Cooper Wilson

Cooper is our precious little boy. He was born 6 weeks early, but he was healthy... 10 little fingers, 10 little toes, piercing blue eyes and the cutest little crooked smile. His development was slow, but we were told that preemies are often delayed and he would catch up. We were encouraged to give him time. When Cooper didn't roll over at 7 months, couldn't sit up and was still having trouble with head control, we were worried. Cooper was diagnosed with hypotonia and we began an intensive therapy program 3 days per week to work on tone and muscle strength. When he didn't improve we were referred to a neurologist and an ophthalmologist to help narrow down or rule out possible diagnosis. The day before Cooper's MRI the ophthalmologist discovered the cherry red spot behind his eyes. We were told that this was not good news and it drastically narrowed down the possibilities to 1 of 3 conditions. All of which were lysosomal storage diseases, and none of which had a good prognosis. On May 16th 2008 Cooper was diagnosed with GM1 Gangliosidosis. We were told an overwhelming amount of information and are still learning. Everyday has it's ups and downs...it's a roller-coaster ride at the very least.

Cooper keeps us laughing with his contagious giggles and sweet smiles! He can definitely let us know what he prefers with his coos and facial expressions. He has even learned a few signs! Cooper loves to be outdoors and moving at all times. I think that since he can't move on his own, he moves through us... So, we are constantly swinging, bouncing, rocking, tapping and tickling! He also gets excited about lights and music, but swimming tops the list by far!

Visit Cooper's website at: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/coopaloop