Rayce Grieve’s new baby brother is unlike the rest of his siblings. Tripp was born with Down syndrome and spent the first month of his life in the hospital.
Rayce, six, has informed his mother Nicole Powell, 29, that he will always look out for his beloved brother – and has asked to cuddle him one morning.
And when the student began singing ‘their song’ – 10,000 hours by Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber – the mother-of-five from Arkansas, United States, was left beaming.
She recorded the touching moment on her phone to give to her 39-year-old husband JJ.
Nicola, a police officer, also shared it on Facebook, where it has received over eight million views.
‘It’s incredible,’ she said. I had been perplexed as to why we now have a baby with Down syndrome.
‘I believe it was to spread love and awareness.’ People are scared of what might occur.
‘However, he is flawless.’ It’s terrifying, but parenthood is terrifying in general. ‘I’m incredibly proud of my guys.’
Tripp’s parents discovered he had the issue — where an extra chromosome is present – during prenatal examinations.
Nicole acknowledges that she and her husband were ‘uninformed’ about Down’s syndrome and that physicians warned him that he could have serious cardiac problems.
‘I was uneducated and illiterate,’ she admitted.
‘I thought to myself, ‘I have four other children, all of whom adore each other; all I want is for them to love him as much as they love each other.’
‘We told them right away. We explained to them that it simply means he will be different, but he will still be their brother.
“But we’re all different,” the boys replied. And we thought to ourselves, “OK, this will be OK.”
She said later scans revealed his heart was healthy and when she finally saw him when he was born via c-section, she felt he was ‘absolutely perfect’.
After a month in the hospital, he came home to the family including siblings Jayce, nine, Rayce, six, Grayce, two, and Reese, one.
On the way home in the car the love song 10,000 Hours came on the radio, and Rayce started singing it to his little brother.
‘Both the boys love music,’ continued Nicole.
‘Rayce was saying “this song is about me and you” – he doesn’t know it’s about a husband and wife.
‘He decided it was their song.’
