Model life

Yesterday Michael had his first photo-shoot for the National Down Syndrome Society. He will be the cover baby for the New and Expectant Parent Magazine that is issued by the NDSS. We are beyond proud and excited and cannot wait to get some sneak peaks to share with all of you. He did absolutely wonderful at the shoot and was full of smiles and model poses for the wonderful Victoria Will.

We want to give a big shout out to Vanessa Quick at the National Down Syndrome Society who is the Director of Educational Planning for giving us such a wonderful opportunity and for choosing our family to be a part of something so big in the Down Syndrome Community. Mike and I have never felt so honored and proud. 

We look forward in always being the number one advocates for our son and helping as much as we can within the Down Syndrome community to help spread awareness. We love sharing how wonderful our lives really are with the beautiful *extra's*.

This is one "behind the scene" photo that Vanessa had taken during the shoot. 

Love life

Tonight has reminded me how much I love and appreciate everything I have in my life.

I came over a friends picture on Instagram of her 10 children on the beach for summer vacation. It brought back memories of when I was young. The joy I experienced then is the joy I experience now. My family would go to the beach every summer and spend a full week together. No interruptions. A time where we could bond and forget the world.

And that is what life is about. The no interruptions; the small moments that really mean so much. I cannot thank my family and friends enough for blessing me with such a beautiful life and for embracing my son and loving him to no end.

He is pure joy. He is beauty. He is everything I saw when I was young. He has come into my life without interruption and has shown me that I need to constantly remember that life has a mysterious way of always working things out. 

Tonight I am grateful. I am grateful for all of the beauty that life gives. I am grateful for the people I get to share my beautiful life with. I am grateful that my life is entirely full and that I'm not even sure how it gets any better from here (but it will). That gives me more joy and makes me so hopeful.

I wish for everyone to feel the joy that I feel in my life. To experience hardships, but to accept them with grace and patience. To know that in order to appreciate the good, you will always have to put up with "the bad". That in the end, everything has its meaning and your life will always be beautiful.