“There’s a time you got to go and show you’re growin’ now you know about the facts of life”
– The Facts of Life theme song
It took even me a long time to learn all of these things about Down syndrome. I am still learning to this day. I am also open to any and all questions. I would rather someone ask – no matter what it is – and start a dialogue about any of these facts than to have you sit there and wonder. Please feel free to reach out at any time!
Brighton works every day and we cheer so much and so loud that we even scare him a little sometimes.
When people hear Brighton has a twin sister the first question is usually “And is she….” And I say “No, she doesn’t have Down syndrome. She’s typically developing” or something similar. I think so far most or all people have stopped before asking if she’s “normal” because, really, all our kids are “normal”. Each one of them is unique and that uniqueness is their own personal normal. So asking if Goldie is normal would make it sound like Brighton is abnormal, which he very much is not. He’s amazing. All our kids are amazing.
This year, I will be reading books to all of the classes at our kids’ school! Brighton started attending two days a week back in January, and they have been so welcoming and supportive in raising awareness. We’ll also be rocking our socks!
And we get to spend every day with one of these amazing people! We are so lucky!
Smile!!
It may be called Down syndrome but there’s nothing down about it! (Also, depending on where you are in the world, some countries do still use the apostrophe and call it “Down’s syndrome”.)
Brighton did not have any heart defects. We started echo-cardiograms while the twins were still in utero and are still seen every 4 months to keep tabs on him. Because of his pulmonary hypertension, the cardiologist likes to keep an eye on his heart and how it’s working and he’s been doing great.
Brighton: His Day 