The First Ever Down Syndrome Carnival

Welcome to the first ever Carnival of Down syndrome. I hope it will be only the first in a long line of carnivals, and the beginning of many friendships. By gathering together the work of several bloggers who parent children with Down syndrome, I hope that we could share the joy that these children are to those of us who love them. My offering to begin the carnival is the story of my entry into this community, A Special Mother is Born an article I published in a parenting magazine about how my Christina, now five, changed my life forever.

A mom named Christina shares her daughter Kallie's birth story here, she shares how an unexpected diagnosis of Down syndrome has brought such love into her life, and her belief that God never sends us something we can't handle. Leslie, the Joyful Mother of Six Children shares in the Eyes of a Child how her daughter Eliana's birth has effected her family. Her friend Hollie, wants us to read another lovely post of hers, where she details the heartbreaking procedure of holding your little child's arm for blood tests. That really terrifies me, but Leslie is brave and sustained by her strong faith in God.

Rachel from 100 Lessons I've Learned from Jennifer shares The First Lesson she has learned from her special daughter.
Kristi, over at Above All I Could Ask or Imagine tells us about her son's 7th birthday. She says, "I do not know if this makes sense...but God understands my heart. Thank you, Lord, for giving us the gift of all of our children. May they all grow up totally sold out to you. Thank you, especially on this day of remembrance and celebration, for J and the treasure he is to our family!"
Alice at has shared articles from three women with Down syndrome who inspired her, in Ups and Downs. A talented author about Down syndrome, and contributor to Gifts, Mothers Reflect on How Children with Down Syndrome Enrich Their Lives, Jennifer Graf Groneberg at Pinwheels has a post Sweet Sleep about listening for her son's sleep apnea that I most certainly could relate to, having stayed up many hours listening to see if Christina had an apnea.

Catherine has a moving montage entitled, A Life Worth Living. Mindy tells a story about going through medical testing with her son Liam in Sharp Pointy Sticks.

Tara Marie Hintz, beautiful Emma Sage's mom has a favorite website with lots of resources for people with disabilities to share. It's called, "disability is natural". Michelle at Big Blueberry Eyes responds to a comment about her reaction to her daughter Kayla's diagnosis of Down syndrome. This is a conversation that most of us have had, and Michelle handles it with grace and insight.

Reasoned Audacity's Charmaine Yoest wrote about Sam Ingersoll's son Gabriel, and how he was inspired to start Gabriel's Angel Network to raise Down syndrome awareness. Just watch this amazing video Sam produced for new parents of a child with Down syndrome.

Donna Wirth at My Nesting Place reviews the book Gifts and shares her love for working with children with Down syndrome. Jodie at Jodie's thoughts has a post which was published on Beliefnet. Its about three words that can change the world.

Francine mom of Two Pirates and a Princess has some great photos of little Miss Sofia.
Lianna of Life with Gabriel shares, " Leticia, I just read your beautiful post about Christina. I found out about my son, Gabriel, having Down syndrome when I was 20 weeks pregnant. It has been an incredible journey -- and my husband and I have been so fortunate. Thank you for your kind words, and for your post on my blog. I would be grateful to be included in the First Ever Down Syndrome Carnival!"

Gloria P. Huerta Sr. sent me this story about life with her 25 year old daughter for the Down syndrome Carnival, however it seems that she is without a blog, so I gave her a post on mine. Read this and see if you agree with me that Gloria should start a blog!



Look, my dear friend Esther at A Catholic Mom in Hawaii is linking to us, and made us a button! Thanks, Esther!

Our only father to contribute, Kim Ayres tells how he reacted to his daughter's diagnosis, and his reluctance to join a Down syndrome support group. "When Meg was born it sometimes felt as though we had joined a Down’s Club and we were expected to go out and join Down’s groups. We found this idea more than a little uncomfortable."
I also had difficulty believing, when I began this blogging a year ago, that I could feel this close with complete strangers, from such varied religious beliefs and ethnic backgrounds. You have proven me wrong. Thank you, my new extended blogosphere family!

Christina from Prince Vince Meets the World has this post about a film festival in Salzburg, Austria featuring Down syndrome, and how it gave her so much hope. Great things DO happen when those who love a child with Down syndrome get together: let's do this again soon!

A big thank you to those of you who participated this week, if you check the Blog Carnival Website, you will see that this is a weekly carnival, and I will gladly let you be the next host. Leave a comment below, or email me leticia77@optonline.net if you'd like to be next week's host blog for next Sunday's carnival.