge that God is in control and we can do all things through His strength. Other fruit or siblings can be added to the mix and add a unique flavor combination of their own. Watered down by the normal parts of life, the ingredients are stirred together by parents putting action to their faith within the pitcher of support from family and friends. After a period of waiting or chillling, parents are able to sit back and enjoy the end result as well as share it with a friend.