After remarrying, Julie McConnel was ready to begin a new life. This woman already had three kids from a previous marriage. After Julie and her new husband Dan had a son, they decided to try for a girl.
In the midst of their attempts, however, Julie was taught once again that life can be utterly unpredictable. She fell pregnant, for sure … with twins.
Now, the odds of a woman having a child with 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐞 increase to 1 in 100 after she turns 40, so Julie and Dan knew they’d undergo all the necessary checks. After a time, they discovered that her twin boys would indeed be born with the condition.
At the age of 45, Julie felt that the added strain of raising two children with special needs might be too much. Instead, her and Dan found a family who wanted to adopt the twins, through 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐀𝐝𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 …
After Julie and Dan had found a new family for their sons, however, they found themselves continually putting off the signing of the paperwork that would make the adoption official.
She said: “We wanted to do our due diligence, so we connected with the local 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐞 association,”
“They were hosting a picnic, so we went and met with some wonderful families who shared their experiences with us.”
It was there that the parents came upon the realization they were letting fear get in the way of adding to their family.
Julie said: “You love your kids no matter what. When we finally decided that we weren’t going to let our fear stand in our way, it was easy to make our decision,”
Whilst in the third trimester, the couple made the decision to keep their sons after all. Milo and Charlie were born healthy and happy, and now the parents can’t imagine their lives without them.
Julie said: “My heart came out of my chest when I saw them. I was so smitten,” . “It’s hard to imagine life without them, but I think I’d miss them every day if we had decided not to keep them.”, she added.
Source: Newsner, Inside Edition
