Thanks so much for stopping in. My name is Ann Bell Worley. I am a writer, and the face behind Gray Colored Glasses.

(Well, kind of. In an ironic twist, my glasses are actually rose colored. That dawned on me many months after I got them and had already started the blog, which takes its name from my son’s glasses. Good one, life. And yes, I need to update my photo.)

“What do you do?”

It’s one of the first questions we ask in our work-obsessed culture and one of the hardest for me to answer. I am a stay at home mom with two school-aged kids, one with special needs. I am a writer, a blogger, a children’s book author, and an Advanced Trainer in the Nurtured Heart Approach® (NHA), a mindful parenting methodology that has helped our family through some very challenging waters. I am also a lover of food, a recently-converted health enthusiast, and a Scout and Cellar™ wine consultant.

I’m mostly a mom…

While all of the above is true, most of my life revolves around my kids, somewhat by design but also by necessity. Everyone in our family is profoundly shaped by our son’s differences–Isaac most of all–but also his sister, his father, and me. The time commitment, the financial commitment, the commitment to Isaac’s health and well-being–all require more than a typical child.

Largely because of Isaac, I am a personal chauffeur with a three hour daily commute to and from schools, a student of gut health and functional medicine, and a learn-on-the-job chef, cooking grain-free, dairy-free, no processed sugar, whole foods, at every meal. (And as a result, a washer of way more dishes than we ever had at my home growing up!)

The life I imagined, of “staying home” with the kids, pursuing my writing, and having a spotless, magazine-worthy house, is not the life I have. But the life I do have is rich, it is interesting, it is full of variety and nuance. It is unique to us in many ways but also shares much in common with other families who have a child with special needs. And with those who don’t.

…and also a writer

I’ve wrestled with writing about our life for a long time, in large part because I didn’t feel comfortable sharing too much about Isaac. I am Isaac’s mother, but his story is his to share, if and when he chooses. I have always felt strongly about that.

But it finally occurred to me that I could share MY story about being Isaac’s mom, and Gillian’s mom, about being an author, and a health advocate, and a regular member of the community. I can write about this life we live and the decisions we make and the way we struggle and the way we persevere.

And maybe my stories will connect, not only with people who are on a similar path, but with an even larger community of people who would be friends, who would stand in the hard places with us and others. So let’s add “community builder” to my list of jobs. That’s my next aspiration.

Whatever brought you to explore Gray Colored Glasses, I hope you will find something of interest in these pages. You are welcome here. Please stay for awhile and come back often. And invite your friends.