What could possibly be better than welcoming one superstar care professional into your family? Welcoming TWO!

When my husband and I first set out to find special needs child care, we never imagined we’d end up with not one incredible occupational therapist in our home, but two. But here we are a year later, hosting the two most warm, kind, hard-working young ladies in all of Germany! Sarah and Yassi truly are “The Dream Team.”

Yasmin (“Yassi”) Kerscher arrived first, and we knew instantly that we’d hit the care professional jackpot. There is simply no one on earth with a more positive outlook on life or a more open mind; she is a walking ray of pure sunshine. She took to our family like a fish to water and seamlessly picked up on our routines, customs, and sense of humor. Luckily, Yassi came equipped with her own fabulous sense of humor and zany zest for all things absurd, so she fit right in! A deeply emotional, compassionate person, she fell instantly in love with our sweet, nonverbal son, Nick—and the feeling was very mutual! Nick, who usually ignores everyone with perfect indifference, warmed to Yassi quickly and now seeks her out when he wants a good ticklefest or a fun romp on the playground. A bastion of energy, Yassi is game for whatever antics Nick might want to get up to— whether it be jumping, spinning, or belting out a Bruno Mars song. Our neuroptypical daughters, too, love Yassi and look to her for advice on fashion, joke-telling, and middle school crushes. I think Nick (who sings songs without understanding the words he is saying) best sums up the impact Yassi has had on our family when he sings Lady Gaga’s “Papparazzi”: “Baby, there’s no other superstar, you know that I’ll be your Papa, Papa-YASSI!”

Sarah was next to arrive on the Spagnoletti scene, and she brought with her an intellect that transcends language barriers and a kindness that knows no bounds. Marry these traits with an incomparable work ethic, and you have one Sarah Schmitt. If Yassi is a ray of sunshine, then Sarah is a moon beam, with her wise “old soul” and her soft, graceful magnetism; her quiet confidence draws people to her like the moon pulling in the tide. A quick study and a very astute observer of human nature, Sarah watched Yassi work with Nick in her first weeks on the job and quickly learned how to handle our not-always-so-easy-to-work-with child. Sarah started at a particularly difficult time—when Nick was going through an intense hair-pulling phase—and she handled the situation with compassion and patience I have rarely seen. It wasn’t easy, but she rose to the occasion beautifully. Like Yassi, Sarah assimilated to our family’s lifestyle seamlessly. She and our older daughter, Cecilia, share a love of baking, so they often can be found baking together in the kitchen, even on Sarah’s “off” days. They can also be found working out together, watching movies together, or just talking about life. Cecilia describes Sarah as “the older, German version of [her]self,” and I think she’s right. Their relationship is a beautiful thing to behold.

Sarah and Yassi have taught me so much about occupational therapy– and the differences in how it’s practiced in America versus in Germany. The breadth of their experience and the comprehensiveness of their training is truly remarkable. Whenever I feel like I may be asking too much of them with help on some of Nick’s more intimate issues, like toileting and hygiene, they dive right into the task at hand without a moment’s hesitation– the perfect picture of professionalism, competence, and compassion. “This is all part of occupational therapy in Germany,” Sarah has told me. “We help with everything!”

Sarah took the words right out of my mouth. She and Yassi do, indeed, help with EVERYTHING. From everyday things like driving and laundry to the really difficult, above-and-beyond things like dentist appointments (which involve restraining a writhing, kicking, and screaming 53-pound boy) and even help with administering enemas (which are even more fun than dentist visits!), they have helped Nick in every aspect of his life over the past year. And in helping Nick, they have helped our entire family— and helped us at a time when we were beginning to buckle under the crushing weight of some of Nick’s more difficult behaviors. It is not an exaggeration to say that Yassi and Sarah, with their kindness, their competence, and their can-do attitudes, have saved our family’s life. Even better, they’ve become big sisters to our girls, the German daughters that my husband and I never knew we always needed, and the “sun” and the “moon” to our sweet Nick.

Spagnoletti Family