When our first baby, Eric, was born almost 40 years ago in Chattanooga, I must admit John and I were scared and overwhelmed. We were young, just starting our careers, and were mostly just thinking about whether we were having a boy or girl. Ultrasounds were not very clear in 1987! When our pediatrician mentioned Down syndrome, our world changed. We tried to find as much information as we could, but that was before the internet, so finding resources was difficult at best. Most of the information we found was bleak and out of date. Books predicted a sad future. It was at that time that we decided to write a new book and have a new attitude toward Down syndrome. We decided to raise him our own way...or at least try to make the best of it.