Where it begins...: Like Clapton said, "If I could change the world..."

So, here's a story you won't hear on the 6 o'clock news: I took Cooper to the grocery store the other day. That's all. Pretty anticlimactic, huh? Well, apparently some random lady is really proud of me for taking him "out in public" as she said. Let me start at the beginning.

I'm used to people coming up and saying hello to Cooper while we shop. Babies get attention, and I don't mean to brag (okay, yes, I do), but my kid is pretty darn cute! We had made it around to the meat department, and I was in deep thought wondering why pork chops seem to always come in an odd number. I mean, really, why 7 pork chops? 8 makes so much more sense! Anyway, a lady interrupted my pork contemplation by exclaiming, "Oh, he's so sweet!"

I turned and smiled and thanked her. She kept saying, "He's such a blessing, you know." I thanked her again, and told her that he definitely was. She kept acting like there was more she wanted to say, and finally said, "I have a special boy. They told me I'd never bring him home from the hospital, but he's 15 now."

"That's wonderful!" I replied. She still kept looking at Cooper as he waved and played patty cake. She told me about her son and how he had been oxygen deprived as an infant, which led to the issues. Finally she walked away. I moved on to the chicken. A few seconds later, she was back.

"Don't take this the wrong way," she said, "but does he have Down syndrome?" I nonchalantly told her yes, as it really doesn't bother me when people ask. There's only been one other time someone noticed and asked in a store, and they happened to have a child with Ds as well. "Well, he's definitely a blessing." She repeated, adding that old staple of, "Those kids have the biggest hearts." By this time I was ready to finish my grocery shopping, but I was still trying to be polite. When she told me I had a hard road ahead of me, and not to blame myself, I was beginning to lose my patience, but still maintained my polite composure as I knew she wasn't trying to be mean. The real kicker, though? The reason for this blog post? It was this little gem:

"I'm so proud of you for bringing him out like this!" she said with a patronizing smile.

It took some work to keep my jaw from dropping. I stammered and tried to think of how to respond. "Um, no...I show him off every chance I get. I'm very proud of him. He's the light of my life." I replied. With that she teared up, mumbled something about crying, and left me standing in the middle of the aisle, bewildered. It took me a moment to get my bearings about me and continue shopping. To borrow a line from my best friend, I was thinking, "Is this real life? Did that really just happen?"

A little boy!

Proud of me for bringing him out? As opposed to what, leaving him in his cellar at home? Are we in the early 20th century, when institutionalizing kids with Ds was the norm?Cooper was sitting up in the shopping cart, waving to people and playing patty cake. How is that any more difficult than taking a "typical" child shopping?
You know, that hardest part of being a special needs mom (gah, I hate titles), is not being Cooper's mom. It's not therapy appointments or doctor visits or developmental delays. Loving my child is the easiest thing I've ever done. The hard part is other people. The attitudes and stereotypes and comments, both well meaning and otherwise. I wish for a different world for my boy. I wish I could make other people see him how I see him. He is smart and funny. Inquisitive and nosy. Stubborn and a little mean at times. He has been walking for about two months or so now, and definitely knows the sign for "eat" and uses it often! He is a little boy. Not a syndrome, not just sweet...a little boy, with so many different aspects in that big personality. Down syndrome is what he has; not what he is.

In other, more positive news, we went on our first family vacation this month. It was a lot of fun! Coop did really well. =) Here are some pics from vacation:

Beautiful scenery