IT'S A BOY!!!

Mrs.LoneGOPinCT | 14 Dec 02 | LoneGOPinCT

[LoneGOPinCT]

I am pleased to announce the birth of our son! He is child #3, boy #2. He was born via C-section one full week before his scheduled birth and two weeks prior to his actual due date. Needless to say he threw us for a loop so it's taken us this past couple weeks to get everything straightened out that we thought we had another week to do.

He and Mrs.Lone are both doing fine. The little guy was born with Down's Syndrome (a surprise to us-no history, both under 35 & no testing during pregnancy because it wouldn't have mattered anyway), however we are very lucky that he doesn't show any signs of coronary or digestive problems that are very common with children with Down's. The combination of him being early and having DS has slowed the closing of two bypass valves in his heart (they exist in all children but generally close up prior to birth, AKA "the hole in the heart"), but the cardiologist is fairly confident that they will close up on their own and his heart looks otherwise very healthy. If not, they run a catheter into the valve and essentially scratch it with a small wire to promote scarring to close it up. He is very attentive and shows good tracking skills, good head and neck movements, no narrowing of the rib cage (also very common in DS kids), and has surpising strength so the pediatrician is very optimistic about his future.

We know it is going to be a tough road but as his Doc says, nowadays there is no reason to rule out anything for children with DS, especially the more mild cases. They are no longer institutionalized and as such have greatly benefitted from a "normalized" environment when it comes to teaching them early on and adapting them to social (i.e. school, friends, family) situations.

Some people don't quite know how to react when we tell them he has DS and in turn seem sympathetic. Trust me, we don't need sympathy. We feel blessed to have this little guy and are facing it head-on. As a few have told us, HIS prayers have been answered. It is all about him, not us. Right now he is like any other newborn. Eat, poop, sleep. We'll tackle any other obstacles as we come upon them.

We are still adjusting, but are coping surprisingly well. He's just such a cute little bugger that it probably helps! So no need to feel sympathetic, but please keep us in your thoughts and prayers to help guide us and give us the strength to keep us on track to best benefit HIM. We already consider ourselves lucky and will do our best to make sure he benefits from it!

Now, have a cigar for me!

[meadsjn]

Congratulations! God bless the bunch of you.

[LisaFab]

Congrats to you Lone! What a great early Christmas gift for you and your family.

[f.Christian]

Tall..big...great is in the heart---blessings!

[CyberAnt]

Your totally RUDE and uncalled for stupid statements explain everything!

You're sitting on your brains ... so sorry, I didn't mean to tax your intelligence!

[trussell]

The information this poster chooses to post to people he considers his friends is his business, not yours. Your opinion of this obviously means squat to him.

Why dont you take your attitude somewhere where it will be appreciated; Like DU.

[CyberAnt]

WHO are you talking about ... you say "his friends is his business, not yours" ...

Who is "his" ...

And ... for your information, I have been on this website 2 years longer than you and I certainly didn't come from DU.

If you don't like my attitude, all you need to do is keep your mouth shut and don't reply to my posts ...??

And ... I'm entitled to my opinion - you don't have to like it or agree with me, you don't even have to talk to me. You can just ignore my posts - that's so simple a solution.

If you're talking about who I think you're talking about, the guy's just mad because I finally called him for his RUDE and insulting statements to me. Why don't you butt out of "our" conversation, which obviously did not include you.

[trussell]

I was talking about the new father. Not the one you are having an insult fight with.

This was his post about how proud he is to be a father to a beautiful baby boy. You are the one coming on here disrupting the post and causing animosity among the posters who are congratulating him.

[CyberAnt]

I'm causing animosity? - to one person! I would hardly call that the whole thread! Get a life!!

[Psalm 73]

Oh, Praise God, and a HUGE bump for life!!!
Have just added you to my prayer list, and will pass this on to other prayer-circles.
God bless you and all of your little ones that God has entrusted to your care, He must love you VERY much!!!!!

[cav68]

God chose you and your family to recieve this wonderful gift as he knows you were a perfect match. Enjoy your life with this new blessing.

[scoopscandal]

Congradulations and God Bless!

Best Regards,

[Marobe]

Wonderful news Lone ! My best wishes and congrats to you and Mrs Lone. What handle will LoneJr be using ?? Better sign him up soon ?
When I get home I'll be glad to burn an offering and quaff a cold one in celebration !
May our Father guide all your steps along the path of life, surrounding you with His guidence, peace and love.

[Vets_Husband_and_Wife]

Congratulations on the arrival of your new ANGEL!!!

I'm not just being cute either!!!

I've worked with DS Children for a lot of years. Both in a Pediatric Unit at a hospital when we would be blessed to have a DS Child,.. and when I worked for Special Olympics.

I've "ALWAYS" said Downs Syndrome Children are a blessing from God. They are Gods Angels walking this earth. I mean that with all my heart!!

In our local grocery store we have a young man named Derek who has Downs, he is such an awesome person. He lives a full life and is a joy to everyone who has the luck to meet him.

The key is who they get as parents. :o) I can tell from reading your post that he was blessed with a great Mom and Dad.

The best thing you can do for your little guy,.. is to treat him as normal as possible. Don't treat him different. He's gonna bring you guys so much joy!!!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I will send prayers that there are not medical problems as he grows. That he will continue to be high functioning and will thrive. (Things sure sound good!!)

I just had to jump in here and congratulate you, because I love these kids.

Give him a hug from this old nurse who misses working with the kids. Then kiss those silky soft cheeks, and gaze into those sweet eyes for this Grandma (We have 16 come mid February) ok?

Gods Blessings from both of us (Hubby loves these kids too, we've had so much fun with them over the years!!!)

Vets

[jocon307]

Congratulations and Merry Christmas to you, your newbie, his mom, and the big brother & sister! What a nice post to see!

[OldFriend]

This is one thread where it would have been best to keep your opinion to yourself.

[OldFriend]

We are so lucky to have you as a freeper. All the best to you and your family.

[CyberAnt]

Well ... you're entitled to your opinion!!!

[LoneGOPinCT]

Thank you all for your kind words, thoughts, and prayers. It was very much the response I expected to see here. I apologize for not getting back sooner. To be honest, I didn't think this got posted because I got booted off before I thought it was done loading.

We've been so busy with different doctor visits that I hadn't had a chance to try reposting, but I didn't have to!

I appreciate the links some of you provided. We read every article we can find and have benefitted greatly from a DS message board that Mrs.Lone came across.

Regarding the pictures of the little bundle, I'll work on it. If I can find a way to anonymously upload some I will (he is THE most adorable little guy you have ever seen!!). As far as his name, all I will say is that it is very Anglo sounding. I'm very protective of my family's privacy and don't want to risk losing that.

Thanks again and we wish you all a Merry Christmas (or your holiday of choice) and a very healthy & prosperous New Year!

Best FRegards,
Lone, Mrs.Lone, & family

[LoneGOPinCT]

CA, I appreciate your concerns about labelling my son (I really do!). As some have stated, his DS will be obvious because of some physical attributes so it will hardly be a secret. We will not allow him to be pigeon-holed however when it comes to the academic and socialization aspects of his life. But it is something that will have to be dealt with as he grows up. He will have no limitations on what he wants to learn or do from us and will be driven just as hard as our other two kids when it comes to his studies.

I agree that labelling can effect a kid's self-esteem and one needs to be cautious when dealing with that, but the fact is his DS is not a hidden condition.

My posting was also somewhat selfish in that I've found FR to be a great place to find answers and advice to any of life's questions. FReepers are always willing to point you in the right direction if asked. And to be quite honest, talking about his DS allows our friends and family members to be better able to help. There are a lot of misconceptions about DS and as parents it is our job to ensure that our little guy will be just as curious, need the same love and attention, and has the ability to learn and do just as much as his older brother and sister.

Thanks again for your concerns,
Lone

[SCalGal]

I was thinking of posting "A Trip To Holland", but you beat me to it!! Congratulations on your own "trip"; the tulips beat anything that Italy has to offer. (My daughter had brain damage as a toddler.)