The Pet Shop

We visited the pet shop yesterday. We took Maggie down to see the 'fishies' and there we watched her wiggle in the shopping cart seat with glee. She squeeled and pointed at the fish, expressing such excitement. It was her first time seeing fish. And she would point to the next tank and the next to get a good look at all the different kinds. Eventually, I took her to the bird cage, thinking she would no doubt love it. There was a huge array of colorful parakeets and finches, fluttering and tweeting about. She looked at them briefly. Examined the cage. Then looked back at the birds again. After a minute or two, she promptly turned to face me and signed "All done". Guess a bird is not on the wish list for this little girl :) But we might get one anyways.

As we drove away from the pet shop, it dawned on me that she is going to be okay. Despite this syndrome that inhibits her development, she doesn't just lie there on her blanket and stare at the ceiling. She takes delight in her life. Life excites her. She has brand new experiences that make her happy. I'm glad I can witness that.

It started with a movie ...

I've decided to start a blog. I'm sure after watching "Julie & Julia", twenty five million other inspired people will want to do so too. Oh well. Here's my version:

My little girl Maggie is sick. She has a big bad syndrome that consumes our lives. For three years now I've tried to struggle with the acceptance of it, acknowleging it and welcoming it into our home.

So instead of this being a blog about our struggles and high-anxiety moments, I wanted to dedicate this blog to my little girl, and make it an up-beat, positive testimony to our lives. Our little girl Maggie, who will be three in October, doesn't have any idea what is going on around her. She smiles, giggles, even grunts at life's simplest pleasures. So why shouldn't we?

That being said, here goes my journey. And maybe someone, somewhere, who might be going through something similar, won't be bogged down with all the negativity and hopelessness in the world; but realize that we were made to survive ... and we will. We all have our turn to do that ... so here goes :)