About

Over time, this blog has evolved from a guide book of children’s activities to a broader focus on issues relating to families with a member who is blind or visually impaired.  This is entirely based on my own experience as the mother of an awesome little boy who happens to not see very well.  I share information that I find pertinent, review books (generally recommendations only–it’s hard to find books that are “high contrast” for kids!), cover events and attractions we visit, provide instructions for crafts that worked well with my children, and advocate–and encourage you to advocate–for the rights of people with disabilities.

There are four main characters you’ll meet on my blog:

• Peanut, the reason for it all.  Peanut is a little boy who happens to be legally blind.
• Sprout, Peanut’s little sister.  Sprout is a little girl who has no vision problems whatsoever.
• Efrit, Peanut’s dad.  Efrit also has a vision impairment, although it has a different cause, and different effects, than Peanut’s.
• Phouka–that’s me.  I’m Efrit’s wife and the proud mama of two awesome kids, one of whom happens to be visually impaired.

Finally, the post that started it all:

Every Monday and Wednesday, I take off my working-mom hat and put on my stay-at-home mom hat, and Peanut and I go out on adventures.  Sometimes we go to the zoo; sometimes we go to the park; sometimes, we just take a nap.

I’ve discovered on our travels that when people think of activities and attractions being “accessible,” they’re thinking of ramps and wheelchair access–they don’t generally consider accessibility for the blind and visually impaired.  Places that have beautiful wheelchair ramps won’t have a single thing in Braille; displays will feature items with visual impact without considering the other senses.  As the parent of a visually-impaired little boy, I notice these things.

As we go on our adventures, I’m going to record a bit of them here, on this blog.  I’ll let you know my opinion on how friendly the destination is for the blind or visually-impaired, how much it costs, and hopefully offer a few photographs of activities and amenities. I’m planning on posting once a week, and I’ll cover attractions and activities Peanut and I trek to; resources I’ve found helpful; and different toys and tools that are particularly good (or particularly awful).  Since I am the queen of tangents, there will probably be some rambles here and there as I roam off-topic. I’m also a first-time blogger, so there will likely be some technical glitches and potholes as I figure out how to navigate this medium.

Happy adventuring,

Phouka