Category: Parenting

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Down With It: Modifying Life For My Daughter

There are so many things you prepare for as an expectant parent. In fact, these days you can sign up for something called a baby registry that you yourself design and that people spend money on to make these necessities (and wants) a reality for you and yours. There are diaper genies, Dr. Brown’s bottles, nursery mobiles, and everything else under the sun to make a baby welcome in this world, or to make your life as a parent that much easier. But nobody, and no registry, prepares you for having a child with Down syndrome.

I talked about my daughter Madeline in Breaking it Down: My Special Daughter, and how shocked we were as parents even when we initially suspected shortly after her birth that she had Down syndrome. She has continued to surprise us as she has grown from a little ball of joy into a big girl at 4 1/2 years old now. Some days I honestly don’t know where the time went, and on others I wonder why it hasn’t gone fast enough. Continue reading “Down With It: Modifying Life For My Daughter”

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Phone Reservations

My seven-year old daughter gets phone calls from boys. Uh oh. And I guess I thought this would happen so far down the line that I hadn’t really considered how to react to it. Luckily I’m not alone, and my more down-to-earth wife is my partner in figuring these things out, even though she too hadn’t thought about it prior to it actually happening. I think we were so concerned about her actually making friends that we didn’t realize what would happen when she did. And she has, the best of which just happens to be a boy.

First off, this kid is just as talkative as she is, which is quite a feat indeed, something I never thought existed in nature. When he calls here, they could go on for hours; and that brings me to the first rule we had to enact. When it was a school night we would only give them 20 minutes to talk, or however they wanted to spend the time. I say this last part because they will often make strange noises on the phone to each other. I have no idea if these noises have more meaning than simply noises, if they’re speaking Japanese to each other, or if something else is going on. But I have accepted it as a part of the conversation, and as such, part of the 20 minutes. Continue reading “Phone Reservations”

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Payback

My mother cackled on the other end of the telephone line when I told her what we were dealing with. My seven-year old daughter had thrown a major fit when asked to go to sleep on her own, sobbing loudly in her bed, which in turn was keeping my four-year old awake. And, of course, … Continue reading Payback

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A Delicate Balance

Having a child with Down syndrome is an exercise in patience and understanding. Having a child with ADHD takes a different kind of patience and understanding. Having both of them fighting for and needing your time and attention is about five steps above dealing with them individually. Sometimes it’s enough to make me want to … Continue reading A Delicate Balance