A few months ago I mentioned to a friend that I wanted to do a nursing photo shoot with my daughter with Down syndrome (DS). I was disheartened by hearing from women who had been told that their babies likely wouldn't nurse. Some were told by their doctors or other medical professionals that they shouldn't even bother. My breastfeeding relationship with my daughter is one of the greatest treasures I have and I felt sad to hear women say they felt they couldn't have that just because their child had Down syndrome. Many, if not most, babies with DS can breastfeed and for those that can, and whose mothers would like to do it, the benefits are immeasurable. Feeding your child is always a personal choice, but some of these women didn't have a choice because of their medical professionals. Somehow, my vision of posting a photo of myself nursing my daughter on my personal Facebook page to create awareness spawned a non-profit dedicated to reimagining life with Down syndrome and suddenly we had 10 women who volunteered their time. These women nursed their babies and children despite challenges most people could never have imagined including months' long NICU stays, heart failure, open heart surgery, pulmonary hypertension, duodenal atresia, leukemia, prematurity, and hypothyroidism. These women came together to give a gift to new and expectant moms, something many of them feel that they didn't have enough of: encouragement from real moms, like themselves, who struggled through the early and difficult days and eventually met success, usually when they least expected it. We want to say you can do it! We are here cheering you on! and go, mama, go!

I'm so proud to have gathered these strong and inspirational women together for this project. I know we have started to change the conversation around breastfeeding babies with Down syndrome. And, we've only just begun. We have a video and a book coming out over the next month. Help us reach more moms by contributing to our project. All donations are tax deductible. Special thanks to Nicole Starr Photography for these amazing images.