The story behind the cards - the journey to getting my kids talking

Today’s blog is a little intro to our the Busy Minds conversation cards – and more importantly, the story behind their creation, and the gap they fill in the family wellbeing market.

I have three children, two of whom are neurodivergent. When son was a baby, he hit all the milestones, moving early, sociable and babbling, with a wonderful investigative nature. He was a pleasure and we had no concerns. But at 18 months, his development slowed.

As a teacher, I was acutely aware of the range in children’s abilities and that each child develops at their own pace, but as a mum, I was wracked with anxiety for what was happening and the uncertainty for the future.

The day the paediatrician confirmed that he was neurodivergent was, ironically, one of the best days of my parenting life. The weight of worry and uncertainty finally lifted, and we were on the road to understanding him better.

I want to stress here, that a diagnosis for neurodiversity (whether it is ADHD, ASC, DLD or one of the many other ways of thinking, behaving, and interacting differently) is not something to be apprehensive about. Research is rapidly putting the outdated notion of ‘normal vs neurodiverse’ to bed, as they discover that for all humans, there are a number of different cognitive abilities in which we can excel or lack, we are all somewhere on the spectrum of human capability (Forbes.com).

However, I’m sure I speak for many parents of neurodivergent kids when I say that life can be a rollercoaster of emotions. Some days are easy, but others are tough, sometimes you work in sync with each other, other days they simply won’t let you in.

For years, I had scoured the internet for activities and tips to support my son with his language and communication skills. I needed to nurture him in an incidental, fun and engaging way – unfortunately, I found nothing that fulfilled this basic family need. So I designed the Busy Minds conversation cards.

We now have an entertaining, engaging way to help connect our family.

With 60 ‘life questions’ to chat about, the conversation flows and imaginations are ignited! They love the opportunity to share their ideas and opinions – everyone feels valued.

We use them at meal times, in the car, and now, as they’re committed to memory, when we’re out and about. They’re great to use when the conversation gets strained, when someone needs bringing down from a high, or up from a low, and most valuably, as a distraction to the pressures of life!

The cards fit neatly into their card holder which we keep on the kitchen side, to be picked up and shared anytime we need a little mental boost or fun topic to talk about.

To get your hands on a pack of our cards click here and if you’re looking for ways to start your family’s day calm and positive, check out of Mindfulness Dice for 12 beautifully simple mindfulness practices to build calm, resilience, love and positivity.