6 Months Already?

Wow!  Hard to believe that it was only six months ago that we had a whirlwind of a delivery and were handed our plump, rosy-cheeked, almond-eyed little girl that we had long ago named Hailey.  Those first couple of days are a blur, filled with lots of tears and worry.  I had never really known anyone with Down syndrome.  There were too many unknowns and too many preconceived "facts" of Down syndrome believed by some of our society.  I remember thinking how hard those first 3 weeks were while she was in the special care nursery waiting for her to come home.  St. Patrick's Day will now hold such bittersweet memories for me.  That was the wonderful day that our little peanut finally came home to her two big brothers but also the day we found out that she would need open heart surgery in the upcoming months.  The anticipation of that surgery was like a dark cloud that seemed to loom forever and follow us everywhere.  I know I worried more about it than Jason did but let's face it...I worry about everything!  Don't get me wrong, we had good moments.  It was just impossible to get the surgery and her health out of my head.  It was almost as if every plan and moment had a disclaimer on it.  I spent a great deal of time after everyone was asleep in the Arthur household, reading blogs and message boards of parents of other children with Down syndrome and children that had open heart surgery.  They all said the same thing, "The anticipation of the surgery is the hardest part".  I laughed at that comment because I thought there was no way.  Boy, they were right.  Guess I should have listened, they had been through it and knew exactly how I was feeling.

To look at Hailey now, no one could ever guess that she has been through more in her short 6 months than her entire family have in their lives.  She had a little of a bumpy start in life and she is going to have more obstacles than the boys have so far but she has proven she is one tough cookie!  She's a fighter with a sudden diva attitude.  Hailey is thriving beyond my expectations!  It has been amazing to see how much she has improved since her open heart surgery (I still get a lump in my throat saying those words...open heart surgery).  We started baby food this week.  She seems to like the taste but we have to work on getting her to keep the food in her mouth.  She wants to just stick her tongue out.  She'll get there, just like she has everything else.  She loves to be talked to and we are working on sitting.

I thank God every day for the blessings he has given us.  Hailey has opened my eyes to a world I never knew, concerns I never thought of, and understanding that there is much more to everyone than what we see on the outside.  Those dimples and laugh could melt an iceberg!

Happy 6 months my sweet peanut!  

 Here are a couple of pics of Hailey meeting her latest development milestone.  It looks sort of painful to us :-)