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.