Communications skills

We have been monitoring Tommy's speech and language development since he was 6 month old because it is very common that kids with T21 can have problems in this area. We also introduced sing language to him at a very young age because it helps kids to learn more words faster.

Signing has many benefits, such as: increase self-esteem, reduce frustration for parents and babies, enhance language skills, and increase IQ. Tommy is currently signing "all done” and "More". He started to sing weeks before to our trip to Panama and he constantly does it now. He is learning to sign "milk". Maybe he will soon have a whole vocabulary in sing language. I have seen other kids who by age 0f 2 sing 30 or more words. We would like that Tommy could develop sign language as an extracurricular skill. See the video below, Tommy is signing "all done" and his variation of "more" (he claps and holds his hands).


According to the last assessment, Tommy's comprehensive language is in the average range for a kid of his age. Currently, he understands English and Spanish. His expressive communication has a mild delay, it could be because he has mild decrease muscle tone in his mouth and he is learning English and Spanish at the same time. As a bilingual person, I know that learning two languages is not easy, but it is beneficial. It is easier when kids learn a second language when they are little because they pick it up faster and they don't have accent. Be bilingual increases the IQ. It also gives better opportunities in this global world.

We thought it would take longer to hear Tommy's first word beside Ma-ma and Da-da, but he started to say “hi” at the end of his 12-month, but we didn't believe until our ST confirmed it to us. We were so excited because of his first word, and then on May 15, we were watching a Spanish program for kids about the water. The last word in the program was "agua"(water). Tommy just repeated "agua" with a perfect Spanish accent. I immediately told him say "agua" and he repeated. Days later, I took him for a walk and I was showing him the lake and I told him look at the "agua" (water) and Tommy again said "agua". I will try to capture the moments when he is saying hi and "agua". Our boy keeps surpassing our expectations.

Tommy's play time

Playing with toys is the best part of the therapies for us. Tommy spends a lot of time playing with Mommy and Daddy and it could be one of the reasons Tommy is progressing very well. Tommy's hands and body coordination are getting better every week. When we play with Tommy we don't look for perfection because understanding the concept behind the game is the most important. Perfection will come later with practice. Following there are some things Tommy is doing with objects, which are appropriate for his age.
• Throw and pick objects

• Open and close drawers

• Take the stocking rings out of the pole and stocks two rings in the pole, Yahooo!.

• Drop things into containers. The video below shows when Tommy was learning to drop in.

• Empty and fill containers. He needs more practice in filling the containers.

• Activate switches on the three button pop-up toy, activity table, little leaps video game control, and other toys. As an additional activity, he turns the light off his room. He likes to activate the peek-a-boo books with animal and transportation sounds.

• Spin whiles. For example, he began to spin the phone disk toy with his index finger.

• Pouring water in the bathtub, but he needs more practice. We are working on pouring into and out of containers.

• Put objects through openings. He is occasionally dropping the coins in the opening of his piggy bank toy. He likes more to move the coin up and down in the opening. We keep working on this game.

• Take pieces apart. He takes starts apart and pull the cord of his bathtub toy, but he needs more practice to put pieces together.

• Blow bubbles in the water when he drinks from a straw or from an open cup. This is a great emerging skill because it is the beginning to blow with a bubble blower.

• Manipulate simple locking devices. For example, he opens shoeboxes.


• Kick, throw and catch the ball. He perfectly understands the concept. One his therapist was amazed how precise is Tommy by kicking the ball, even although he is not walking yet. He is also trying to catch the ball, but it's too fast for him. Therefore, we use a balloon instead to play catching the ball. He likes to throw he ball to anyone who plays with him.

• Place objects in upright position. Tommy place his bubble maker toy in an upright position when it falls.

• Build a tower of blocks. Tommy is building a tower of two boxes. Tommy likes empty boxes more than his stacking blocks.

We are working on Tommy's playing skills and we would like to hear your advises, ideas, or activities that we can try to stimulate him. Please feel free to leave your comments in this blog or send me an email.

Tommy, a funny guy

One thing that we like about Tommy is his emerging personality. He makes us laugh all the time. He likes to make funny faces. I have captured some of them in my photos. He started to occasionally do funny faces when he was about 10 month. Now, he constantly does it to make us laugh. Bellow are videos that briefly display Tommy's silly moments. The video tittles are: "The Fake cough" (This video doesn't display his best performance) and "The Latin Latin rhythm in my vines".




We are extremely proud of our son. The extra chromosome is not what our son is. It is what he has, which doesn't stop the little person he is. He is a very funny guy!

Tommy loves to hug Mommy

Expecting a baby with an extra chromosome didn't change our perspective of how parenting would be. Expecting a baby with an extra chromosome didn't change the love for our baby. Now, having a baby with an extra chromosome hasn't changed we can fully enjoy our son. Then, It won't change the illusion of a great future for our son because I can feel it every time he gives me a hug. (This video was taken when Tommy was 11 month old).