When Andrew and Allison Sweatman discovered their baby girl would have Downs Syndrome at their 20-week scan, they didn’t know what the future would hold.
Three years later, and the couple from Arkansas are not only amazing parents to daughter Rosie, but have also opened their home to another child with the same condition.
The pair adopted toddler Beau after his biological parents struggled to take care of him, and despite both being non-verbal the new-found siblings bonded instantly.
Allison, a blogger, said: “It was so hard with Rosie at first because we were not able to focus on really any of the things a typical parent gets to focus on.
“We weren’t really able to relish the first year of life because we were completely focused on very, very serious health issues. Since then there has been an improvement all around and for the first time we felt like we were really able to just enjoy her and celebrate her.
“There was a time that the diagnosis was scary and hard for us to hear but after seeing everything Rosie had gone through in the first two years of her life, we opened ourselves up to it.
“Then we heard about Beau.”
Allison says that Beau’s birth parents “loved him dearly,” but couldn’t cope and felt he’d be better off in a household with experience raising a child with Downs Syndrome. She also added that the family often get stares from strangers while out, but have learned to deal with the situation.
“Being a mom of two children with Down syndrome is incredibly rewarding,” she said.
“It’s most rewarding when I see our kids working so incredibly hard for milestones and to see them surpass our expectations of them.
“It makes all the really hard days worth it. It’s not an easy journey, but it’s certainly a privilege to be part of.”
Dad Andrew added: “‘We always knew we wanted to adopt,
“So when it came time to think seriously about it, it didn’t make sense for us to rule out any potential matches based on their chromosomes, especially since there is such a need for special needs adoption. ‘
“When we really thought about that, we realised we could and should actually seek out a child with Down Syndrome. I’m so glad we did.”
Rosie and Beau aren’t the only children with Downs Syndrome to surpass societies expectations of them. Last month 19-year-old Kate Grant became the first person with the condition to win the Teen Ultimate Beauty of the World pagaent. Representing her home of Northern Ireland, the teen beat out 40 other countries to win the crown.
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