The SpecialMoms Parenting Magazine 2nd Issue | Page 14

Ellen Stumbo of
Finding Beauty
in Brokenness
Tell us a little about yourself.
Ellen Stumbo is a wife and mom. She writes and
speaks about finding beauty in brokenness with
gritty honesty and openness. She’s passionate
about sharing the real – sometimes beautiful and
sometimes ugly – aspects of faith, parenting,
special needs, and adoption. Ellen’s writing
has appeared on Focus on the Family, LifeWay,
MomSense, Not Alone, Mamapedia, and the
Huffington Post.

Tell us about your family.
I am an avid reader, and love reading with my
kids too. I have three girls, ages 6, 8, and soon to
be 9!

Share with us the diagnosis of your child
with special needs. How did you find
out?
My youngest daughter was born with Down
syndrome. We knew from our scans that she had

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several markers for Down syndrome, so we knew
it was a strong possibility. We chose not to have
an amnio due to the risks. When she was born,
her diagnosis was confirmed. She changed us,
and so we decided to adopt another child with
special needs. We adopted our middle daughter
4 years ago. She has cerebral palsy among some
other diagnoses.

What is the most rewarding thing about
being the mother of a special needs
child?
I consider it a privilege to parent my kids-- all
three of them. As a special needs parent, I feel
like, thanks to my children, I have a better sense
of what really matters in life, of what it means to
be loved not for what we can or cannot do, but
simply because we are. Every life has meaning,
and every life has purpose.

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