Connecticut Lawmakers; Daniel Freeman - from 1" - 1st 2/12 minutes

It's a wonderful place, it's just where people go and hang out and talk to each other and Daniel loves it. Daniel has hypotonia, which means low muscle tone or some people say floppy muscles. He was born by emergency cesarean and I was there and I remember the doctor saying just sit down and don't move because I don't have time to take care of you and for about the first six, nine months things were going along okay and then all of a sudden I noticed he didn't sit up, flopped over and retrospect, I shouldn't realize it earlier because he

couldn't breastfeed, couldn't use the muscles in his mouth. And my husband was convinced that there really was something wrong with Daniel and we talked again with a pediatrician and finally when Daniel was nine months, he did a developmental test on Daniel and we found that Daniel was about three months delayed. No matter what the doctors tell you or don't tell you, I'm sorry, with the times when you felt like giving up along the way. I couldn't stand it.

Daniel's a little boy, couldn't walk, nobody could tell us what was wrong with him, nobody knew we didn't know if we'd ever be able to walk or talk or sit up. Daniel's a little boy, he's a little boy, he's a little boy, he's a little boy, he's a little boy, why aren't you coming? Daniel really enjoys getting a haircut.

He goes to the unique barbershop and wistumble, it's a wonderful place, just where people go and hang out and talk to each other and then you love him. Daniel has hypotonia, which means low muscle tone or some people say floppy muscles. He was born by emergency cesarean and I was there and I remember the doctor saying just sit down and don't move because I don't have time to take care of you and for about the first six nine months things were going along okay and then all of a sudden I noticed he didn't sit up, flopped over and retrospect and I should have realized that earlier because he couldn't breastfeed, couldn't use the muscles in his mouth. And my husband was convinced that there really was something wrong with Daniel and we talked again with a pediatrician and finally when Daniel was nine months, he did a developmental

test on Daniel and we found that Daniel was about three months delayed. Don't ever give up no matter what the doctors tell you or don't tell you. I'm sorry, we're the times when we fall like getting up a little longer. I'm going to give up, I couldn't stand it, it was just a beautiful little boy, could you walk, nobody can tell us what was wrong with him, nobody knew, we didn't know if he'd ever be able to walk or talk or sit up.

We got physical therapy, occupational therapy, separate therapists and a speech therapy in a group context and it was in that way that he learned how to move and crawl and eventually walk. Daniel goes to a regular daycare which is really a school for young children, a school that's been in Tramble for about 25 years, I believe, the world's school for young children. We think is very important about the program and the inclusion of Daniel in a normal classroom setting is that he's able to model the other children's behavior.

We have noticed a tremendous amount of growth in his fine motor skills and his gross motor skills in his language because he is able to interact with the other children and model their behavior. Daniel when he came to us was very aggressive in a way that he wanted to make friendships but didn't really know how to go about it so because his language wasn't there he'd be more physical with the children and at first they were a little leery. This is the world that they're going to be living in, they're going to be living with people that are going to have to accept their disabilities. They're more accustomed to him and he has developed a few friendships because he uses words rather than his hands more often now. He'll ask them to come with them rather than grab them and pull them to where he wants them to be. So I think it's important for them to be in a setting where they will be meeting all

of these problems that they're going to face and if they can handle those as children then hopefully they can handle them as an adult. Daniel if he could say things and be understood I'm sure would say please be patient I'm a human being too I'm trying as fast as I can to communicate as best I can with you and doing the best job I can please be patient. Children don't necessarily develop in the pattern that the books say children are going to be developing in but they all develop and they develop better when they're with each other when they watch each other when people understand that some children develop differently and facilitate their inclusion rather than shutting them off or putting them in different

places and trying to insulate either them or other children from each other. It's a tremendous strain on a family having a child with a disability and frequently families don't make so many pressures put on them I can't tell you how many single parents I've met who have disabled children and they all tell the same story the child came to the marriage went downhill and it's true it is the compounds of the situation you gotta have support whether it's a professional doctor or a parent simply whoever someone can't be the long-rangeer can you only have one bullet so I guess Daniel is our one bullet but he's a solo one so sure that's it.