Photo by Sara’s Photography
Meet Callan. He’s 8 months old, wild and hilarious. He’s a little guy with A LOT of personality and even more to love. And our boy? He happens to have Trisomy 21 (T21), the most common form of Down Syndrome. We haven’t yet talked publicly about Callan’s condition because quite honestly, it’s not forefront of our minds. It’s just a part of our life – a beautiful part at that. We’ve spent 8 months solely focused on our boy and getting to know him for him. But October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month and what better time to share our story? It’s time we do our part on the path to inclusion and acceptance. And it’s time everyone gets a glimpse at the true gift our boy is.
We celebrate our boy and his accomplishments every single day. He may have to work extra hard but it’s all he knows and he does so without complaint. And he’s THRIVING. We owe that to his tenacity, our outlook and our village. We are raising him to be a good, kind human who knows he can do and be anything – because he can. Go to college? Absolutely. Have a job? Of course. Live on his own? Sure. Why not?? Why shouldn’t he? We have the same expectations for him as we do his brothers. We are committed to his development and are making it a point to foster his independence early on.
Full transparency: When we received Callan’s diagnosis, it rocked our world. There was a complex process of grief and acceptance that I think only parents in that situation can truly understand. Looking back, I know that needed to take place. When we first found out our odds were high, the words the midwife spoke on the phone shattered me and quite literally brought me to my knees. “BAD news,” she said forcefully, with an air of pity. At the time, the fear, the unknown, the worry was so incredibly tangible and debilitating while we worked through it all.
Fast forward to a year later. When I look at our boy, all I can think is BAD news?! I wish I could find that lady and teach her a thing or two about life, love and acceptance (we cut ties immediately). And while I’m at it, all of the other ‘specialists’ who advised us on more than a dozen occasions to proceed in a way that would mean this irreplaceable ray of light wouldn’t be here right now.
Our boy has already changed our lives for the better. And mark my words, he is going to change the world.
House of Kosi 
Great write up on Callan. He is truly an amazing boy. Our lives are certainly richer with this sweet boy in it.
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Aww thank you! I wholeheartedly agree. 🙂
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Callan is such a sweet little boy and such a joy in our lives. He is extremely lucky as well to have you and Mark as his parents….the love and support you give….as well as the time you spend with him also enables him to thrive as he does. Not a day goes by that I look at his precious little face and feel extremely blessed that he is a part of our lives….I really cannot remember life without him in it….💙💙
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I can’t remember either! And I don’t really want to – he’s simply the best. Xoxo
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I’m glad you are sharing your story! 💗
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It’s definitely time. Thank you for all of the support!
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Beautiful piece Kristin 💗 I look forward to following and watching your sweet little guy grow 😍 and hope to meet him in person sooner than later! You’ll be such a great advocate for Callan and for all of your readers about DS and true acceptance and inclusion.
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Thanks so much, Heather!! I really hope you get to meet him soon.
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I have a special place in my heart for little love nuggets with Down Syndrome! You’re life is going to be so rewarding go forward, hard at times, but so rewarding!
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It already has been so far and I cannot wait to see what the future holds! Thank you for following!!
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