Friday, January 28, 2011

Down Syndrome Footprint

Update (July 2011): This has become one of my most popular posts to date.  Most people find this post when searching for "sandal gap toe" or "sandal gap Down syndrome" or "sandal gap ultrasound".  Welcome and I hope that you find this page informative and inspiring.  I have added recent pictures to the bottom of this post.


My beautiful daughter Ellie at 20 months.

You know those advertisements that run along the side of Facebook?  The ones that you pretty much ignore or if you are like me, I tend to forget that they are even there?  I actually clicked on one.  Did I get bamboozled by a gazillion pop-up windows that would not close?

The ad brought me to the following website: Down Syndrome Footprints

I clicked on it because of this image:



The thought running through my head: "That is Ellie's Foot!"



Sandal Gap Toe.
(I refuse to call it a sandal gap deformity because it is NOT a deformity, but rather a toe spacing variation in my eyes).

Feet that flip-flops were made for.

Flip-Flops!


It is a dislocation of the big toe, therefore creating a large distance between the 1st and 2nd toes. This is a rather common plantar [foot] occurrence among those with that extra special chromosome.  It is often referred to as a "soft marker" on the ultrasound.  Not picked up on Ellie's by the way.  The Sandal Gap Toe can also be an isolated occurrence.





I for one think that Ellie's feet are adorable.  So cute with that little monkey-like toe that seems rather opposable to me.  She can pick up toys with her feet!

You can see the gap between the toes.  July 2010

New Photos!  (July 2011)

You can really see the sandal gap when Ellie is standing or walking.


Miss Ballerina.
I like to believe that the extra surface area of her feet gives her added balance.  Perfect for dancing!


Okay, back to the website.  There is a beautiful necklace on there that I like. Hint hint Andrew .  Oh wait, maybe once Ellie is older and doesn't accidentally choke me when I wear jewelry. . .

"When I count my Blessings, I count you twice."

There you go.  Free advertising brought to you by The Chronicles of Ellie Bellie Bear



Photobucket

Reference: "The Down Syndrome Footprint" (2011). Website http://www.downsyndromefootprint.com/ viewed on January 27, 2011

5 comments:

  1. Hi! Posting as the first commenter!! I might do a post about the Sandal Gap too....hmmm..trying to figure out what else I can say about it. I like all your pictures.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, found this post through searching "sandle gap toes" LOL!

    I just had my 2nd baby boy (5th child) with these toes. His older brothers are even more pronounced than Ellie's. :) Neither have trisomy 21.

    However ... we lost a little girl to anecephaly. She also had "a trisomy". I personally think it was 21, but it could have been 18 or 19. Doesn't really matter, with the anecaphaly - she was only with us 12 minutes. :'( Anyway, my husband and I like to say that she paved the way for a trisomy 21 baby in the future for us. :)

    You have a beautiful little girl. Thank you for sharing her! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ashley, I am so sorry for the lost of your little girl. I can only imagine how devastating that was for your whole family.

    Thank you for visiting the blog and for the kind words about Ellie. I love her little sandal gap toes!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Found your post through another mom's post about toes! Your little girl is so cute and I love her toes. I think the space between my little girl's toes is my favorite thing about her body. She too is quite efficient with her feet, using them almost better than her hands. She can even 'clap' them together.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Do you know where I can get the "When I count my blessings" footprint necklace? It's so beautiful and I have a special friend to give it too. Thank you! Your little girl is so precious and adorable.

    ReplyDelete

I love your comments and I read each and every single one of them.

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