Read more about the article Christmas with the Gorski’s: A Special Needs approach to celebrating Christmas 
Autism Parenting Insight / My thoughts / Vivint Gives Back

Christmas with the Gorski’s: A Special Needs approach to celebrating Christmas 

Just some brief background before delving into this as it's important for context.  My wife suffered from caregiver burnout and that lead to an almost two-year separation while she was focusing on getting the help she needed to recover. We never divorced but she lived with her parents and I raised the kids on my own.  This past June, we put our lives and our family back together. Having spent two Christmases with our family being fragmented, this Christmas is/was very special to us.   Christmas is different for every family. Some families can go all out and others not so much.  Everyone is different and that can prove to be especially true when it comes to a family like mine. Having three kids with special needs changes just about…

4 Comments
December 26, 2016
Read more about the article Having some upgrades to our @VivintHome system today
My thoughts / Vivint Gives Back

Having some upgrades to our @VivintHome system today

I'm pretty excited because we're having so equipment upgrades to our Vivint Smarthome. My house gets automatic upgrades when updated equipment comes out so I can both test, review and then share my experience. Today, we're being upgraded to the Nest thermostat and Amazon Echo integration. The boys are excited about the Echo and I'm excited about both. Once I've had a chance to play with these upgrades, I'll share some pictures and thoughts. In the grand scheme of things, it's not a huge deal but I'm really proud of this partnership and since I love tech, it's something I really look forward to. ☺

2 Comments
December 16, 2016
Read more about the article This is what @vivintgivesback enables me to do
Vivint Gives Back

This is what @vivintgivesback enables me to do

I was talking the other day about Gavin's bad reaction to his IVIG infusion. He got sick and I needed to be able to keep an eye on him without being in the same room.   Thanks to the Vivint Gives Back project, I've been able to provide my family with some amazing technology, that not only helps to keep us safe but also promotes peace of mind for both my wife and myself.   The picture above is an example of what I'm talking about.   I had mentioned in a previous post, that I was going to leave my tablet on, with the Vivint app running.  This provided me with a live feed into Gavin's room, so I could monitor him from my room.   I also setup an alert…

0 Comments
August 21, 2016
Read more about the article Our Naughty Dog Caught On Camera: You have to see this to believe it (@vivinthome)
Maggie / My thoughts / Vivint Gives Back

Our Naughty Dog Caught On Camera: You have to see this to believe it (@vivinthome)

It's been a really long night already and it's not over yet.  The boys came home today and when we went tried to put them in bed, we ran into a a problem.   Elliott soon discovered that his bed was soaked and I mean soaked. I'm not talking someone spilled a water bottle kinda wet either.  We're talking someone or something dropped like a gallon of pee all over his bed.  Everyone was confused because the amount was so much that it had to be a person.   With the boys being gone all day, we could rule them out and I know of it wasn't Lizze or myself.   I had no idea what happened.  Then it occurred to me that I could check the camera feed from…

30 Comments
August 19, 2016
Read more about the article I’m really happy with my service call from @vivinthome today
My thoughts / Vivint Gives Back

I’m really happy with my service call from @vivinthome today

I mentioned that Vivint had to come out today to replace one of the cameras because it would no longer focus.  It's the camera from Elliott and Emmett's room, so I really wanted to get that fixed. My usual tech wasn't available, so I had someone else for the first time. He was also training someone, so there was a second tech here as well. Both guys did a really good job and I was very comfortable with them in the house.  Having three kids with special needs, I get nervous when strangers come into the house because it can disrupt the day but everyone did fine. Does it bother me that a camera stopped working? Sure it does. That being said, it's technology and sometimes this happens. My big…

0 Comments
August 16, 2016