Asher's Turnaround

02/01/2026

This 2017 news story is about aborting fetuses with Down Syndrome. The data is about the same a decade later. The US data is harder to come by with variations but the estimate is that over 60% of pregnancies with a Down Syndrome diagnosis are terminated.

I remember when we received the diagnosis, actually it wasn’t a diagnosis. It was a we are 99% positive but we would have to undergo more testing to get an actual diagnosis. I’ll never forget it…”we need to know soon if you want this testing. Your window is closing….” Me confused - “my window to what is closing?” Mind you, we had already been told about the heart. “Well, we would need to get the testing done. We need an actual Down Syndrome diagnosis. You’re already 16 weeks along. Then, we would have to get you to another state - Georgia is the closest and where we recommend, and there isn’t a lot of time left before Georgia would no longer be an option.” I’m still wondering what is in Georgia. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand.” “If you want an abortion, this is what we have to do.” “We don’t want one.” “Oh, great. I’m so thankful. I am required to offer it. Now, let’s move on to thinking about the hospital options for your baby.” I have played this over and over in my mind so many times. I loved this specialist. She was more of a therapist than anything. Christian. She prayed with us. I never asked how or why or who required her to offer abortion. I was too absorbed in getting Asher to life to go down that road. But, it comes up ever so often now and again - that people with DS are lesser. I would love for people in Iceland, Europe, here on our own soil to spend time with people with DS before making a decision to abort. Like my obgyn told us when we found out, parents say there is so much joy and they are grateful that they chose to have a baby with DS. For us, when we interact with Asher or think about him, we don’t think of Down Syndrome. When I see Asher, I see my son - not a toddler with Down Syndrome. I don’t live in denial - I know he has Down Syndrome. But, he’s so much more than that. He’s a person just like me. Is he going to grow up and be a lawyer one day? Odds are no. Am I lawyer? No. He contributes to our family and others around him greatly - unequivocal joy and unconditional love. Every single day.

The video is 8 minutes. Watch it. Perspective.

Iceland's widespread use of genetic testing means people can "pick and choose" which children to bring into the world. These prenatal screenings, which have ...

01/29/2026

Asher received fantastic news at the pediatric stroke clinic yesterday.

For reference, this clinic meets one day every 4 months. They manage Asher’s propensity for future strokes and seizures via blood thinners, seizure medication, affect/state, etc. He’s been going to this clinic for 18 months and has made steady progress - no more injections, losing a seizure medication, and just yesterday as my friend called it graduation from clinic.

Now, Asher will be seen by the pediatric stroke doctor for 6 month follow ups. He described Asher to our nurse who went to clinic for the first time yesterday, as a remarkable case. In addition, the team who cared for him at the start of the coil migration wrote a case study for journal publication and asked for my permission to submit. Last night was the first time I read through the coil complication to current functioning in one place. I had forgotten some things. Well, not forgotten. I was better reminded of some things. Mostly, I was reminded of how this team brought Asher back from death’s door and how many times Asher has knocked on it, yet the Lord had provided a miracle - many miracles.

I am so grateful for Asher’s life and for how incredibly stable he is AND how he continues to grow and develop and do all the crazy toddler things. I have nothing but praise for his providers, CMHH nurses and other staff, and certainly the Lord who has carried us through.

Thanks to you all who continually pray for us and rejoice with us. ❤️‍🩹

Peep Asher living his best life enjoying being crazy and going on any outing.

01/25/2026

Asher has had a great week. He continues to make developmental improvements. In the past week, his g button has come out twice! Both times were due to it getting snagged during play. He has become so active!

We are moving towards exclusively wearing onesies and rompers. Did you know that Target carries an adaptive clothing line online?! They have sensory friendly clothes and onesies all the way to size 16 in boys and girls! The onesies have a flap for the g tube (or an ostomy bag). Our fav is Ready Set Rompers. We were gifted some for Christmas. They create a pocket to tuck the extension in.

The other big thing this week is Asher’s water intake via sippy cup. He’s drinking so much that we have cut his g tube extension flushes down to the minimum we can and he’s barely staying within his volume limit on water. We are retrying milk and water mix to see if he could drink his formula. He spit it a lot this week. Today he drank 50 ml mixed - 45 of water and 5 of milk. It’s looking to be a slow process. This boy, though! I have the milk mix in a different color cup. When he sees it, he will shake his head no or sign all done and then sign “water.” His sign for water has always been the sign for drink because water is hard to do. He has learned to sign milk, too. We are cranking up the requirements. He now has to hold his cup himself. He will try to con you into you holding it for him.

It’s an absolute joy to see him growing and developing and getting to this point. Aunt Sue Sue shared a memory with me today. This time last year, he was just getting off oxygen during the day and getting from on the floor to sitting independently. Now, there’s no place he can’t get.

I’m so thankful for his medical stability at this moment. ❤️‍🩹

01/20/2026

Asher has had a fun 3 day weekend. Dinner out. Target. Grocery store. Funbox. New to us glider. Church. Visit from Ms. I Lun and her mom! Stroller rides. Swinging. Early mornings. We enjoyed the extra day home today. We are grateful to do normal things. ❤️‍🩹

01/11/2026

Asher’s had a normal week as we adjusted back to our school routine. He’s fully recovered from his Christmas sickness with the exception of the lingering cough. Asher gifted his sickness to Penelope and me last weekend. We are both still coughing, too.

I’ve gotten Asher’s new toys and items from Christmas out and organized. I started a rotation since he continues to get so many toys. I’ll post videos and pictures of him using his new things over the next few weeks I cleaned out his supply stock and shipped some to others (If any medical families need supplies, let me know.) His closet was exploding with supplies, so now that is organized. He tried to help me by throwing them all over the living room. He did ride with me to the post office when I shipped them out. ❤️‍🩹

Asher has learned more new signs. He now signs “again” instead of only “more” noting that he wants the same exact thing (book, song) again instead of saying more reading or more songs. He was starting to have tantrums about this because we couldn’t understand that he didn’t want another book read to him. He wanted the same book read again, for example. I was excited for this because it shows a higher level of thinking. He also is signing “fish” and all his normal signs. Asher is babbling more as well, repeating a lot of words that begin with /b/ and /p/, and fake coughing when he hears people cough or sneeze.

Asher is loving his swing. It actually wasn’t a Christmas present but a just because present from Sue Sue. Our day nurse, Mr. Ernesto, went with us to Home Depot to show us what rope to purchase and hung it up for us. We are still thrilled with our nursing services! Peep Asher enjoying his swing with Sister.

01/01/2026

I’ve been everywhere man, I’ve been everywhere. St. Amant. Sumrall. Gulfport. Biloxi. Magee. Wesson. Hazlehurst. Farmerville.

It was a full trip trying to squeeze in as many people as we could in 10 days. Friends. Family.

Asher got sick on Christmas Day. Of course, our favorite cardiologist was available long distance and we all pitched in (thanks for the steam SueSue) to keep Asher from getting too sick. He still has a cough but is better. The pesky g tube is leaking - hopefully from the cough and being sick.

I’m really good at taking down and putting the Bipap back together. The nights were long. I was so thankful to come home to a night nurse on Monday night!

Asher is probably more spoiled now. He got so much attention. He enjoyed his presents, rides, fireworks (that didn’t make noise), snuggles, Ms. Rachel on everyone’s tv, big boy chair from his great grandma, etc.

Thanks to everyone who made his Christmas bright and to those of you who prayed for us!

12/20/2025

I deleted the last post about traveling for the holidays. Asher’s Turnaround page is/was intended for the journey in life with him. The good. The bad. The true. Updates. Reality. Asking for you all to come along side us and pray.

I try to share a mix of everything. Not post too often. I try not to whine. I don’t want pity - just prayers. Quite a few folks reach out to let me know that posts I make are in line with their lives and that gives us community.

Anyhow, someone made a comment on my traveling for the holidays post that made me feel guilty for posting it and was just an unkind comment. So, I just deleted the whole thing.

I appreciate you all that love Asher and us and pray for us - many of whom we haven’t met! Thank you!

I just want to say one thing and then I’m moving on - we all live in different realities. What is real to you and real to me may be two different things. If my reality doesn’t set well with you, then maybe keep scrolling. Or, maybe we aren’t folks it’s best that you follow. And, I don’t mean that ugly. I got out of some FB groups after having Asher because the reality others chose made me downright sad and feel sick. I did what was best for my heart just like i hope you all do.

Stay tuned for fun holiday travels! ❤️‍🩹

12/13/2025

Before Asher, I had 100% inclusion ideas for school and life. Being in education, we each typically have our passion and area we push/want for students. Mine was inclusion. While inclusion is still very important to me and something I believe should be a fundamental right being that we are all people in this world, there are benefits to togetherness with people like yourself. Today, I experienced that first hand. Asher, the twins, and I attended a Christmas celebration at GiGi’s Playhouse - a non-profit for people with Down Syndrome. One child couldn’t wait for gift time to get hers. One boy was bouncing all around the room. Not everyone followed the directions for the dance activity. No one scolded or judged or cared. A child got her gift early. A boy bounced on my food and it was okay. The leader adapted the dance activity on the spot. I talked to a mom of a new 3 year old about transitioning from bottles to sippy cups, sign language, and the two words her daughter could say.

So many people love Asher. You all pray for him and encourage me. You ride this journey with us. Our church and our neighborhood. Our family and friends. Everyone includes Asher. He’s always invited. It’s a given. And, that means more to me than you all know.

But, there is something about being with people like yourself. Who walk the same life day in and day out. Who get you. Who know that even though you love this boy/girl more than imaginable, that it pains your heart when you see the kids at church, in the neighborhood, in your family, with your friends eating a snack, riding a tricycle, walking, talking in sentences because that was your hope for your child. Being with people who ask your child’s name and comment on his cuteness or activity level without expecting he will talk back. Unconditional acceptance. Total understanding. The pressure that I’m sure I mostly put on myself is gone. I don’t feel like I have to justify or explain why he does the things he does and doesn’t do the things he doesn’t.

Inclusion - yes, sign us up. Being with people like yourself - put me down for that, too!

❤️‍🩹

12/10/2025

Asher caught a virus we think (adenovirus) at the end of Thanksgiving break. He had multiple days of multiple bouts of diarrhea. This caused him to slack down on his water. He’s not drinking much anymore. However, he is well now.

He’s been enjoying taking all the recycling out of the box and making a mess in the kitchen, library visits to play and get more books, multiple trips to the park to swing, and video calling his family especially when big Bubba can turn folks into pretend characters.

Asher got a great check up today with his cardiologist that manages his pace maker. He’s only using it 6% of the time. He had no atrial flutters or SVTs the past 9 months.

He’s just living life! :)

11/27/2025

Asher celebrated his Thanksgiving a day early. He spent the day with Ms. I Lun!

I’m grateful for a lot of people, but Ms. I Lun is irreplaceable in our lives. ❤️‍🩹

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you who continue to love and bless us. ❤️‍🩹

11/26/2025

Asher update:

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, there is so much to be thankful for on the Asher front!

This nursing company and these new nurses are amazing! We should have switched companies long ago. The pain and anxiety of Ms. I Lun not working for us anymore was indescribable at first - losing her as a constant in MY life and as an amazing nurse for Asher. But, the Lord knows better than we do. We never would have switched companies. And, great things more than I Lun knew have happened in her life. We see her a couple times per month still. She’s coming tomorrow! Thank you, Lord, for this company and these nurses and for knowing what is best for us even when we can’t see it.

Asher is continuing to make progress on the development front. He’s walking in his walker literally all over the living room, pulling to stand on occasion, and picking up signs/imitating so much! He even has been trying watered down milk. Tonight he randomly signed milk and then drank some! (Thank you, Tina Hamilton Palomino!) Thank you, Lord, for Asher’s development and for our therapists who constantly push him. And, thank you that these therapies can happen at home.

Asher had a check up with his cardiologist last week. It looks like he might be ready for the Fontan (hopefully last open heart surgery) sooner than we thought - within the next year. Thank you, Lord, for a good check up and thank you that Asher is still a good Fontan candidate.

We finally received the bipap last week. I’m going to make a post about just that after Thanksgiving. But for now, thank you Lord for Asher finally getting the bipap and that Asher may rest more soundly because of it.

Lord, thank you for the little things - Sunday afternoons outside playing with the families on our street, the ability to go to parties, park adventures, hair cuts, adjusting to church nursery, playing at home, FaceTime…Lord, thank you for allowing Asher to experience “normal” toddlerhood. ❤️‍🩹