aVERY Bright Life—What Is This Space About?

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Welcome to our new website—aVERY BRIGHT LIFE. This space isn’t perfect yet. It probably won’t ever be but is anything in life perfect? Ever evolving, perfectly imperfect works for me! I decided to get out of my own way and just click publish because Avery and I have a lot to say.

Yes, Avery and I, TOGETHER!

We’re now a mom-daughter digital duo. It was time.

But why a new website? Why couldn’t we just add on to the decade old and beloved Forever In Mom Genes site? Two reasons. One annoying. One awesome.

Let’s start with annoying.

Mom Genes, my decades old blog, is broken and dysfunctional. Poor old girl. She’s slow as molasses, has memory issues, and a multitude of worn out bits (Just to be clear, I’m talking about the website, not the author. Though…).

I tried to fix her, but to no avail. So I did what needed doing. I put her out of her misery. You can always find original content over there (once you coax her open), but she’s officially retired. I plan to freshen up, update and repurpose some of the evergreen content and rehome it here, on this much faster, much more functional new website. I’ll be re-sharing the stories that still ring true today and are worth repeating. Plus, Avery and I have so much new content planned. We can’t wait to share it all with you!

And that leads me to the awesome.

As Avery has grown, so has her voice. She’s expressed an interest in having her own social media accounts. I recently overheard her telling her pets to “like and subscribe.” I think that had something to do with her pretend YouTube channel. This creativity is encouraged and I know how engaging and entertaining this girl can be. I also appreciate the value of the information and inspiration she has to share.

But, let her run free on the internet, TikToking her way across the world wide web? Hard no. I will always shield her from the wrath of “internet ugly.” I’m also painfully aware of the vulnerability of young girls online—especially naive girls with intellectual disabilities. It’s just not a safe independent environment.

Here’s the compromise.

aVERY BRIGHT LIFE is a platform and community for the two of us to share. Avery can post about her interests in words and videos and photos. She can answer questions and share her perspective. We can do this as a mom and daughter duo, writing and podcasting and Instagram reeling through this next chapter, together.

We’ll continue to shine a light on life with disabilities.

We want to support other families who might benefit from what we’ve learned, and are learning along the way. Growing up with developmental disabilities isn’t the easiest. But, Avery has proven that her disabilities don’t define or limit her. This resilient, happy young lady lives each day on her own terms with immense joy, curiosity and purpose. Her future is so bright… she’s gotta wear shades.