CPO Member Spotlight- angelofthe island

Related Content

• Meet our other Spotlight Members
• Focus on Mom
• Tracey's Blog- An Angel's Island

By CanadianParents.com Community

What brought you to CPO? How did you find us?

Just over two years ago I received a new laptop for Christmas and started Googling "Aspergers" for my older son Matthew and CPO popped up in my search. I could remember years and years before being online with CPO when it had a different look and format and I decided to come on board again and sign up with a new membership. I've been here ever since!

 Any favorite Boards?

I moderate the Focus on Mom Board and co-moderate the Parents 35+ a new board for Parents Over Age of 35 and I also co-mod the Pregnancy Loss Board which is close to my heart. I also really enjoy the April 2008 Birth Club Board which I never thought in a million years I would have ever been a part of!

What are your hobbies and interests?

I love to write!  I've been an avid writer for a long, long time perhaps since junior high.  Poetry and short stories are something that I really enjoy doing.  I don't get to do it as often as I'd like, as you may have noticed with my blog, but when the urge strikes I'm there and I'll get into it for a bit and go gungho at it then put it away for a while.  Music is also a great passion of mine, there isn't a room in my house that you'll go into that doesn't have a CD or the radio on in the background.

Tell us a little about your family...

I've been married for 18 years to a wonderful guy, his name is Mike.  Matthew my oldest son is 12 years old, and Marcus is 8.5 months old.

Maybe a little something about your parenting philosophy...

This is the one question that I've been thinking about since you mentioned doing this Spotlight. When I asked Mike what our Parenting Philosphy was, he looked at me, laughed, and said, "What?" I think our parenting philsophy is as different as the two boys we have.  We don't follow a set regime, we try and instill values in Matthew that we'd like for him to follow, for him to try and learn as much as he can, and for him to be respectful.  As for a parenting philosophy, each child is so different, you can't parent each child the same way.  Marcus is only 8.5 months and I've come to learn that for two children that came from the same two people, can they ever be different!

Are you looking forward to anything in particular this year?

I am looking forward to watching Matthew continue to excel in school.  Matthew was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome 2 years ago, so it's been a couple of years of learning and teaching and trying to figure out ways to cope with his differences.  This year we have a Teachers Aid with him that's absolutely phenomenal! She can tap into him in ways that nobody else could. Marcus is so much fun at this age and he's learning things at such a rapid rate, I just can't wait to see what the rest of the year is going to bring. Another thing we're looking forward to is a trip in May.  We're heading to Ontario for 8 days in May as a family to visit some CPO members!  It's going to be so much fun! I had to opportunity to do this myself back in August and I stayed with a CPO member Kiki Canadian.

Tracey wrote a beautiful poem as a Tribute to CPO and we're so pleased to share it here!  You can also listen to this entire interview and hear Tracey recite her poem by tuning into CPO's Podcast Momtalk.

CPO – A Community

We come together in cyber-space
Though some have met face to face.
Seek help, tell jokes, cry and vent -
Some days many hours are spent.

Our online family grows every day
Some come and go but lots will stay.
People from each walk of life
Come together in stride and strife.

What brings us here is vast and wide
It’s so nice to have someone on our side.
When times are good, when times are rough,
When we need a friend, or when life is tough.

We’re brought together by a common concern.
For our children’s best interest’s we all yearn.
CPO is a place to share our hopes and our dreams,
Ask silly questions, cheer for our favourite teams.

Our lives are as different as the children we raise.
At times we wonder how we’ll get through some days.
From BC to “The Rock” and across waters blue
Through lifestyles and time changes we make quite a crew.

Who would imagine that a bond could extend
Through wires and keystrokes to make people friends?
We all have our moments to disagree and debate
But at the end of the day we’re brought together by fate.

Rich or poor, Mom or Dad, one child or ten;
We all need support every now and then.
CPO is our haven, our place to escape,
Our place to relax and watch lives take shape.

For all the people logging in each day,
This is merely my small way to say
You make a difference, you make me smile,
Here’s to CPO for going that extra mile!

Tracey
May 7/07