A Little About Us
I am Sandy. I am author, entrepreneur and digital content creator. I have two children: a sweet little boy called Lennox and the precious little girl in the picture, Mara. Mara was prenatally diagnosed with Down syndrome when I was 11 weeks pregnant. Her diagnosis came as a shock, but it only took me 4 days to get back on my feet and take charge of the situation to make sure that my little girl would have all the resources and support she may need.
I spent my entire pregnancy learning about neuroplasticity and how we can improve the physical and cognitive abilities of our babies. Since Mara’s birth, I have spent countless hours implementing a routine that includes daily physical, cognitive, visual, and tactile stimulation. I keep getting surprised by how much we can assist our children and equip them to conquer anything they want if they receive proper early stimulation.
My motto as a mother, and more specifically as a special needs mom, is “information is power”. That is why I decided to create this website. I know that every single child can reach their maximum potential if we, as parents, have access to the right information.
about us
How We Got Started
After repeated requests from many of my loyal @Instagram followers for more information about what we were doing to help Mara in her development, @MaraTheWondergirl Instagram was born. It was a great way for us to share Mara’s progress, her infectious smile, and her huge personality. It was also a great way to connect with other mamas who had questions and were seeking advice.
Little by little, the “How did you do _____?” questions grew. And it was becoming increasingly clear that one-on-one messages did not allow me to serve the needs of our growing community in the way I wanted. We knew that the impact could be bigger and that we could reach more families. And so, MaraTheWondergirl.com was born. It is an important next step to provide a new home for all of us. Thank you for being a part of it.
Glad You Have Joined Us On Our Adventure
Top Posts
I hear this over and over: “I just want my kid to be happy!” or “Don’t you just want your kids to be happy?” And yet… I would not say that my goal is to make my kids happy. To be clear, it is not to make them unhappy either.
After having my son Lennox, I started to pay lots of attention to the products we used at home and WOW! Lots and lots of toxins that we were inhaling all the time. When you add our little girl, Mara, to the equation – given that kids with Down syndrome may have oxidative stress which is a decreased ability to detoxify – it was a MUST to get rid of all toxins at home.
Ana Belaval asked me something that I had been waiting to be asked since Mara was born: “How do you deal with people thinking that you had a picture perfect life – you are an author, and influencer, you have a good marriage, a beautiful son – but they now feel sorry that your life is no longer perfect because you had a child with Down syndrome?”
It had been just a few days since I heard the numbing words “your baby has Down syndrome” when I received a message from a close family member that said: “I am very proud of you for choosing to have your baby. You are really brave”. I was still processing my feelings. In no way was I in a good place as I read those words.
One of the things I want my kids to remember about their childhood is how much I loved playing with them. One thing I do with Lennox daily is role play. If you could watch me at home, you would rarely find me speaking in my own tone.
I get asked how to handle tantrums so so often on my Instagram account, so I decided to invite an expert to talk about the subject. Dr. Becky Kennedy is a clinical psychologist specializing in parenting, managing anxiety, and building…
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