Gifts

Gifts
Mothers Reflect on How Children with Down Syndrome Enrich Their Lives

Edited by Kathryn Lynard Soper
Foreword by Martha Sears, RN

About the Author

Kathryn Lynard Soper is the mother of seven children. Her youngest, Thomas, born in 2005, was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth. She's the author of a memoir, The Year My Son and I Were Born, and the editor of two anthologies, Gifts and The Mother in Me. She is president of The Segullah Group, Inc., a non-profit organization that produces personal writings, and editor-in-chief of Segullah, a literary journal by and for Latter-day Saint (Mormon) women. Kathryn lives with her husband, Reed, and their children in the mountain west.

Visit the author's website!

2008 National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA): Gold Award

2008 Mom's Choice Awards: Silver Recipient, Special & Exceptional Needs

2008 Nautilus Award: Silver Winner, Memoir/Personal Growth

Having a baby with Down syndrome is not something most parents would willingly choose. Yet many who travel this path discover rich, unexpected rewards along the way. In this candid and poignant collection of personal stories, sixty-three mothers describe the gifts of respect, strength, delight, perspective, and love, which their child with Down syndrome has brought into their lives.

The contributors to this collection have diverse personalities and perspectives, and draw from a wide spectrum of ethnicity, world views, and religious beliefs. Some are parenting within a traditional family structure; some are not. Some never considered terminating their pregnancy; some struggled with the decision. Some were calm at the time of diagnosis; some were traumatized. Some write about their pregnancy and the months after giving birth; some reflect on years of experience with their child.

Their diverse experiences point to a common truth: The life of a child with Down syndrome is something to celebrate. These women have something to say--not just to other mothers but to all of us.

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Check out the follow-up volume, Gifts 2

Learn more about both Gifts books...visit the editor's site!

Download the free booklet, What Parents Wish They'd Known, courtesy of Kathryn Lynard Soper and the Segullah Group, on the surprising joys of raising a child with Down syndrome.