TwENtY-6???

Hey! Are you sick of me yet?!! Welp.... I'm still here. Everyday... allll month long!

So, today I wanted to address a common question among parents (or others in general)... how will my baby be different?  I think the better question is... how will my baby be the same???

Refer to below picture collage. I made this when Klo Bow was around 4 or 5 months old, I believe. So, tell me, is it easier to say how she is "different" than other babies... or how she is the "same" as others??? She doesn't look too different to me.
We have a curious face. A "get that camera out of my face" face. A super smiley face. And a "yeah, I know I'm gorgeous" face. Yep. She sure reminds me of my first daughter.

 And that's just it. Babies with Down Syndrome are not going to be like all other babies with Down Syndrome. That's not how it works. Down Syndrome does not define who Kloey is. Her family and her unique personality make up who she is. Sure, I do believe that a lot of the Down Syndrome community shares common traits. But really, a child with Down Syndrome is going to be who they are, who they are taught to be. They are going to look more like their family than other children with Down Syndrome. They are going to act more like their family as well. It's the facts of DNA. After all, it's just an extra chromosome folks.

Your baby can do SO MUCH!!! Don't let anyone EVER tell you differently. Will it take them longer? It may. It may not. Just like any child, a child with DS goes at their own pace. They are their own person. Kloey just started to sit up on her own. We are SO proud of her. Other babies with DS start sitting much sooner than that. And still others take even longer. It just depends. Just like any other child. My child will crawl. She will walk. She will be potty trained. She will speak. She will read. She will learn. She will have a LIFE! Down Syndrome is forever a part of who she is BUT it does not define her. She is Kloey Alice Hansen. And she is uniquely her.