ShineBrightEllie-Help w/ Autism Care

Ellie (3) was diagnosed with Autism (ASD) on March 29, 2018. As her parents, we (Paz and Jenny) fully believe she was born with it, and she has been a high needs infant and now toddler from the day she was born. Getting the diagnosis just confirms what we already knew to be challenges with Ellie's development and sensory processing, as well as helps us finally put into words what we have dealt with on a daily basis. Finding out that Ellie has Autism has actually given us so much hope, because we now know there are interventions and tools that can help Ellie shine bright in this world! Jenny has had the privilege of caring for Ellie as a full-time caretaker mommy from Ellie's birth, which prevents Jenny from seeking even part-time employment outside the home. This is just not an option for our family. As we start the process to get her into preschool and start in-home therapy, we have come to realize that we have some financial needs related to Ellie's care beyond what we can handle on our own.

We have been a one-car family for over 5 years, and the time has come that that is no longer practical anymore. We need a second vehicle to help Jenny and the girls have more mobility throughout the day while Paz is at work in order to serve Ellie's needs better. Our first goal is to purchase a small used car for Paz to use as a commuter vehicle back and forth to work so that Jenny can take over our current vehicle as her main mode of transportation. The bulk of our fundraising will go towards this second car, which will aid our family greatly in getting Ellie a broad range of therapy and schooling based on her needs and not be limited by our inability to get her wherever she needs to be.

Because of certain developmental delays with Ellie, she is not ready to potty train. She will continue to wear diapers for awhile, and she is in one of the larger sizes, so they cost more for less. We had hoped to not have two in diapers for this long, but plans change, and we could use help offsetting the cost of Ellie's diapers and wipes.

Ellie also has certain sensory needs that may require us to purchase items to help her manage her daily life. While we don't know everything that may include yet, at this point we are looking to purchase a weighted blanket to help during meltdowns from sensory overload, black out curtains to darken her room, and a light projector for her room to project calming images on the ceiling to help her focus and fall asleep at night.

We started out 2018 with Paz being unemployed for 2 months, which wiped out our entire savings. We are so grateful for his new job that allows him to provide for our family, but we know that there are just certain things beyond our control. We humbly ask for your prayers as we navigate wisely through making the best decision for our family, which includes finances, and we know that there are just certain limitations to what we can do with our current financial situation. All of the money raised through this page will be used for the purposes listed above and any other needs in regards to Ellie's daily life, therapy, and schooling.