This is Hope…
Hope was born on the 5th August 2019 along with her twin brother Alexander. She also has an older brother, Lincoln, who absolutely adores her.
Even before she was born, Hope did not have it easy. She’s had to do a lot of fighting to get where she is today. Much of that fighting has been due to the fact that she has Down syndrome. One of Hope’s middle names is Louise, which means warrier. That’s exactly what Hope has been and we believe she will continue to be.
During pregnancy, there was a complication which meant Hope was not getting the usual blood flow and nutrients that she should have been getting. She was fighting before she was even born to be a part of our world and having Down syndrome only made her fight even tougher. Hope and her brother were born 8 weeks early, she was a tiny 1.2kg, and she spent 10 weeks in the NICU and special care units at hospital before she was well enough to come home. But even then… the fighting has had to continue. At the age of 3 months, she had heart surgery and in her first year alone, she had 88 specialist appointments (either to see a doctor, have a test, a procedure or surgery). Hope’s fight will never end.
We wouldn’t change her for the world… But we’d like to change the world for her.
As her parents, we (Ben and Heidi) want to give Hope the best opportunities to live a full and exciting life, and this is why we started Raising Hope Designs. As a family, we love craft. It brings us all together for smiles, laughter and creating new memories. While looking at all the bills piling up, and knowing we have a lifetime of therapies and extra medical needs for Hope continually coming in, we decided to take what we love and share it with others. Anything we make from our gifts and crafts goes towards our family, specifically to Hope, to help ensure she gets all the support she needs to have the best life possible. Even the smallest purchase you make, will make the world of different to us and to Hope.
Not only do we want to share our ideas and crafts with you, we want to share Hope’s journey and help to show that Down syndrome is not something we should be afraid of. It’s something we should love, cherish and support. While the road is not easy, we wouldn’t change it for the world! It doesn’t matter what you are going through or how you are feeling, Hope has this way of bringing a smile to your face. A world without Hope, without kids like Hope, wouldn’t be the same.
We thank you for all your support and hope that you love and enjoy our little gifts of love. Feel free to share with friends and family, everyone needs a little Hope in their lives.
