Amber Rojas was excited to welcome a new baby, but she realized almost immediately that her newborn had Dᴏᴡɴ sʏɴᴅʀᴏᴍᴇ and would need special care.
The family, which lives in Cedar Hill, Texas, includes 10-year-old Xavier, 8-year-old twins Kaydence and Zayden, and toddler Evra, who was about to turn 2. Amber Rojas, her husband Fernando, and their four children felt ready – well, as ready as you can ever be – for baby number five.
When Amber Rojas became pregnant for the fourth time, she decided not to find out the sᴇx of the baby and make it a surprise for everyone. With two boys and two girls, it was okay to have a little uncertainty, although everyone seemed sure it would be a boy. But she felt that this baby would be special, even though the pregnancy was normal.
“Since this was my fourth and last pregnancy and my fifth child, I gave birth in literally the most different ways, and I wanted to leave at least some kind of surprise,” said the mother of many children. “We wanted to wait for something special, especially since we did not plan for this child at all.”
But when Amadeus Reign Rojas, nicknamed Ami, was born, the mother’s intuition was confirmed, as she immediately realized that her newborn daughter had Dᴏᴡɴ sʏɴᴅʀᴏᴍᴇ.
Five minutes after giving birth in the water, Amber saw her newborn daughter Amadea and immediately realized that her suspicions were justified. “When I picked her up out of the water, I could literally see it, I could see it in her face,” said Rojas. “I looked down and was like, ‘Oh my gosh, our baby has Dᴏᴡɴ sʏɴᴅʀᴏᴍᴇ.’”
Dᴏᴡɴ sʏɴᴅʀᴏᴍᴇ is caused by ᴛʀɪsᴏᴍʏ 21, or three sets of chromosomes where there are normally two. This can result in certain physical characteristics like a flatter facial profile, an upward slant of the eyes, a deep crease in the palm of the hand, and low muscle tone.
Rojas was “super excited,” because her last baby had been a girl, and she “was so grateful it was another girl so they could grow up together.” Finally, the midwife did let her know that they should take Ami to the hospital for further evaluation.
A photographer was present at the birth who captured all the emotions of the mother. But she was not upset at all because she was happy about the birth of a new member of the family.
