#1...31 for 21, can i do it???

October is Down syndrome awareness month and last year i attempted the 31 post for 21 challenge( the medical term for Down syndrome is Trisomy 21)but switched it to 21 for 21 because i knew 31 wasn't realistic with Shabbos and what not. This year i will try again but know realistically it wont happen due to Shabbos, Yom Kippur, Sukkos, and Simchas Torah all landing in the month of October, but i will try and that is all the counts, right?
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Today i had to go to Dovie's school early. Pick up is at 2:30 but i needed to be there at 2, on the dot. See today his school is going to have a fire drill and the loud sound is usually a perfectly mixed recipe for guaranteed meltdown, immobilizing fear, and many days of a traumatized child. We discussed the drill and how it was going to go, and i came to help him work through his fear. Thank Gd it went really well and due to all our preparations he was equipped to deal with what could have been a traumatic event. See Dovie has a lot of sensory issues and i have had him tested a few times, but he has never once qualified for services. I end up doing a lot of research and mooch off Rozie's therapist for ideas to help him cope. His sensory issues can really affect how he eats, sleeps, dresses, and functions in life.

Rozie does not have these issues. She will eat anything. Will wear whatever i put on her ( except for shoes and socks, but i think she gets that from her momma). She also loves new things and exciting sounds. She came with for the fire drill and insisted on trying to copy the sound of the alarm with a huge grin on her face. She loved the excitement. She loves huge carnival slides, Dovie cried. She loves people in costumes, Dovie has a horrible fear of them. Honestly Rozie has been my easiest child. She has an amazing disposition. Yet she is the child i received condolence phone calls for when she was born.

I guess my point is all 3 of my children have strengths and weaknesses. Each of my children bring joy and into my life and each one of them can wear my patience thin.
But Rozie is the one i have to advocate for the, the one i have to convince others is not so bad, but wonderful. She is the one that people give me sad eyes for, and nebach words.

She is the one that cause women to think about terminating a pregnancy when they are told the news they feared to be true. She is the one that people daven not to have. Yet she like my Dovie, like my Mel challenge me and surprise me. She sometimes fits the mold and often breaks it. She is an individual not just a Trisomy. I am so thankful that my Dovie is who he is , my Mel is exactly as he is, and my Rozie is exactly who she is with her extra chromosome and all.