A couple, whose first child was born with Down Syndrome, have selflessly adopted another toddler with the same condition.
Allison and Andrew Sweatman adopted Beau at the age of three as a big brother for their daughter, Rosie, because they said they no longer found special needs parenting 'scary'.
The couple admitted they were initially daunted when at Rosie's 20-week scan they were told their daughter had Down Syndrome, and was suffering from a heart defect.
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Blogger and podcaster Allison gave birth to Rosie by emergency C-section at 37 weeks, and the tot spent the first year of her life in and out of hospital.
Rosie underwent major heart surgery, suffered seizures, and was diagnosed with a condition where the bones in the skull fuse together prematurely.
Gradually her health improved, and Rosie began pre-school last September.
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They said watching three-year-old Rosie overcome her battles and thrive with Down Syndrome made them realise that they were no longer intimidated by the condition.
They began to look into adopting another child with Down Syndrome, as there is a shortage of suitable homes for kids with special needs.
Last November, a friend introduced them to Beau, now four, and Allison said the connection was instant.
She said: "It was so hard with Rosie at first because we were not able to focus on really any of the things a typical parent gets to focus on.
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"We weren't really able to relish the first year of life because we were completely focused on very very serious health issues.
"The biggest thing was that we had seen our daughter overcome so many obstacles and so many great perils that we knew that something like Down Syndrome - this extra chromosome - was no longer scary to us.
"Then we heard about Beau."
Beau's parents loved him dearly but thought that his needs would be better met by a family who already had a child with down syndrome.
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Allison and Andrew spoke constantly with his birth parents until they met at Legoland in November, 2017 and two months later, the adoption was finalised.
Describing the moment she met Beau, Allison said: "When I first held Beau there were so many emotions and I knew him becoming my son meant his birth mum sacrificing greatly for us to have him in our family.
"We definitely had an instant connection with him, especially my husband.
"We are just like a lot of other families but I absolutely recognise that we are also incredibly different from the outside looking in.
"We do get people staring at us or asking questions, but it is just a part of our life.
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"Being a mom of two children with Down Syndrome is incredibly rewarding.
"It's most rewarding when I see our kids working so incredibly hard for milestones and to see them surpass our expectations of them.
"It makes all the really hard days worth it.
"It's not an easy journey, but it's certainly a privilege to be part of."
Featured Image Credit: SWNSTopics: Life News, Real, Health