New Kids on the Block

Meet Sheridan, Gabby, John Michael, and of course Joaquin. These are the new kids on the block....or at least the newest members in Sacramento with a little genetic enhancement as Sheridan's mom, Lisa, calls it.

We met last month for a playdate and had a wonderful time. I can't wait to watch these kids grow up together and I look forward to forming a lasting bond with the moms as well. It feels good to have our own little community of families on the same journey.

Picked Apart

Wowza!

I am shocked at how my baby was handled just the other day. I have to leave out some of the details out of privacy for the person involved but I had to literally hold my jaw closed when I saw how Joaquin was treated the other day.

So, how do I explain this without giving away too many details? We met someone for the first time who works in the field of special needs and academia. I've been looking forward to meeting this person based on reputation. I had really high hopes and expectations. We had an opportunity to meet the other day.

This person held out their arms to hold (I thought) Joaquin when we first met. Instead of holding or hugging or talking with Joaquin, this person proceeded to inspect my child. First his feet were grabbed, looking for the sandal gap. Then his hands, literally turning both hands upside down to see if there was a simian crease. Then his shirt was lifted up to look for I don't know what. Then this person tried to get the baby to stand up on the table facing out and mentioned something about the fact that Joaquin had pretty good tone. All this time, Joaquin is trying to make eye contact with this person and arching his back to try and face this person. Joaquin is extremely curious, social and loves to look and hold people's faces but there was no opportunity for him to do this as he was being inspected. At this point, Joaquin was reaching for me so I grabbed him and this person proceeded to tell me that Joaquin had a mild strabismus but it "looked good" and that his facial features were mild. Then this person asked me if Joaquin had trouble with his cervical spine. Oh. My. Gosh. I had no idea my baby was going to be this persons next guinea pig or anatomical model. Joaquin is a baby for goodness sake. A baby....first. A baby who is darn cute....second. A baby who has Down Syndrome....third. We weren't at the doctor's office, we weren't at a clinic. We were at a youth sports event with other children and families that were all hanging out. It was so surreal.

After this really crazy, unusual, uncomfortable few minutes of interacting, this person then proceeded to tell me that Joaquin was a real cutie. Thanks.

I was really quite shocked by the whole interaction and a little confused and puzzled. I can understand that this person was probably just curious and wanted to see the "markers" up close and in the flesh. Maybe this person was "showing off" a bit and wanted me and those around to know just how smart this person could be. I don't know. What I do know is that my hopes and expectations were met with a big dose of disappointment. I guess not everyone is blessed with the sensitivity chip.

My First Step

I took my first step to educate a friend about the "R" word yesterday.

I had to do it. There have been too many times I have let it go (not with this one particular person but with friends or family) and I decided that I HAVE to take a step towards educating my circle of friends when the opportunity is there. In the interest of privacy, I will omit the details of this specific interaction, but I will say that I did speak up and feel that I did it in a way that was non confrontational and hopefully effective.

Now it helped that this all happened on Facebook so I was able to do it with typed words. When I have to say something live and in person it will most definitely be more challenging. But, I took my first step and it feels good.

Fun Times!

Joaquin loves the slide!

Angel Face

I could stare at this face for eternity. His long dark lashes. His gorgeous skin color. His perfectly shaped head. His adorable button nose. His soft kissable cheeks. He's so beautiful to me.

Tres Amigos

Look how tall Joaquin is getting!

Milestones

Another milestone!

We celebrate every single one.

Joaquin is officially sitting up on his own and by this I mean he is able to go from a prone position all the way to sitting up to play...all by himself. It's really cute and this milestone kind of caught us off guard. A nice surprise!

A Beautiful Couple

A few fellow bloggers discovered this amazing photographer who often photographs children and adults with DS. Her name is Conny Wenk and she just shot what looks to be an engagement session. I have to share it too. Look at this gorgeous couple.

Andrea & Christian

I can't wait to see Joaquin grow up to be a handsome young man!

Have You Ever Seen a Dancing Brobee?

Cutie Pie

Hi there!
My family thinks I'm pretty cute. What do you think? Hope you all had a beautiful Easter holiday!

Rub A Dub-Dub

Three Boys in a Tub!

Disneyland

Joaquin made his first trip to Disneyland this past Friday in honor of his Big Brother Diego's 6th birthday. We were at the park when it opened at 8 am and we left the park close to 11 pm. That's almost 15 hours of Disney. Whew!!

Joaquin was an absolute angel throughout the trip. The highlight for the whole family was "It's a Small World". We were able to time it perfectly after a little nap and he was completely intrigued by the whole ride. He looked up and around and side to side the entire ride. It must have been the music, the lights, the repetition and the adorable doll faces smiling at him. It was a priceless moment for the entire family.

I have absolutely no pictures to post from our day because we forgot the battery pack for our camera. We did buy a disposable camera but who knows when we'll get those developed!

I found it interesting that I didn't see a single child with Down syndrome at Disneyland that day. I saw two adults, one who was in a wheelchair, but no children or babies. I was really looking too.

It was great to take the whole family on a vacation, even if it was only for one day. It was good for us to get away from the usual grind, take a day off of school and therapies and just enjoy our time together. It really is the Happiest Place on Earth.