Confessions of a Rockin mom #30: Fears related to Down syndrome & holidays

This is my final confession of the series (and Down syndrome Awareness Month -2016) and for obvious reasons, it will address Halloween! For Everett’s very first Halloween we dressed him up as a baby skeleton and I bought Vic & I matching skeleton tees (the tees have become a Halloween tradition for us!). We took Everett to a trick or treat event that year and I wore him in a Baby Bjorn while we watched all the bigger kids knocking on doors, saying “trick or treat,” and filling their bags with candy. I remember wondering — Will Everett ever be able to participate in Halloween events like these typically developing kids? I guess I was afraid he wouldn’t experience holidays like everyone else, simply because he has Down syndrome. Boy did I have a lot to learn during those early days.

Fast-forward to Halloween 2016, and Everett is trick-or-treating like a boss. Following the crowd, holding his own bag (most of the time ?), and loading it with goodies! This pic collage is one of our family & Everett celebrating Halloween over the years. To me, this picture looks just like any other family growing and celebrating from year to year. Yes, Everett has DS and sometimes that’s the focus of our day as it comes with ups & downs (pun intended this time!). But 99.9% of the time, he’s just a kid to me and we’re just a “normal” family trying to survive the early years of raising two young boys. Hopefully my confessions throughout this month have taught you the same — our families are way more alike than different. There are some concerning things about DS, but for the most part, there isn’t much to be afraid of. Parenting in general, however, can be very scary at times. With or without an extra chromosome. Happy Halloween everyone…and Happy Down syndrome Awareness Month!