Growing Up

Two years old!

Felix woke up in a beautiful mood this morning, but really hungry. He had such a busy day yesterday, playing and having fun, that he didn't really eat much at his party. When I got him out of his cot at 6.30am, he started signing, "Eat, eat, eat". When I got him his porridge, he couldn't eat it quick enough.

We spent the morning reading some of Felix's new story books which he got for his birthday. He loves books so much, and was very spoilt by his friends with lots of new stories to read. I love seeing his excitement when he discovers something new. He busily pointed to pictures and signed (if he knew the sign) all the things he could see. He has some touch and feel ones which he thinks are awesome, and some where he has to lift up the flaps to see what is underneath them. A couple of his new books are interactive with different buttons to press at each stage of the story, which make noises. Tonight we read one which had sea creatures, with big goggly eyes, in the book. The eyes glow in the dark, so Nathan sat by the light and turned it on and off as we read each page. Felix thought that was pretty amazing!

Hanging out with his toy animals

Our big (or should I say, small), two year old walked everywhere today. I didn't see him crawl once!!  I was so proud of him, but also had a tinge of sadness as I realised that his baby days are almost over. He's turning into a little boy now, who doesn't need his Mummy as much as he used to. His new found independence is fantastic but, like with all of our babies, I feel a little bit sad to say goodbye to that part of his life.

Someone, from one of the Down Syndrome groups I'm involved with on Facebook, once gave a great piece of advise. She said that when you have a child with Down Syndrome, one of the most important things you can do is to make yourself obsolete. By that she meant, allow your kids to learn to do everything by themselves. If they are struggling to put on their socks, don't impatiently grab the socks and put them on their feet for them. Let them keep trying (even if it takes a long time), so they can do it themselves. Obviously some things are going to take longer to learn than others, and some help along the way will be necessary, but the ultimate goal is for them to be successful at things and be able to do them independently. In doing so we, as parents/relatives/friends, learn how to be extra patient!

Story time with Bekah

Historically, people with Down Syndrome were often institutionalised, or left in a room with nothing to stimulate their senses. Later, if they were allowed any sort of education, they were grouped together with 'their own kind' and had minimal teaching of any sort. Parents and teachers would 'baby' them and do everything for them. They were always treated as if they didn't have the capacity to learn. These days we know that kids with Down Syndrome are capable of learning to do pretty much anything they want to. It is so important to treat them the same as we would any other child, and to have high expectations. They should be expected to keep their room tidy, and have nice manners. They should be encouraged to try different sports or learn to cook;  or to do whatever interests them. They are clever and I've even heard of some teenagers, with Down Syndrome, pulling the.... "But I have Down Syndrome" card, to get out of doing something that was expected of them! Don't be fooled.. teenagers with Down Syndrome can be just as manipulative and sneaky as any other teenager! I have no doubt that Felix will try that one, one day too! :)

Nathan thought I should post this pic.
My first attempt at a dinosaur head fruit platter for
Felix's party.

Felix put on a bit of a tantrum tonight when I told him it was bed time. He shook his head from side to side and flung himself dramatically across the bed in true 2 year old fashion. I had to keep myself from laughing because I knew how tired he was and how quickly he would fall asleep once he was in bed. Sure enough, as soon as we got to his room the crying stopped. He reached out to his vaporiser to remind me to turn it on (he has it on every night as it helps keep his nose from getting stuffy), and then held his arms out to his cot to go to bed. I handed him his colourful monkey (which he was terrified of a few months ago), and his cat, which is made from a sock (it's the ugliest thing I've ever seen, but Amy bought it for him and he loves it), and he happily laid down. As usual, there has not been a sound from his room ever since. He goes to bed so well, and sleeps all night which makes this Mummy very happy!!