Waiting for the other shoe to drop

One thing that a lot of us special needs parents have in common is this....feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop.
When Everleigh was first born, I was thrown into this world of fear. Heart problems, eye problems, development problems..just all around kinks in our journey. Happily, I can report that Everleigh was released from the hospital after one week (she had jaundice that we had to get under control) with a clean bill of health. She has no heart issues. I have heard statistics that anywhere from 40-60% of children born with down syndrome have a hole in their heart that may or may not require surgery. So of course I was worried about my peanut.
Ev also recently had her eyes checked out. Her optometrist (Dr. Wink....no I am not joking, that's actually his name) looked her over, shined the light in there, and concluded that while she has a very slight prescription in her left eye, there's nothing that requires immediate action and should not cause her any further delays. Unless I notice a change in her behavior or her eyesight, she doesn't need to be re-checked until she's 3.
We are currently waiting for a referral to an ENT. Kids with down syndrome have smaller airways and tubes in ears, noses etc. So what would be a simple runny nose for you and me often turns into a nose-clogging, rivers of snot producing, chest congesting issue. But really, it's not a giant deal. And I know she can hear me, so I'm not too worried but I still want her checked out so I can rest easy that we're not dealing with silent ear infections or hearing loss.

As you can see, there is a cornucopia of health issues that kids with down syndrome can face. Everleigh has escaped all of them so far...so I'm often left wondering when the other shoe is going to drop. And it can become a debilitating worry if I let it.
A fellow mama, Krista, blogged recently about this over at One Beautiful Life, in regards to her beautiful daughter Ella. Head over there and give it a read - she's got much more eloquence to her words than I ever could.