Emma age 13 - off to climb Mt Kinabalu on Monday

Mt Kinabalu is the highest mountain in South East Asia and is situated in beautiful Borneo a 2.5 hour flight from Singapore.

Emma, her twin brother Zach and a group of 20+ sports leaders from Tanjong Katong Primary School in Singapore are to set off on Monday to climb the mountain. Emma has one extra bag than the other kids - a spare prosthesis in case her main one breaks.

So fellow PFFD travellers, you can imagine the pride and wonder that we feel as her parents as she sets off to do what seems almost impossible to me even as an able bodied person. It is full credit to her school, her amazing teachers and their support and the belief that they, us and she has in herself to be not even flinching an eyelid at the prospect.

So to those parents who are just starting out on the PFFD journey, hold the faith. Emma continues to stike wonder and pride for us in each new thing that she does. She is determined, very 'normal', unstoppable and is unfazed by most everything.

I know that all parents want their kids to grow up happy and have a normal life. This is especially true for PFFD parents, and we wonder what we can do to assist with that normality and happiness. Emma has exceeded all our expectations of what she would be able to achieve even at age 13. When I read stories of adult PFFD'ers that normality often comes through as lifes milestones achieved; jobs, marriages, family, happiness, love. I know it is definately never plain sailing, and Emma's development has surprised us both in her 'normal-ness' and in her incredible uniqueness as well.

What an incredible journey is has been so far, let's see what the next stage brings us all.

Warmest regards
Dione