“We were at a party. A little boy came up to me. ‘Why isn’t Riley talking to me? I’m asking him questions and he won’t answer me.’ Our son has Down syndrome. After learning Riley will be going to mainstream school, one parent asked, ‘How will he be able to get along with other children?’ It was like BANG. He is his own character, the same as every child.”
‘All babies born premature are floppy, aren’t they? We never noticed looking at our beautiful baby boy.’: After first child is ‘born sleeping,’ mom has son with Down syndrome, he’s the ‘life of the party’
‘My daughter Penny is not a ‘mistake.’ She is perfection.’: Down syndrome mom explains the difference between ‘inclusion’ and helping special needs individuals ‘belong’
“People often feel awkward asking questions about my daughter. Penny gets sidelined from activities and events because they don’t know how to welcome her. The message of inclusion is, ‘We want you here with us.’ But belonging emerges from a deep desire to not just include the ‘other,’ but to love and be loved.”
‘Really? Can I? I’ll be there at 2:30 a.m.’ He seemed surprised. He didn’t expect me to say yes.’: Young woman moves in with man she found on Facebook after chance encounter in McDonald’s, ‘I found a love I never knew existed’
“When I first met him, I was cleaning tables at McDonald’s. He was so sexy and had the most beautiful blue eyes I’d ever seen. And he just HAD to hold them on mine. We parted ways, but later I found him on social media. I essentially moved in that first night.”
‘The baby is going to suffer. We can take care of this right now.’ They told me to abort him.’: Mom says she came to ‘peace’ with her son’s Down Syndrome diagnosis, he became a ‘warrior’
“’I don’t know what’s wrong, but please fix him!’ She was treating my son like a mole that could simply be removed and thrown in the trash. I knew I had to protect him. Handing him over to the surgeons knowing I may never see my baby boy again was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. We are better people because of Eli.”
‘Addie will never walk,’ they said. She took 4 steps at a time. ‘She is WALKING!’: Mom says her daughter is an ‘incredible miracle’ with a ‘fighting spirit’ despite Hydrocephalus diagnosis
“You don’t know God! You don’t know what He can do!’ I know doctors have knowledge, but maybe, just maybe, God has other plans. And they were wrong! I am proud of Addie and her fighting attitude.”
‘What drugs did you take while pregnant?’ I locked us indoors and REFUSED to bring her out.’: Mom describes daughter with limb difference as ‘devastating’ at first, then ‘her biggest joy’
“’What a freak. Stay away from that little weird girl.’ People can be cruel. But my husband said, ‘Look at her. You have a beautiful daughter.’ She gives her siblings a run for her money. She is different, not less.”
‘He has what? Will he walk? Talk?’ I mourned the life we were supposed to have.’: Mom gave up on ‘life she imagined’ as son battles undiagnosed genetic disorder, eye condition
“The more severe cases pass away by the age of 1. ‘What? Pass away? Not my child.’ I was devastated I wasn’t going to have the life I imagined. But there is such power in accepting this new life.”
‘My disabled child is not an ‘angel.’ He is not ‘celestial’ or ‘heavenly.’ He’s just like you, fully human.’: Down syndrome mom claims son ‘wasn’t sent here to teach you or me something’
“People often refer to my disabled son with angelic, heavenly labels. I’m his mom. I’ve seen things. I know better. When we project this ‘heavenly’ identity onto people with disabilities, we unknowingly strip their humanity and make them more ‘other.’ My son just wants to be loved for exactly who he is.”
‘What the hell did you do!’ He looked at me. ‘You’ll likely be planing a funeral.’: Mom describes years of ‘medical issues’ with son, but he still ‘beats all odds’
“’We did find a few things wrong.’ They rushed him into emergency surgery. ‘There’s something wrong with the baby’s heart.’ Once again, we were faced with the possibility of not bringing him home. Once again, he beat all the odds and baffled all the doctors.”
‘The doctor sat down and began to cry. ‘It could be nothing,’ she said. But we knew it was something.’: Mom describes shock of finding out her son’s ‘life-changing’ genetic disease
“One of the nurses came in the room and said to me, ‘If you guys were my kids, I would tell you to go straight to the children’s hospital. Something is wrong with your baby.”
