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"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." ~Desmond Tutu
 Padraig, Mom and Sister Nuala
XXXX XXXX Our story begins in warm
and sunny Florida. Padraig was born in Melbourne, FL a large (almost 10 pounds) bouncing baby boy and did not appear
to have any developmental issues. At Padraig's six month check up I was concerned about the fact that Padraig's
fists were still so tightly clenched. His pediatrician at the time said not to worry, "boys always develop more
slowly than girls." As a first time mom, I had heard this before, and did not worry too much about it. By
10 months when most kids his age were sitting up, pulling them selves up to standing and cruising the floor on their knees,
Padraig still lie motionless on the floor. He always had a wonderful smile and an infectious giggle
but he clearly was behind on reaching his developmental milestones. XXX At his 12 month appointment, now in Ohio, his pediatrician whisked in the room, checked out all his bits and pieces
and quickly began to exit the room when I finally said "Stop!" It was then that I said, it is not OK that
Padraig does not feed himself, it was not OK that he was not sitting up, pulling himself up in his crib and hated laying on
his tummy. It was only then that the doctor said, your right, this is not OK. We were immediately referred to
a developmental pediatrician in Akron, Ohio where Padraig was diagnosed with Developmental Delay. We began occupational
therapy at 13 months and told to check back in with the doctor in 3 months. I felt unsatisfied with the diagnosis as
we were not going to pursue any type of testing and there was no definitive explanation of how Padraig would advance from
where he currently was. XXX  I expressed this concern with our developmental pediatrician at our next visit and he referred us onto the State for
early childhood intervention. We were so blessed to work with an amazing woman, Maggie, who developed a plan for us
to begin to move forward. Our plan not only established a plan for working with Padraig but also offered training and
support opportunities for me. Through the networking that I did, I learned of a developmental pediatrician at the Cleveland
Clinic and immediately scheduled an appointment. XXX I was pleased with the more aggressive style of treatment our new physician presented to us. We promptly scheduled
a battery of test to rule out genetic, mitochondrial and other anatomical issues that may be plaguing Padraig. After
a stressful 6 weeks of waiting on results, we received the news that everything was negative and we were once again left with
the diagnosis of Developmental Delay. This diagnosis never rested in my heart and knew that at some point we would get
to the bottom of what specifically were Padraig's challenges. XXX We welcomed Nuala, Padraig's sister into
the world when Padraig was 19 months old. I remembe praying every night and asking that Padraig be at least able to
walk when his sister arrived because I was not sure how I would manage both a 19 month old and a new born both who were immobile.
My prayers were answered just days before Nuala's arrival when Padraig began to walk by holding hands and holding on to
furniture. He had also began crawling independently just weeks before Nuala was born. XXX Overwhelmed with dealing with the emotional challenges
of a new baby, Padraig and his developmental challenges and living 3 states away from family, we moved to MN where I grew
up and most of my family lived. We were fortunate and lucky to have a wonderfully supportive family to help us and
we found Fraser. Both Padraig and Nuala enrolled in Fraser School in Richfield, a child care center for typical and special needs children. Not only did we find an extremely inclusive
environment to become a part of, for the first time we felt like we had a group of professionals who could give us the support
and resources that we needed; all in one place. XXX Fraser Schoolprovided a safe and supportive option for day care but also made Nuala feel as if having a Special brother was normal and
quite lucky. Padraig became a "cool kid" at school, frequently we were stopped in the hallway so that kids
could give Padraig a hug. Kids found Padraig's brilliant smile more of an attraction than his hand flapping a distraction.
We were able to have Padraig receive his OT and Speech Therapy right at school. He was even given a scholarship to participate
in music therapy. Fraser school referred us to Fraser Child and Family Center where we were given a thorough psychological evaluation and after four years of searching finally received our diagnosis
of Autism and Cognitive Delay. XXX Padraig now is thriving in elementary school and loves to get on the bus each day. We have been fortunate to have
an amazing group of professionals that work with Padraig through his day and help him to excel in his development.
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