Callum is 2 ½ years old. He is our first and only child. Watching him develop, learn and grow in his own time and way has been incredible. He loves being read to and listening to audiobooks. He has even learned sign language for “I want a book, please”. We have read his collection of books so many times by now that we know the stories off by heart. He loves acting out certain scenes from the stories and when we’re reading one of his favourite books, he’ll make a loud “atchooo” and point to his nose just as we get to the part about a little old lady not being able to sneeze. He also loves reading his Peppa Pig books. (I’ve included photos of Callum with one of his books).
We are slowly navigating our way through the “terrible twos” but so far there have been many more terrific moments than terrible ones. To help him overcome some of the physical challenges faced by children with Down’s syndrome, Callum goes to physiotherapy once a week. That has been key to his physiological development. He has started walking although he’s still a bit wobbly at times, he is learning to feed himself and we’ve recently started potty training. He doesn’t use words yet and so we still use our limited sign language to communicate.
We are fortunate to have a very supportive extended family, an awesome au pair for Callum (who happens to be my cousin) and I’m part of a Whatsapp group with other moms of children with DS which has been an amazing source of information, comfort and joy as we share and celebrate our children’s journey.
We are truly blessed to have Callum in our lives, and we thank God for blessing us with our “fearfully and wonderfully made” little boy.
Edel and Cheslin Ellis
