Sometimes the tears come when I least expect them. People ask me all the time how I stay so strong and how I am dealing with the reality of my son having Down Syndrome. My response to them is " Perfect"!! How can I not be perfect? He is our son and he is the most beautiful thing in the world. God gave him to us. We were meant to be his parents. As I read stories and hear other people's stories about there children that have Down Syndrome, some of them are in denial about everything. I question those people. How can you be in denial about your own child. Let me tell you. Just because your child has a disability you should not love them any less then you would a normal child. Again I HATE when people say he is not "NORMAL" my son is as normal as any other child will be.

Yes Dylan has Down Syndrome, but that doesn’t change how I love him, or how I treat him, or what my dreams and expectations are for him. In fact, you may be surprised to know that my dreams and expectations for Dylan are the same as the ones you have for your child…I expect Dylan to go to school and do well and eventually find employment which he loves and is good at…I dream for Dylan to find his soul mate and fall in love and get married…I hope that Dylan grows up knowing that his friends and family support him and love him…Doesn’t sound so different than what you dream for your children, does it? So today I ask you, does it really matter that my child has an extra chromosome? Does that make his life worthless? Were all of those tears worth while? Or was I just scared of the unknown…Did I have the same preconceived notion of what Down Syndrome is as you? Yes, I did…I thought Dylan would be a child forever…I thought Dylan would be a burden to our family…I thought wrong. Dylan is a joy…he is our world. Just like your child…More alike than different…That’s what I want people to know today! Happy 2 Month Birthday to our beautiful baby boy Dylan!!

2 Months

Today Dylan is 2 months old. I cannot believe how fast time goes. Dylan is the most sweetest, gentle, loving little boy ever! Greg and I just love him so much. He is starting to make his little noises like he is talking and he is smiling at Greg and I everyday! He eats just about 4 ounces every time he eats which is 5 times a day and he is sleeping through the night. He loves his swing and loves to go on walks. The last time we went to the doctor which was 3 weeks ago he weighed 7 pounds 14 ounces. Our next appointment is Wednesday and I am sure he is well over 8 pounds now. Happy 2 month birthday Dylan. Mommy and Daddy love you very much!

Home

So I can finally write to tell everyone that we are officially "HOME OWNERS" It has been a dream and long time waiting for Greg and I. We started looking about 4 months ago and had put in about 15 offers. By the tenth offer Greg and I were getting really frustrated. But we prayed about it and new that when it was the right one it will happen and sure enough it did. We bought the most perfect house for us and cannot wait to move in. We have a lot of upgrades to do on it but with the help of my dad and brother in law we will make this house perfect! Our family loves projects like these. We hope to move in by the middle of October. That is our goal. We want to have this finished before Dylan's surgery so he can recover in his new home. Ever since we got approval on our house my husband has wanted to spend every waking hour at Lowe's and of course I tag along. This will be a lot of fun and we are very excited!!!!

Daddy and Dylan Waling Around Lowe's

Busy, Busy, Busy

These past two weeks have been pretty crazy around here for the Lopez family. We have had doctor's appointments, we visited Greg's Lopez side of the family so everyone could meet Dylan, we have been going to the beach, we had a dinner date with Grandpa and much more fun things. Dylan is pretty much on a routine now. He is 8 weeks old today and is sleeping through the night. He usually goes to bed between 8 and 10 and does not wake up till 6:00am. I know some of you may be asking, what the heck??? I don't know what I did but he has been doing this now for the past 3 weeks now. I just put him down one night and he did not wake up. Let me tell you it is pretty nice! Here are a few pictures from the last 2 weeks. I thought it would be easy trying to keep up with a blog with an 8 week old but it is not as easy as I thought.

Auntie Chris and Uncle Tony

Grandma Lopez

Beach Day With Grandpa and Auntie Carly

Back To The Doctor's Again

Loves His Baths

Logan and Paige Come To Visit

Dylan and Mommy Time

Comparison

So before Dylan was born Greg and I tried to gather baby pictures of the two of us so we could see who Dylan would look like when he was born. My mom had some pictures of me but Greg's mom could not find any. When Dylan was born with Down Syndrome those look a likes kind of went in the other direction. Down Syndrome children will have your genes but for the most part won't have your eyes, ears, lips, chin and really any other features. They can have other features like your hair, height and skin color. In the hospital Dylan looked so much like his daddy, I still could not believe that he was a down baby. As we got home and now Dylan being 7 weeks I still think he looks like his dad and has very mild features of the down characteristics. When we went to his Grandma's last weekend to visit the Lopez family his Grandma had a baby picture of Greg and I was right, Dylan looks just like his daddy. Of course again the features are a little different with Dylan being Down Syndrome but he is the cutest little boy ever!!!

Four Benefits Of Understanding Your Uniqueness

“Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.” (Psalm 139:14 NLT

Once you understand your shape, it explains how you respond to authority, how you handle criticism, how you deal with confrontation, how you make friends, how you deal with guilt, why you get close to people or why you don't get close to people. Your shape explains what makes you mad, sad, worried, happy — because it's you!

There are four benefits of discovering and building your life around your “S.H.A.P.E.” (your spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality, and experiences):

1. It reduces stress. When you are confident in how you are shaped, you stop comparing yourself to other people. Instead, you build on your strengths, recognize your limitations, maximize what you're good at, and don't worry about the rest. It's a guaranteed stress reducer!

2. It increases success. Success is not making a lot of money; it’s knowing God's will and being right in the center of it. It’s being what God meant you to be. It's figuring out who you are and then being you!

3. It deepens satisfaction. A satisfying life is when you are doing what you're shaped to do. Freedom comes from doing what you're gifted to do and enjoying what God made you to be. When you build your life on God’s shape for you, you feel the love of God a whole lot more because you're in harmony with his plan.

4. It builds self-esteem. There's an epidemic of low self-esteem in our society today. Studies say that over 50 percent of people are in the wrong jobs. I believe that genuine self-esteem is not built on positive thinking but on two biblical truths: First, you matter to God and, second, you were shaped by God for a purpose.

Dylan Update

Wow what a week!!! This week has been so crazy for me with doctors appointments for Dylan and of course it had to be one of the hottest weeks of the year. I just hate having to drag Dylan around when it is hot out.

So this week we went to his regular pediatrician, his cardiologist, got his blood work done and had some therapy. Poor guy has been put through the ringer, but he did great! Dylan weighs 7 pounds 14 ounces ( Almost 8 Pounds ) still a little guy but he is growing. When we went to see his pediatrician she asked me to do some tummy time with him because he was favoring one side of his neck and we need to make sure the other side gets some strength too. We had already been doing this from what our therapist said because it will help his muscle tone in the long run. As I may have mentioned before down babies have a lower muscle town and it takes them a little longer to get strength to crawl, walk and hold there head up. So when we put Dylan down on the table our doctor could not believe how much already at 6 weeks our little man was holding his head up. She specifically said " Michelle I have down babies at 6 months that come in here and cannot even do what Dylan is doing" Go Dylan!!! He is our little fighter and is going to be a very strong boy. As far as Dylan's heart condition http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/health/a/avsd/ his cardiologist was very happy with how he was doing. He listened to his heart and did not have any heart failure, which is what he refers to when the blood in his heart is pumping to hard which causes his oxygen and breathing to become faster and he does not have that. His heart rate was 130 which is just what it should be at this age even with out his heart condition. We have an appointment in 4 weeks to meet with the cardiologist again and will do another echo on his heart to follow up and at this point he wants to refer us to the surgeon at Choc and schedule to have his surgery in October. The doctor said that his heart is not that bad to have surgery at 3 months but defiantly feels that 4 months will be perfect.

I have known that this day will come but the reality of it has not set in. When the doctor told me that he will need to have surgery in October I just sat in my car after leaving his appointment and cried. I am so sad for him. I don't want to see him go through this. I wish I could go have the surgery for him. My heart hurts for him. I love him so much! We know Dylan will be in the best care of the doctors and they do these surgery's all the time. As much as I am dreading this day more then anything, I will be so glad it is over so we can move on and get him healthy and strong! With the love and support of our family and friends we will get through this. Dylan is a fighter and he will do great!

Friday Camera Roll - Are Week In Pictures

Many Favorite Faces and Places

Greg and I have been obsessed with loving on the many faces that Dylan makes these days and of course trying to take shots of every single one of them where ever we are.We happend to get a shot of him sucking on his thumb and it was the cutest thing in the world!!! Greg and I love that he is now getting a little bigger and finally showing a little personality!

I Have A Voice

Last night as I do every night when I lay in bed I read blogs, articles and sometimes watch video's on Down Syndrome. It helps me to educate myself and Greg a little bit more everyday. There is such a huge community of Down Syndrome children and I love it! As I was reading last night I came across this video and It is awesome and it touched my heart so much that I wanted to share it with everyone.

" To see a world through eyes that don't judge, to love with hearts that don't discriminate, to look at people for who they are and accept them for simply that. This is how children and adults with Down Syndrome see the world. They love, They feel, They love unconditionally. They are role models and all the inspiration anyone needs"

On The Go

This week has been a busy week for Dylan and I. I have felt a little cooped up in my house lately so I have been wanting to get out and do things. We have gone to the park, the pool and the mall with my sister and the kids and some friends. Dylan loves to be outside! I cannot wait till he gets bigger so he can actually hang out and play. Here are a few pictures from our busy week so far!!

My Sister, Caleb and Chloe at the park

Dylan with his cousin Chase-They are 5 months apart

Being Silly

Chloe and I on my birthday

Chloe and Strider-My best friend Ahna's Son. These 2 could date one day!!

Dylan sleeping in his bassinet-This is how he roles