April 4 was our preferred date for Sofia’s birth by CS. Why? It was close enough to her due date of April 9, allowed some level of predictability, but also allowed me to attend her brothers’ end of schoolyear programs dated March 26 and March 30.
Sofia agreed. I was in my hospital room waiting for my CS when I experienced contractions 
The doctors told us they suspected trisomy 21 or Down Syndrome. This was confirmed by a test a few days later. No matter, we loved her just as fiercely and were just as determined to support her through her heart treatments and extra developmental needs.
So after our crash course on the anatomy of the heart we researched and read about Down Syndrome. We learned that it was just like raising any other child but in slow motion. She may not end up with math as her strength, but as a kid with a brother with DS put it, she would be good at “things that matter” like interpersonal intelligence.
