Natalie

*A special thank you to Kathleen, Natalie’s mom, for sharing her story!

Natalie lives in Green with her big brother Marshall; mom and dad; her dog, Leroy; and cat, Jack-Jack. Natalie has a rare syndrome called 18q Deletion Syndrome, among other health issues like low muscle tone and fatigue. She has hearing loss, which has affected her speech, as well as her ability and confidence to communicate with others in the community. However, this does not stop her from being "best friends" with all the kids at the park, or wherever she goes! She consistently tries hard to keep up with her brother and peers.

Natalie has a strong desire to learn to read and always works hard at her school-work. She plays very well with others and independently, sings along to songs, and makes others laugh with her silliness, she's always willing to try something new. Some of her favorite activities include dance, playing at the park, and swimming! We go to a lot of parks because it's her favorite place! We also go on short walks and practice riding bikes and practice catching butterflies in her net.

Natalie struggles communicating with others her age and people she doesn't know. Sometimes her speech is hard for others to understand when she does try, and so she becomes selectively mute in social environments. Her strong will of what she wants overcomes listening to her parents or siblings at times and can lead to misunderstanding and much frustration. The closures of her activities this past year have been a major struggle for our family. We have really missed seeing other people and participating in our usual activities. Fatigue can hit her hard after too much activity, so we have to plan and consider certain activities she won't be able to participate in, like day camps during the summer.

Natalie has a great personality, she is fun, loving and kind, forgiving and loves to laugh, as well as make others laugh! Friends and family are very supportive, the more they are around, the more Natalie trusts and opens up with her speech and personality. Teachers from church are also very accommodating to her needs so she can go to class and feel comfortable and confident. She is always talking about showing kindness even when someone may not be nice to her. She never gives up, and doesn't want others to slow down for her, she works hard to keep up.

Being a special needs mom is the hardest, yet most rewarding job there is! I am very different now, I have more patience, and I celebrate every milestone she makes! I am more confident in my ability to be an advocate for my child, be resourceful, and push for things when they are needed. I realized that there are people you don't even know who have a heart for you, who will support you and advocate with you. You don’t have to do this alone. I hope we can all learn to reach out and celebrate each other’s milestones and victories with our kids. Not only did our children work hard for it, but we all do better with as much support as we can get. 

One of Natalie’s biggest achievements this year is that she has developed enough fine motor skills to write words! She also learned how to read short stories on her own. This summer we plan to go camping and put her back into dance class. We hope to do a lot of swimming because one goal we are working on is building Natalie’s endurance so she can swim on her own. Natalie's confidence in herself has grown too as she has gotten older, she knows she is beautiful, loved, and a very strong, young girl!