My name is Thomas Aidan and I was born on March 16th, 2008. I am 7 month old. I wear some 9 month cloth because I am a big boy. I am a very happy and active baby. I enjoy life as any other baby of my age and I have an extra chromosome, which has made me “a super baby.”
My mommy and my daddy knew that I had an extra chromosome since I was a little tiny curious fetus. My mommy was about 3 1/2 month pregnant when her blood test showed that I may have Trisomy 21. It wasn’t until a month later that my mommy and I had the amniocentesis. I wasn’t scared when the needle got close to me. I could heard my mommy’s thought telling me “move to the other side”. I just did! I didn’t move until the doctor finished. After my mommy got home from the hospital, she rested the whole day and when my daddy got back from work, I kicked as hard as a little wild bull to tell them I was alright. I remember, they were so happy. How many mommies do remember the date of your baby first kick? My mommy does, it was on the evening of October 26th, 2007. It was a happy Friday.
My mommy and my daddy got the results from the FISH test on October 31st, 2007. It was positive, I had an extra chromosome. They cried a lot because they didn’t want anything wrong to happen to me because they already loved me without knowing how I would be. My mommy cried a couples of time, but two weeks later she was smiling and happy again because she always knew that I was alright. We had a special connection that just mommies are able to understand.
My mommy and my daddy never gave up on me. My mommy instead started a battle against Trisomy 21. One day I could feel she was very tired at work and she was thinking of me, she was petting her belly and I wanted to make her feel better and then, I kicked back. Immediately, she thought if she could keep me very active, it would improve any low muscle tone problems that I may have before birth. I was a very active unborn baby, but for my mommy wasn’t enough. She invented a prenatal stimulation program. Sometimes, I heard her making weird noises, shaking me and talking to me. I didn’t understand so much, but to make her happy I played the game. I kicked back in the same place I heard the noise. I used to have long conversations on the phone, while I was in the womb, with my Granny Nella and my Aunt Ibeth from Panama. I didn’t understand a word of what they were saying, but I kicked about three times because I knew they wouldn’t let me sleep if I didn’t kick where the phone was. Maybe my mommy’s crazy prenatal stimulation program helped me to be “a super baby” or maybe not. But what it is true is that I am surpassing all the expectation of having Trisomy 21 since I was in the womb, as my mommy said in her e-mail to announce my birth:
“Most of you know, or maybe not, that Tommy is a baby with Down syndrome. We feel that God has blessed us in all ways with our son because he has united people praying for him; even although they don’t know us. He was considered a very active unborn baby, when babies with Down syndrome are not active; He reached an average size when some babies with Down syndrome are under weight and tinny at birth; all his body structure is normal which means he won’t have most of the sever complications for having Down syndrome; his heart has an excellent heart rate and function, which means he won’t have an open heart surgery as many other newborns with down syndrome. Most babies with Down syndrome have low muscles tone, but Tommy seems to have good muscles tone and excellent reflexes. We couldn’t have a better baby, because he is already perfect surpassing all the expectations of the Down syndrome.”
I continue surpassing the expectations of the Trisomy 21 because I am accomplishing all my milestones at the same pace than typical kids and some of them a little bit earlier. The first time my mommy and my daddy saw me holding my head, I was just about 40 hours of being born. My pediatrician and my therapists agree that I have an excellent head control. I have smiled since I was 5 days old, the average for typical kids is when they are 1 month old. I tried to flip over since I was two weeks old. I finally flipped over for the first time on April 14th, 2008. I flipped over again on April 16th, 2008 (the day I was one month old) and I keep flipping over since then. I started mouth play with toys since I was 3 month old, most typical kids do when they are 5 month old. I have responded to my name since I was 4 month, this is an emerging intellectual skill that babies do between 4 and 7 months. Just say my name and I will look at you!
Now, you know my story of how I became a super baby! My mommy and my daddy have given me the opportunity to experience a full life of love, care, stimulation, toys, clothes, formula, baby food, a lot of diapers, kisses, hugs, and friends. Would you do the same?
