Category: Blog

  • Our New Routine with Two Kids in Nursery: What Changed

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    Ms is four and Mr is two and has Down syndrome. Both now go to nursery. That leaves me at home with six-month-old B for the first time ever, and our days look completely different. The early start The new routine with two kids in nursery begins in the dark, or close to it. I…

  • Nap at Nursery with Down Syndrome: It Worked

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    Mr has never fallen asleep without being held. This week, in a room full of other children, he did. Here is how our first full week of nursery went. A weekend to catch our breath Mr spent his first four mornings settling into nursery, and then the weekend arrived at exactly the right moment. We…

  • Nursery Day Four: Friends, Food and the Nap Problem

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    Four days in and Mr has already made a friend, eaten independently and used the potty at nursery. The afternoon nap, however, is going to take some working out. The wins first Yesterday was Mr’s first day on the official list – eating lunch with the group rather than sandwiches from home. My partner did…

  • First Days at Nursery with Down Syndrome: It Went Well

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    We have had two mornings of settling in. The first days at nursery with Down syndrome went better than I dared to hope. Here is what happened. Who Mr is, going in Mr is two years and nine months old and he has Down syndrome. He is daytime nappy-free. He is learning to dress and…

  • Starting Nursery with Down Syndrome: Our Plan

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    The nursery director called. Mr is expected next week to start settling in. First, all three children need to stop being snotty. The call we have been waiting for Starting nursery with Down syndrome is a milestone I have been thinking about for months, and now it is actually happening. The director called to say…

  • Potty Training Success: Dry Days Out with Down Syndrome

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    Two days in a row. Different cities. Long car journeys, therapy sessions, a hospital visit – and dry trousers throughout. This is what potty training success with Down syndrome looks like. The moment on the road that made everything worth it Yesterday we drove to a different city for Mr’s gymnastics session. Just me, Mr…

  • Potty Training Win, First Illness and a Brilliant Big Sister

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    Eleven days in and something clicked. Here is how we finally got our potty training win with a two-year-old with Down syndrome – and everything else that happened alongside it. How the first attempt went A few months ago we tried potty training Mr for the first time. He is two years old and has…

  • Childminders Are Lifesavers: Potty Training and Survival

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    We are on our second childminder and I mean it when I say childminders are lifesavers. Here is what our days actually look like right now. Two childminders, two very different seasons The first came after my third c-section – two months of not being allowed to lift anything heavier than B, not even Mr,…

  • When Plans Fall Apart: Parenting Without Control

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    I am not someone who handles change well. Parenthood has not cured this. It has simply meant that I have had to tolerate more of it than I ever expected. A list of things that did not go as planned Mr is two years old and has Down syndrome. We had been waiting over three…

  • What Children Teach You About Your Past Mistakes

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    Having children makes you see your previous life with uncomfortable clarity. Here is what I see when I look back, and what I am choosing to do with it. The view from here What children teach you about your past mistakes is not something anyone warned me about. You look back at the years before…