Another thing in common is that I do not mind-and sort of love the smell of a farm, livestock, and stalls.



2. She designs and embroiders her own shirts: That impresses me to no end!



3. Her mother is a hero in her life and incredibly strong: After reading her book titled, "A Thorn in My Pocket", a book written from her mothers perspective, I understood far more about why Temple is the amazing woman she is. The movie left her father out and for good reason; he was not supportive and often agreed with the doctors about institutionalizing Temple. Her mother had to battle constantly for her daughter, often against her own husband.



4. She was a little averse to rules while in college: and for fun tried to see if she could make a master key for her campus (including her dean's office)...she did. I think she made it out of an aluminum can. She had rule-breaking behavior that gives me a lot of hope as we raise an "Aspie" with similar tendencies.



5. She finished college, something I did not do: She had so many obstacles and never let the struggle stop her. Her perseverance and drive (the gift part of her autism) are admirable and she lets us see that there can be good parts to being on the spectrum. She has said, if she could snap her fingers and take away the autism, she wouldn't. I wish I could say the same thing. I'd give anything, to include the use of my legs, if I could take this struggle away from my child.



6. Her life gives me such hope: She is living, breathing inspiration. I think of her on my hard days, when I just want to hide and cry. Thinking of her makes me remember that I can keep putting one foot in front of the other.



7. She is the mightiest advocate for those on the spectrum and is an excellent teacher to layman and professionals. Her life is a gift to us, for without her, I do not think we'd be where we are now in terms of the awareness of autism and it's impact on children. She is full of answers and suggestions and she is living it. She doesn't say..."here are the challenges, wow, autism sure bites"! She has written books filled with valuable advice for parents and teachers. One of the best is The Way I See It.  It's full of short and very helpful chapters on topics we (and our kids) deal with every day.



8. She advocated for herself before she ever advocated for our sons and daughters: I'm still learning to advocate for myself, as a neurotypical! (A status that can be argued on any given day.) Her life has so much to teach me.



9. She goes outside her comfort zone for the good of others:  People who do that inspire me so much I seriously get warm fuzzies when I see it.











10. She knows and fully accepts who she is:  Her life is the life of a hero and I will always be grateful to her and to her mother for being the amazing women they are and being models of how to succeed on both sides of the autism factor!



Jami... is a mom to teenaged quadruplets and wife to her best friend, her knight in dented armor. Her "almost 15" year old crew consists of one girly tomboy and 3 strapping young men, one who was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome in 7th grade. Her passion for God/teens/sports is a perfect combination for her position as a Fellowship of Christian Athletes weekly Huddle Leader.

As I sat there, I wanted so much to ask him, "Where does love and strength like yours come from?" "Where did you learn it and can I learn it too?" I want that! I've never witnessed a love like so strong. A lot of us will only give up so much comfort to give joy to another soul, although any mom I know would take a bullet for her child! A love that would drive you to run, swim, and bike for miles on end, though, must be simply God given. This is love of heroic proportions and I believe it is truly supernatural and is a wonderful glimpse of Jesus'. Dick Hoyt becomes stronger every time he and Rick venture out to train or run another race. He is a living picture of how God must love us...and how He carries us in the times can no longer move forward.



I've wondered often about the ways we grow stronger in this life. It's sometimes like the tempering of steel. God isn't just toying with us, sending trial after trial to see how much we can survive. There is purpose in any heart ache. The process of tempering steel-making it as strong as possible-is a detailed, exact science and art. I am finally accepting that trials are a gift to my soul if I let them be. We can be strengthened by the heat of each trial we face. I think of how often I have just tried to jump out of the way to dodge a trial. I want to be the kind of girl who is willing to face the hard training so I can be stronger for the race. Sometimes it just feels too painful. Just when we think we cannot go on any longer, we are plunged into cool water, just like steel, and have a respite from the heat. We are never left in the heat too long even if it feels like forever! It takes a certain amount of time in the fire to burn off the unwanted elements that make steel weak and brittle. I know now that I must just endure the heat and trust in the process, knowing that God's eyes never leave me.





You can follow Jami's special brand of chaos on her blog "Moms Flight School", where she uses the written word as a cathartic process for trying to one day let go of her "babies". Having them become "mature", independant, and "cool" all at once has proven to be a bit traumatic at times. Her blog is documenting her kids' last 4 years at home. "Empty Nest" is a much dreaded milestone for Jami...her husband, on the other hand, gets a little bit giddy when he imagines it!





***EMM knows not all of our readers share the same spiritual beliefs, but we hope everyone can read this and appreciate the the message of love, hope and sacrifice.***