Ever the advocate

In this journey with Cora I was thrown into the role of advocate before I felt ready for it.  I fought that role.  I held tight to the comfort of my child and my home and hid within the walls of protection I felt they gave. Then in one sudden movement I was shifted into the advocate role as though I had been wearing it all along.  My walls of protection soon became the foundation for writing the book, advocating for not only my child, but perhaps yours as well.

October is Down syndrome awareness month and I challenge you to ask yourself ,"I am sharing this journey with Cora, what have I done this month to advocate for her?"  or maybe the question is "I am sharing the journey with my child who has Down syndrome, what have I done this month to advocate for my child?"

We are all different and with that comes the reality of having different comfort zones.  I understand that and I respect that, I even cherish that gift of individuality that Creator bestowed upon us all.  Thinking of your own comfort zone, how will you advocate for Cora this month?  How will you advocate for your child if they have Down syndrome?

For me the greatest fear that the word advocate held was the social belief that comes with it. I believed it meant I had to take on the world, become extremely vocal about everything pro Down syndrome and fight like a lioness against everything negatively said or displayed about Down syndrome.  In truth, advocating can be done in small steps or huge leaps.  It can be done in stealth mode or over a PA system.  It can be something as silent as changing your facebook picture to a Down syndrome support picture for the month, or as visible as walking in a Buddy Walk to show your support.

I again challenge you to answer the question I have posed earlier in this post, "What have you done to show your support for Cora and her journey during this month of awareness?" For me, its changing my personal facebook photo to one that says I am a proud mama of a child with Down syndrome.  It was becoming a National Down Syndrome Society Ambassador for Michigan.  It was walking in the Buddy Walk that was three hours away. It was starting the facebook page - The Gifted Choice - to not only promote the book but more importantly to help empower the moms/parents of our beautiful children instead of just focusing on how our children look.  That's my comfort zone.  What is yours?

The beauty of summer

The beauty of this summer has been added to by the many milestones that Cora has succeeded in achieving.  While the days have simply flown by, there have been moments when she has encouraged everyone around her to slow down.

Some of those moments were seen in her ability to randomly say three, four and five word sentences.  Some of those moments happened when she let go of the couch and walked across the living room as though this was an everyday occurrence.  One of the especially heart stealing moments was when she grabbed my face, gave me a kiss and then hugged me while saying "wuv eww".

Yes, this life with Cora continues to offer many opportunities to slow down, relax and just take a breath.  A lesson that I am aware of, but usually the first one to forget.  Full of energy and with a mind that seems to be always be thinking of ways to make things work better I often need that reminder to slow down.

I continue to be blessed with Cora's ability to teach me more life lessons.  Even then I don't know if she is teaching me them or merely adding to what I know and just haven't put into practice.  Either way, I prefer to see the glass partially full and will continue to give the sermon that Cora has taught me many life lessons.

Were you able to slow down this week and have moment where you sipped your coffee and enjoyed the simplicity of the moment?  Were you comfortable in the quietness that enveloped you in that moment or did it make you uneasy? 

Take time for yourself and just breathe.  Take a moment to slow down and listen to what your heart whispers. You could very well be rewarded with a heart fell whisper that says "wuv eww"

 Cora blowing me a kiss as she walks with her stroller.

Sometimes only the fingers work...

Small achievements lead to great victories! 

That is the statement for today.  Cora has struggled with using a fork for a few weeks now, and finally, achieved success.  She was so happy with herself that she waved the fork in the air after getting her piece of scrambled egg on it.  The egg immediately flew off the fork and Cora learned an important lesson.  Swinging a fork makes you loose the food you just put on it!  LOL.

Not to be undone by the fork, she went right back to trying again and was successful at getting another piece on her fork and fed herself.  This is  a wonderful milestone for Cora and I spent the greater part of a half hour clapping and encouraging her whenever she was successful.

She now spends most of her mealtime alternating between fork use and hand use.  It is a great victory for Cora as she was tenacious and kept trying until she succeeded. 

Remember its not how fast you run the race, its finishing it that really brings on the feeling of accomplishment.

Advocate with Love

Its not "get -downs- with that"
It is "get down with that"

 Its not " get -downs- from there"
It is "get down from there"

 Its not "turn that frown upside- downs-"
It is "turn that frown upside down"

Its not " a downs child"

It is " a child with Down syndrome"

 

Its not "Downs, Downs syndrome, or even Downsy"
It is not an opportunity for anger when you hear these words.   However, it is an opportunity for education and awareness. 

 When someone repeats a term they have heard about our children with Down syndrome, instead of getting defensive and angry, use that moment for your own personal growth and the other person's growth.

 Educate them on how your child is a child first and foremost. Advocate for them to see your child as a human first and to see the Down syndrome second. Help them too understand.   Remember this: understanding, awareness, compassion, acceptance and listening cannot be heard over anger, but it will be heard through love.

 

 

Been a long road

Since publishing the book, Cora and I have been very busy.  The positive response to the book, via emails and letters, continues to flow everyday.  For this I am thankful and grateful.  My biggest hope with the book is that is will help educate people and open their eyes.

When looking at Cora I truly don't want someone to focus on Cora's Down syndrome.  I would like them to see her for what she is...a beautiful and delightful little girl.

I continue to strive to educate people.  It is my belief that ignorance breeds hate while education paves the road for acceptance and understanding.  I have become an ambassador for Michigan for the National Down Syndrome Society and I am learning how to do this to the best of my abilities.  In continuing to educate myself I can continue to educate others.  I didn't know over two years ago where my path would lead, but today I am a willing advocate for my daughter and if you are reading this and you have a child with Down syndrome, than I am willingly advocating for you child as well.

Today marks the day of the national press releases for the book.  With that knowledge I sent prayers for positive minds and open hearts in all who are touched by that press release.  When I received a list of everyone that was receiving a notice today, I was astounded by the number of contacts.  It took up 22 pages on my word program!  Yes, that is a great deal of people who will now be aware of the book.  Yet, that is also a great deal of people who are being offered the gift of sharing this book with everyone they know, but media, newspapers, radio stations, ect.

If, in that sharing, one mother gains the courage she needs for raising a child with Down syndrome than the book is serving its purpose.

So today, while this has been a long road for Cora and I , it marks a new part of our journey.  One that is filled with continual blessings.

A book giveaway for The Gifted Choice

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Gifted Choice

by Katrina Head

Released April 17 2013

Giveaway ends in 29 days (June 27, 2013)
2 copies available, 81 people requesting

Motor skill development

I have decided I would allow Cora the pleasure of crawling around outside.  She has outgrown her ankle braces and I was looking for ways to strengthen her hip muscles.  I figured, if her hips were stronger this strength would travel down her legs to her ankles and feet.  It surely couldn't hurt to try my theory.

With that in mind, I took Cora outside and allowed her to wander to her hearts content around the yard.  This  involved many stops to explore a fallen leaf, a rock, a sand pile, a clod of clay, a clump of dropped hay, a growing pin tree and following a slow moving cat down the driveway to the barn.

My idea seemed to be working and Cora loved the new found freedom of being allowed to roam non-stop with just a little direction from Mama.  As Cora continued to explore I watched her climbing over things, around things and under things.  It gave me opportunities to show her new signs/ new words and enabled me to see the change in her leg strength and development of her motor skills right in front of me.

Within an hours time Cora's legs that were being used in a side crawling motion, were now directly under hips with toes pointing to the ground instead of to the sides.  She has always been a strong crawler and can scoot along on her booty with the best of them, but the obstacles and change in terrain offered her body some quiet signals that it needed to fix what has been weak.

Today my life lesson was agreeing that the braces help Cora, but mother nature was able to provide her the exercise that was also needed.  While I continue to look at the resources offered for Cora, I also continue to find that my mother's instincts are still working in her favor.  My life lesson?  Keep following my mama intuition because it offers Cora growth as well as a fun time!