Our story is probably quite different than most. We did not find out that Allie had Down Syndrome until she was 18 months old.

Of our 3 children Allie is the only one that I was not considered “advanced maternal age”. We chose not to have any testing done for several reasons. First- we would not have considered termination if we found out there were any issues. Second- I had heard of too many people who had false positives and spent their pregnancy worrying. I wanted to enjoy every minute of being pregnant.  And third- I really never thought it would happen.

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Teya’s first months I remember only in fragments.  Often not chronologically, but heartfelt.

 

My husband’s voice interrupts my anxiety as I lay on the operating table; I cannot feel anything, although I am aware of the surgeon tending to my wound.

 

Our second tiny miracle is introduced to our world for the first time.  “She has my grandma’s almond eyes.”  I hear the smile in her daddy’s voice, despite the stress of her arrival five weeks before our scheduled c-section.

 

This moment is interrupted by the doctor, who is suddenly and uncomfortably leaning over the table.  He looks at me awkwardly; quite emotionlessly, he says, “There is never an easy time to say this, so you might as well know now; your baby has signs of having Down syndrome.”

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Caleb was a surprise all the way around.  Going back late summer 2006, when I hadn’t been feeling quite right.  “I think I’ll buy a pregnancy test”, I said to David, my husband.  He outright laughed.  We had been told by my OB that I was really not able to get pregnant.   Our daughter was 17 years old, and looking at graduating soon and going off to college.

The next day, I sat in the bathroom, stunned.

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We welcomed our awesome baby, Ethan, on December 11, 2016. We should have known he was going to be our very special love in the way he decided to make his appearance.

I had a c-section scheduled for December 14 and was so excited for the catchy birthdate my son was going to have: 12/14/16.

Little did we know that Ethan had other plans about what he was going to bring us. Despite coming a few days early, Ethan was a big healthy boy at 8lbs. 14oz. I can remember hearing the doctor comment on his amazingly huge cheeks when she delivered him in the operating room.

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