I have been taking this month reminiscing about Andrew's growth and development this month, mostly in honor of National Down Syndrome Month. I am usually so busy that I don't have the time to look back, only press forward to get through the day. I rarely even think about the next day until getting ready for bed...and then remembering something important that Andrew needs for school that I forgot to take care of. Taking the time to look back on our journey so far has brought me to tears many times. The joys of Andrew reaching his milestones just when I was so frustrated for both of our efforts to getting him there has been enough to start the waterworks and then seeing the photos of him sitting independently for the first time and when he finally took his first steps kept me crying with happiness throughout the day. While I hate watching him struggle to learn new tasks, I am awed and proud of how hard he tries to learn something new. His teachers and therapists at school confirm that he tries so hard to please and will sit and work at something until he finally figures it out. He is now learning to use scissors at school and I keep receiving beautiful pages of artwork featuring strips of paper cut into jagged lines and uneven circles cut around an animal that he has colored for me. I look forward to opening his backpack everyday to see what special project he did that day and he shows them to me and excitedly points to something on the page and tells me what it is. I'm such a proud mom, and love to share Andrew's accomplishments with anyone who asks me about him.
Today, I read a short story and then watched a photograph slideshow tribute that a Connecticut mom posted today in honor of her son with Ds. Another mom who is so proud of her son and his accomplishments. It is a beautifully written story and the photos are truly AMAZING! Danielle's goal is to "educate the mother of the unborn child who was just diagnosed with DS." While I can certainly relate to her feelings of instant acceptance for her son, no matter what her diagnosis, I'm pretty sure that many families who receive a diagnosis of Ds, either prenatally or postnatally, do not have the same reaction. Chris and I have always felt, from the moment that we received Andrew's diagnosis, that there was a God that chose us to parent Andrew. I once say the following saying posted by someone on Facebook and I firmly believe that it is true:
"God doesn't give children with special needs to stronger or special people. He gives children with special needs to ordinary weak people! An then gives them the strength! Raising a child with special needs doesn't take a special family, IT MAKES A SPECIAL FAMILY!!!!" I have found that Andrew teaches me much more that I could ever teach him...the way a smile could turn someone's day around, the beauty in a just-fallen leaf, the amazement of a spider spinning a web between the trees, and the sheer delight when you hear a child laugh. Yes, the beauty and joy of raising a child with Ds can be challenging sometimes, but the rewards at the end of the day far outweigh our challenges and I feel blessed to have been chosen as Andrew's mother. God doesn't make mistakes and I am thankful for the decisions He has made so far and He will continue to guide us through Andrew's life so we can know that we can make the best choices for him as he gets older.
I am sharing the link to Danielle's story and photo slideshow. It is well worth the time to take a look at it. Take a few minutes and remember the births of your children and the miracle of it all.
http://photopeach.com/album/i37o39?ref=fb
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