On September 27th, my daughter and I had the honor of sharing the TEDx stage together at TEDx Temecula. It was a dream come true for both of us. For me, getting to share our story of transformation with a real-live audience was so meaningful, and to be able to spend this time with my daughter creating this talk together—I can’t even describe it. And for my daughter to be the first person EVER to use a speech generating device operated by her eyes (@tobii_dynavox) on a TEDx stage!! Holy cow. I am so proud of her.
This whole process has been so amazing. We rehearsed with the whole speaker group and the coach every Sunday – editing, dialing in the message, and practicing the flow of the talk. Kennedy was her typical sassy self during those rehearsals – leaving everyone in stitches. At one point, she used her device to flirt with another speaker. 
I have loved every minute of this experience. We have grown so much as we have built this talk, and to be able to share a stage with her in this way – I am still pinching myself!
I don’t really know why my daughter was drawn to the idea of doing a TEDx with me, but a part of me thinks that her motive was just to connect with Olivia Rodrigo.
She’s been dying to FaceTime her, and Olivia grew up just a few miles from where this TEDx event took place. Kennedy made her pitch in one section of her speech — just in case anyone in the audience knows Olivia and could connect them. Whatever her interest in participating in this was, I am so grateful that we got to do this together. As soon as we got in the car after the event, she said to me, “Thank you for doing this with me, Cha Cha.” 
(She calls me “Cha Cha.”) It was the sweetest thing ever.
I owe a debt of gratitude to an entire team of people who supported us in this endeavor. To Christian and Jacob, thank you for your unwavering support. To the TEDx Temecula organizing team (@TedxTemecula)– you are amazing! To Lisa & Eric (@erlisestyleconsulting) who styled us – thank you! You did such an amazing job learning what would and wouldn’t work for Kennedy, and you helped me step into a whole new level of style!! Brilliant! To Beauty by Tina (@beautybytinaofficial), thank you for the beautiful hair and make-up and showing up before the sunrise to make it happen. And to Melissa (Kennedy’s school nurse) and Julie (Kennedy’s school aide & eyegaze expert), thank you for supporting us through the weekend. I could not have done it without you!! Seriously, THANK YOU!
It is my deepest hope that our story will inspire everyone who is feeling trapped in a circumstance.
It’s my experience that we can get caught up in stories and narratives about “what it means” to x, y, z – have a disability, be a primary caregiver, etc. We don’t have to agree to these stories. We really do get to create the life we would love around the circumstance that we can’t control. And it’s soooo empowering to discover that!
Stay tuned!! Exciting things are still to come!
