06/05/2026
Over the years I have had the opportunity to sit down with moms at a coffee shop or restaurant who have had a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome or recently had a baby with DS. One of the first things I always say is to give yourself the grace to grieve. I know I grieved the loss of the life I had envisioned when Jude was born. I was terrified and overwhelmed. I did not know what our future would look like. There was not much positive information online or on social media. We were so fortunate that Jude’s diagnosis came from the best pediatrician who happened to be on call the day he was born. Dr Lee was so positive in delivering the news that Jude had DS. She gave us so much hope in a time that felt very scary. Unfortunately so many in the medical profession are not properly trained in these situations and why I was so grateful last fall to speak to a room full of pre-med students at UGA and to share our story and what a powerful impact a compassionate doctor can have in these moments. Advocacy became very important to me when Jude was born and the main reason I started this page - to show what life with Down syndrome is like. So others who receive the same diagnosis might see Max and Jude and can see the joy and light they have. To help breakdown the negative perceptions and show that every human has value no matter their cognitive functioning or medical status. I was often asked by strangers if I knew Jude had DS before he was born. I did not know Jude definitively had DS until he was born. But we knew Max did. And we spent over a year completing hundreds of pages of applications, going through counseling, and medical clearances, and with our amazing family and church friends raised a lot of money so that we could adopt Max. So we may not have known for Jude, but we certainly did with Max and we would do it over and over and over again.
