Being a parent is amazing, you get to watch your children flourish, develop and expand their minds daily. Being the mother of a disabled child is also all of the above, but also much more.

What you also have is the heartache of watching other children ride scooters, bounce on trampolines, run, jump…… All with their parents oblivious to the milestones being achieved, that are far out of sight of some forever.

One milestone my boy is achieving in his own special way is swimming.

It took my son a whole term to be happy swimming on his back with the aide of a woggle and his teacher. The others in his class have far surpassed him, but I really don’t care now, my focus is him. I cried at his first month of lessons because he was so scared, so rigid on his back (he cannot do a sit up type move so naturally is terrified in water)! I knew swimming was the ‘best thing’ for his muscles so I really wanted him to enjoy lessons. A little chat to the teacher and he’s now flourishing – at his own pace!

He won’t be moving up fast, winning races, competing in galas – but boy is his smile the winning combination for me at present.

So, parents out there taking these milestones for granted, just have a think, take stock and embrace it – some of us will never have it in the same way but we are grabbing what we can.