Meet Jennifer
Meet Jennifer from Homegrown Talker
Hello! Meet Jennifer from Homegrown Talker, a speech therapist and a mother of 5, including one with special needs.
I’m so glad you are here. I have been a speech therapist in medical, public schools and private therapy settings providing therapy for children with language disorders, speech sound disorders, Autism, Augmentative and Alternative Communication needs, Down Syndrome, learning disabilities, ADHD, ODD and hearing loss.
My Mission for Homegrown Talker:
In each work setting, I repeatedly saw the same flaw. While I am a speech and language expert, I am not the expert on your child. You are. I was limited by insurance, my productivity requirements, meetings and unrealistic group therapy sessions.
But You Are Not Limited
You are the one person that knows your child better than anyone else. You are the one person that is with your child for endless learning opportunities each day. I know this for a fact as a parent of a child with special needs.
This is what makes me so different from most therapists. I am one of you.
And I want to join you in as many moments as I can to foster a great love of learning for your child.
Because it is the small moments that matter. It’s the moments when they smile at you when the doctor’s said they never would. It’s the moments when they say their first word. It’s the moments when they take their first step when the doctors said they would never walk. All of the moments matter. Those moments are what make their life.
The Story Behind Homegrown Talker:
For me, it’s the moment they diagnosed my third child with fetal hydrops. Then the moment they told me he had congenital Cytomegalovirus (CMV). Then the moment that they told me he only had a 25% chance of survival. And the moment they told me my son would have moderate to profound disabilities IF he lived. All of those moments I will hold forever.
At the time I write this introduction, I am 32 weeks pregnant with my third child, my second son. I started this blog as a resource to parents as a speech therapist. However, now I write as a mother too. A mother who knows just how important each moment is. A mother who knows how much they matter. A mother who understands your heart as a parent of a child with special needs.
A mother who understands that a parent is the best teacher and advocate for their child.
A mother who understands that parents need more resources to help their children at home. So let’s get started.
Lets get started.
How Can I Help?
At Homegrown Talker, my goal is to meet you and your child where you are at, help you identify your next steps and then connect you with the right resources to propel your child towards their goals.
Fun facts:
- I was born and raised in Illinois but then moved to Missouri where I completed my training to be a speech and language pathologist with an emphasis in Autism Spectrum Disorder.
- My husband (who is also a speech and language pathologist!) and I met while plating bingo at a bingo hall.
- I love my dairy goats and want to learn how to make my own dairy products at home. I believe in educational and social inclusion in all learning environments, especially for children with different learning needs.
- My favorite skills to teach are for learning Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC).
- I am a Medicaid Approved AAC evaluation site in Missouri and am LAMP certified speech language pathologist (only 1 of 3 in Missouri which you can find here
- I’m also in the process of becoming a LAMP Certified Center of Excellence! Like I said, I really really like AAC therapy.
Introduce yourself and lets get your child talking at home 🏠