World Down Syndrome Day (3/21)

Today is World Down Syndrome Day because the date is 3/21 (3 copies of the 21st chromosome).  In the years past this day has come and gone without much thought.  Not that celebrating Landon isn't important but I feel like it takes more than just a day.  More than just posing something on Facebook, or Tweeting, or wearing a shirt or button.  I feel like for people to really understand the positives of children and adults with Down syndrome they have to see them out in public doing what every other child and adult are doing.  They have to hear me say, as a parent, that I really love my child, that I wouldn't trade him for anything, that I feel blessed to have him and that he teaches me new things everyday.  People need to see that Down syndrome is not who Landon is, it's just one small aspect of what makes him special.  For some reason this year WDSD has been on my mind a lot more.  Not for the "awareness" reason but more for reflection.  I have just been thinking about Landon.

I was thinking about what I wanted to write in this blog and so many thought came to mind.  Sadness in the thought that 90% or more of unborn babies are aborted just because their parents get a diagnosis.  Sad that number may rise due to new medical technology.  Sad that not everyone gets to experience life watching a child with Down syndrome grow and develop whether that be via a child, grandchild, cousin, niece, nephew, or just close friend.  I have to tell you it is AMAZING.  Now notice I didn't say "easy", that it's not.  But I don't know any parent would tell you that it's easy! BUT I also thought of joy.  Joy in what the Bible says:

Psalm 139:13-16

For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful, 

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you  when I was made in the secret place. 

When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

your eyes saw my unformed body.

WOW!  Did you just read what God said about Landon in the Bible?  It says that he is WONDERFULLY made.  That God created his inmost being (including one extra chromosome).  I love to read those verses and think about how perfectly God made Landon.  Just the way HE wanted him.

Well,  that it.  Just a quick thought from a mom who loves her little boy more than anything.

Happy World Down Syndrome Day

Am I the only one?

There are times when I wonder if a mother of a typical developing child feels the same way I do.  I wonder if other moms notice when their child does some the seemingly smallest task.  I first began to think about this when Landon was working on sitting up.  I had no idea that there were so many steps to this task.  I just thought that one day you looked down at your precious little one and they were sitting.  That was not the case for us...it took lots of work and many weeks of physical therapy to accomplish this goal.  But let me tell you... when it happened, we cheered and clapped like no ones business.  Do moms of typical developing children even notice the first time they see this?  Do they throw a "party" and have a special dinner because of the accomplishment?  I don't know but I know what happened in this family!!

I say all of this to set up the occurrence at speech this week.  Landon has been working so hard on his speech the past 6 months.  He gets therapy at school and then we also take him to private speech at Kluge Children's Rehabilitation Center in Chartlottesville once a week for an hour.  Lately he has been working on saying "ing" verbs in a three word utterance with no prompting.  Ms. Lori, his therapist, shows him a picture and the goal is for Landon to say, for example, "The girl is running".  Many of the pictures he has seen and knows what the verb should be but needs help putting the whole sentence together so Ms. Lori helps him by using sign language.  Well, yesterday Ms. Lori showed him a picture that he had not seen before.  It was of a baby taking a bath.  Landon looked at the picture, immediately said, "Baby is..." and then there was a pause.  You could see the little wheels turning in his head as he was trying to find the right word.  He knew that the word should probably end in -ing which is why there was a pause but he couldn't come up with the right fit so he said "in bath tub".  You would have thought that he just recited the Gettysburg Address.  No, it wasn't exactly what we were trying for but it was so much more.  We clapped, cheered, gave high fives, and praised him. And then it happened.....I began to cry.  My little boy had just said, "Baby is...in bath tub"  all by himself, with no verbal or signed ques.  It was a moment that I will never for get...a moment that I wonder how many moms would have over looked?  I am so thankful that these "little" moments don't pass me by.  I am so thankful that my little boy's hard work pays off.  Honestly..... I'm just proud of him.