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I’m Trista. I am a wife and a mother to three beautiful little girls. Our youngest daughter, Bernadette, was born with an extra awesome chromosome and has been rocking at life! She has rocked my world in all the best of ways and I am excited to be on this journey as her mother.
My husband and I received her diagnosis prenatally after discovering she had a major heart defect. I was mostly shocked when we found out that oftentimes, these kinds of heart defects can be associated with Down syndrome. A couple of weeks later, her Down syndrome diagnosis was confirmed through a blood test.
It took me a while to adjust to the news. Soon enough, I found myself browsing through social media finding other families who had this wonderful addition. I didn’t know many people with Down syndrome prior to Bernadette’s birth. It was so encouraging to connect with these other families and to get a glimpse into this amazing part of their lives.
I came across Ruby’s Rainbow shortly after Bernadette was born, while spending several weeks in the hospital during Bernadette’s heart surgeries. It brought tears of joy to my eyes the first time I watched a video from Ruby’s Rainbow as they delivered a scholarship to a sweet girl getting ready for college. It opened my eyes to all kinds of endless possibilities for Bernadette and taught me the importance of dreaming big. I believe she can do anything she sets out to accomplish and I will be there cheering her on every step of the way.