November 1996 A special Star is Born:
On the 20th at 2:52pm I gave birth to a very special baby he
weighed 4lb. 8oz. and was 17 1/2 inches long. This was a full term pregnancy so shortly after birth the Doctors suspected
something was different. By 4pm we were told they suspected our baby was born with Down Syndrome, but that he did not
have any symptoms other then the slanting of the eyes. They asked our permission to do blood test but informed us it would
be 2 weeks before results were back. Ryan was releases to go home with me when he was 48 hours old because he was eating
and thriving just like any typical baby. The Doctor scheduled an Appt. for us to bring him in for a check up in 9 days to
see how he was gaining weight, at this appt. we were given the results that Ryan did have Down Syndrome. He was gaining weight
very well but because 1 in 2 children who have Down syndrome have a heart defect they told us he needed to see a Cardiologist
soon. So they made the appt. for early Jan. 1997.
1997:
Ryan's heart is free from any defect.
He attends EasterSeals for therapy 3 times a week.
He continues to gain weight and thrive just like any typical baby.
Ryan was hospitalized at 2 1/2 months with RSV which went
in to pneumonia.When he was discharged they sent him home with a nebulizer machine.(Which has been very beneficial over the
years due to his mild asthma)
He Started Nutri-vene D at 5 months, this is a vitamin that some
choose to give their children with down syndrome.
Ryan celebrated his 1st. birthday at 23lbs.
1998:
Ryan started walking at 15 months.
He made his first debut on The EasterSeals Telethon.
Ryan Continues therapy at EasterSeals.
He makes everyone smile who meets him.
His baby sister was born in September.
He is speaking some words along with sign language.
1999:
Ryan made his 2nd debut on the EasterSeals telethon.
He continues learning new words and sign language.
He started preschool at the most wonderful special needs prescool
in the world!
Ryan had to come off of Nutri-vene D because he developed reflux
from the raw vitamin. He had to take Zantac for a few months maybe sometime in the future he will be able to take it again.
2000:
He continues to amaze us everyday with his new skills.
Ryan had tear duct surgery twice.
Ryan Continues with his therapies.
Still attends preschool.
2001:
Ryan has always caught everyone heart and still does. He is just
so adorable!
Ryan graduated to a higher preschool class at the same school.
He continues to do very well with sign lauguage and learning new
words, he is so smart and follows simple one and two step directions. He is really amazing and so eager to
learn new things.
He is potty trained through the day.
2003
Ryan now attends the special needs Kindergarden program at the School of Hope. He has not changed school just graduated to a higher classroom. He loves it, and is doing wonderful his language skills
are improving so much. He never ceases to amaze me with his abilities. He thrives on attention and praise the more you give
the harder he tries until he has mastered it.
This year has also been a hard year for Ryan. His sister Katie who is also his best friend got really sick and had to be away from him for a long period of
time in the hospital. He did not really understand all this and missed her greatly. Also this year Ryan lost his grandmother
from his mommy's side of the family.
2004
January:
Ryan's language is coming so fast he says something new almost everyday
and it is so much more understandable. Keep up the fabulous work Ryan.
Febuary:
I have finally gotten Ryan's website back together. You see I had
it on a different server and the site closed and I did not have my materials saved and lost it all. So up until this year
I have given you yearly highlights. I will try to at least keep you up to date monthly from here on. Ok better update
you on my little man. He is still doing very well with his speech. Ryan will be going to Columbus Childrens
in April to see about having his Tonsils and Adnoids out because they are grossly enlarged I will keep you updated. If
your child has had this done please email me and let me know how they did. Well I will update again soon thanks for visiting
us and stop back soon.
March-April 2004
Ryan is doing well, his language
just keeps on coming, new words all the time. I talked to Ryan's teacher last week, and he had so many wonderful
things to tell me. He says Ryan is the roll model in the classroom he likes to do all the chores and lead the children
in there daily activities. Thats my little man he loves all the attention. The only concerning thing going on with him
at the moment is TEETH new ones are coming in and the baby ones are not falling out they end up having to be pulled out
by the dentist. This is very scary for him, after all this he will probably always be scared of the dentist. It
is also very emotional for his dentist, she loves him to pieces and nearly cries at the thought of scaring
him. Any advice you can share?
September 2005
Ryan is doing really well he has came so far in the last year.
He knows how to verbally spell his name, tell you where he lives. He is also recognizing some letters and small words. His
counting skills continue to improve he can consitently count to 10. I am so proud of him. He had 5 teeth pulled out last spring
because the adult ones welcomed theirselves in behind his baby teeth. On a brighter note he finally lost two on
his own over the summer one we found the other one well who knows what happened to it! ( Maybe
digested it)
