Testimonials

March 25, 2004 will be know to us as the day when love came into our lives: a love so pure and infinite that most of our family and friends had never experienced. That love carries the name of Favio and although his arrival brought fear and confusion, it also brought hope and joy to many people.

Having almost no knowledge as to what Down Syndrome was, we didn't know what to expect. We could only think of the worst like sickness and struggles, but we got just the opposite; a healthy little boy with the appetite and the heart of a big man and a smile so contagious that spreads like air.

Favio is a handful of fun. From the funny little noises he makes with his tongue to the screams he sends when you don't feed him fast enough, he is a natural comedian - always looking for a laugh. His popularity attracts cheek-pinching by the masses. He is a true blessing and we thank God everyday for choosing us as his family.

- Andrea & Sylvester, (Proud parents of Favio)

October 21, 2003 was the day my little angel was born. Her name is Victoria Joanna Cecilia Villalobos, Tori for short, she has a big name to live up to. She is a tiny little girl who is so full of life. Coming into this world she was a quiet and petite little baby. She is no longer quiet. She has alot of volume for such a little person.

When I was pregnant with her we were told she had Down Syndrome. We researched everything we could and joined a chat group. I found a friend in the most unlikly place, ebay. She talked to me about DS alot, she also had a child with DS and he was perfect in every way. Because of her strength I had no period of sorrow, I was ready for her arrival into this world of ours.

Victoria was born and what a beautiful sight she was. We took her home and went for a weight check that Friday, she had yellow jaundice to the extreme, we rushed her to a nearby town and she was hospitalized there. By the end of the weekend, we found out she had a blockage in her intestine and she was rushed to Loma Linda University by ambulance. By Wednesday she was having surgery. She made it through and is a very strong girl. My only fear was God, please don't take away my baby, she is the world to me and I just couldn't bare it without her. I didn't care about her having DS at all, just please don't let her be taken from me.

- Georgia & Ruben, (Proud parents of Jane, John, Gabrielle, Nicholas, Issabelle & Victoria

On February 20, 2003 our little angel Andrew was brought into the world. At first I was very nervous, but very excited none the less. He was diagnosed with Down Syndrome five months into my pregnancy after I had a negative AFP test, followed by an Amnio test.

The first week of his life we took many trips to the hospital because he had jaundice. They let us take him home but we had to go back to the hospital everyday for the blood tests.

He has always been very strong. He started rolling around at three months; he crawled at ten months, and walked at 19 months. He loves to climb on any thing he can get into to and use his arms to lift himself onto things. He does have a bad temper. When he doesn’t get what he wants he throws fits and bangs his head on anything in sight. He tries to get away with a lot and he loves to test people to see how far he can get away with things with them.

He is very smart! He figures everything and anything out. We tried put up some of the child safety things but he figured them out right away. He also has a pretty good vocabulary. Some of the words he says are dad, mama, open, banana, yogurt, apple, and that’s just to name a few.

We really love our son and thank god every day for sending us our little angel, even if he doesn’t act like one all the time!.

- Vanessa & Steve, (Proud parents of Andrew)

We were blessed with Eliza coming into our lives on March 19, 2001. We went to the hospital expecting a routine repeat c-section after a normal, low risk pregnancy. That all changed when Eliza was born weighing not quite five pounds, with extremely low muscle tone, and a cry that just wasn't right. We were told about five days later that it was Trisomy 21, commonly known as Down Syndrome.

Eliza had feeding problems initially, and didn't start nursing until she was 3 1/2 months old. She didn't have the heart problem most commonly found in children with Down Syndrome, but rather she had a PDA. Patent Ductus Areteriosis is a set of valves between the heart and lungs that allow reoxygenated blood back into the heart. Usually these two valves close at birth or shortly thereafter. When Eliza was 17 months old she had a small steel coil inserted into her heart to fix the problem. Today you would not know she had heart surgery.

Eliza has an older brother and a younger brother and loves playing with both of them--most of the time. She is now attending preschool with other children who have developmental delays. She will attend kindergarten with typically developing children in 2007. She loves books, know her ABCs through sign language, spoken language, and zoophonics. Eliza also loves movies and has recently learned how to turn on the TV (at any time of the day or night). We continue to look forward to the blessings that Eliza will bring our family!.

-Molly and David, (Proud parents of Henry, Eliza, and Theodore)