Book Review

I laughed, cried, and couldn't put it down. This book made me feel "normal", especially since we are approaching Bailey's 2nd birthday and those thoughts of her birth and first 2 years are in my mind constantly. Lately, I've been happy, overwhelmed, stressed, and doubting my abilities as a mom and wife. This book, as well as the Gifts book, have been so helpful in allowing me to understand my own feelings and uncertainties. Thankfully, we didn't have issues with Bailey being a preemie like Thomas, but we did have to endure several months of hospital stays due to her heart issues. Like the Soper family, the diagnosis of Down syndrome for us was not received until after birth. It was comforting to know another mom felt the same emotions I felt when Bailey was born. The excitement of a new child, the sadness due to "mourning" the child you didn't have, and the stress and overwhelming feeling of having a child with medical complications. I love seeing Thomas and his siblings grow to love each other. I loved seeing websites which were very familiar to Kathryn Soper during her research were the same as those I used. The help I received from downsyn.com is more than I ever received from the medical community. I will be forever grateful for the families on that website for the advice and support they gave, and continue, to give. I also enjoyed reading the last few chapters which make reference to the Gifts book, and the process she went through in gathering stories and getting the book on the shelf. I remember going to Barnes and Noble while Bailey was in the hospital. We were looking for something that would give us hope, and Gifts did just that. So, Kathryn Soper got me through birth, diagnosis, and first year... now, I can only hope we'll see something about the toddler days.

Trish