People with Down's syndrome may have mild, moderate or severe intellectual and developmental problems, and it has become clear that Ruth faces the most difficult challenges. While she still enjoys watching CBeebies, more usually enjoyed by pre-schoolers, Kate and Andy must make plans for her future as an adult. Since she joined Grove Cottage's nursery at one, the charity has been a constant for Ruth and continues to offer help, advice and support as she reaches adulthood. Instead, Ruth went to Middleton, a state special school for children aged 4 to 11 in Ware, where she was able to make friends, and has since flourished at Pinewood School, an award-winning secondary for children with special educational needs in the same town. Ruth took her first steps at Thorley Pre-school when she was around three-and-a-half and was then given places in Hillmead Primary School's nursery and reception class, but it soon became clear that mainstream education was not the best choice for her. Ruth's regular consultations and ultimately surgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London to repair holes in her heart made it impossible for Kate to return to work. Like many children with Down's syndrome, she also had cardiac problems. Ruth had to be woken regularly to be fed and it soon became clear that her development was delayed. "My mum was very helpful as she had a lot of experience," said Kate. They became "unlikely friends" as they came to terms with their new circumstances. It was an isolating experience until a chance encounter in the television room with another exiled new mum, whose drug addiction had affected her baby's health. Ruth was whisked away to special care, interrupting Kate's chance to bond with her little girl, and she was placed in a side room. "It took me back to what life was like then." "I've got an older brother with very severe learning difficulties," she said. Kate said: "My reaction was 'How can they miss this?'" Kate Macfarlane and daughter Ruth.Īs Ruth's condition became clear, Kate understood the implications. However, Ruth was born by chance with an extra chromosome resulting in genetic disorder Down's syndrome. Like many pregnant women over 35, Kate underwent tests to detect any potential abnormalities and was given the all-clear. There were no signs that Ruth's arrival 20 months later would be any less routine. The former research scientist, 51, and husband Andy, a Scottish software engineer, have lived in Bishop's Stortford since 2000.Īfter some difficulties conceiving, the birth of their first child, Matthew, now a 16-year-old student at The Bishop's Stortford High School, was uneventful and the couple were eager to add to the family. Kate explained why she was so anxious to ensure that its future was safeguarded so that many more children and adults in need can access its support. Honestly, if you take offense to being called a jive turkey, you probably are one.East Herts Council has granted planning permission for a new purpose-built headquarters, and now the charity needs to generate enough cash to deliver the design to meet the unique needs of Grove Cottage's members and their families. Though the term jive turkey is still quite recognized today-there’s even a Brooklyn-based fried turkey store named Jive Turkey, which has quite a few fans-the term is dated enough that it’s pretty much only used for comedic effect. Then, in 1974 the funk band the Ohio Players released the song “Jive Turkey,” which uses the phrase repeatedly in the lyrics: “Give me it straight baby / Jive turkey, jive turkey / Jive turkey / Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow.” No doubt there are some sexual undertones here, with jive also historically referring to sex. The insult jive turkey also appeared on popular 1970s-1980s sitcoms, such as The Jeffersons.īy the 1990s, the term jive turkey was so associated with the 1970s that The Simpsons even had the perpetually dimwitted Homer Simpson use the term around a bunch of kids to show how out of touch he was. Turkeys are known to gobble, adding to the sense of jive, and have been variously used to insult someone as “dull” or “worthless.” It was in the 1970s, though, when calling these shady fools jive turkeys became a thing. On its own, the term jive was slang all the way back in the 1940s for, among other senses, actions that ranged from foolish and frivolous to vile and deceitful.
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