Every.Life.Inspires

Before Ronnie joined our family I knew almost nothing about spina bifida. Once I knew he would be joining our family, I did a lot of research and read some very scary things.

Having been through a lot of equally scary things with both Ashley and Jessica, I knew I was up to the task of being his mother and his lifetime advocate.

I have always chosen my children with special needs. I have approached their adoptions fully aware of the challenges we all would face, and the choice to proceed with the adoptions were always mine.

But what if you were a first time parent - a parent who has just been told only a third of the way through your pregnancy that your child would have spina bifida? What would you do?

The video below may help families answer that question.

The McGinley family struggled to become pregnant. After many struggles and miscarriages, their dream was realized and they became pregnant with twin boys. Just a few short months later, their lives took yet another turn when it was realized that one of the boys, little Elijah, had spina bifida.

The McGinley family, along with other families, have put their feelings, their thoughts, and their journey to spina bifida into the video below. Their efforts, labeled Project Eli (Every Life Inspires) and this special documentary is about parents being prenatally diagnosed with spina bifida.

If you have a child with spina bifida, are pregnant with a child with spina bifida, know someone who has a child with spina bifida, or are just interested in learning more, please take about 30 minutes out of your busy day and watch this video. You could even substitute another severe disability for spina bifida and this video's message will still move you.