Dear Mom, the day my little miracle baby was born the neonatologist in his most pathetic sad voice broke the news to us that they suspected our little girl had Down Syndrome. I asked him, “does she have 10 fingers and toes? Is she breathing?” When his response was yes, I told him “well then give her to me so I can see her”.

What your feeling right now if perfectly normal. The feelings of sadness, uncertainty, grief this is all part of the process. Also know, that These feelings will not last. You may feel glimpses of them as time passes, but feelings of joy, love, adoration and being proud will far outweigh the not so great feelings. 

Worry is a tricky thing, isn't it? It creeps into our hearts, slowly climbing and growing like sticky vines on a hot day. But mama, our hearts were made to beat freely, without the constraints of future fears. Our children teach us to live in the present. No one has a crystal ball…

I never knew life could be so good. You might be scared or sad and I was too. It’s okay and even an important part of the journey to grieve. My baby girl is everything I never knew I always wanted and your baby will be too. After many years and many failed attempts to have a baby, Emmy is the one that stuck.

I’m just going to say it; I did not want a baby with Down Syndrome. Our oldest daughter has autism and I already felt overwhelmed by the demands of being a special needs mom. So with the realization of our 20 week ultrasound, and confirmed blood work solidifying the Down syndrome diagnosis, I was angry!

First off...CONGRATS!! I know life may look a little different for you now, but I wanted to let you know that you don't have to let go of ANY of the dreams you had for your child prior to finding out about that tiny little extra chromosome. Please don't sweep those expectations and BIG dreams under a rug.

It’s ok to cry. To mourn the idea of what you thought your life was going to be with this little one growing inside you. Let it all out, but don’t let it consume you. Move forward because when you look back at this very moment you’ll wonder why you were so worried. 

However your precious one came to be yours, know that you are the exact mom intended for them. No matter how capable or incapable you feel at times, you are theirs and they are yours. Yes they need you, but if your journey is anything like mine, you need them more.

I know you might be frightened right now. I was too. Finding out that my boy was born with Down Syndrome was shocking and difficult to process. There was so much fear about the future and grief over the loss of what I had imagined for my baby's life.

Knowing what I now know, I wish I could go back and give myself a glimpse of what our lives are like now. Yes, our lives are different, but so much better! There is so much more joy, and love and hope. We are stronger, better people because of Eli. He was exactly what God knew our family needed.

I saw the “look” when I looked at my son and knew he had Down syndrome. Then doctors came in and delivered the news. “I’m sorry...” My world turned 180 degrees upside down. He was a rainbow baby and the first boy in my side of family, so expectations were high, then I had a baby with Down syndrome. I kept asking myself Why me? I blamed myself for not be able to have “a normal child”. I felt like a failure…

When we found out we were expecting and saw our child’s heartbeat for the very first time, the artistic side of me decided to paint and frame the saying “I knew I loved you before I met you” for the baby’s room because well, I was in love with this baby. The joy and excitement we felt was so pure but it was stripped from us when we were given the news that our little girl would be born with Down Syndrome.