One Day at a Time

A treasured son. A rare condition. A memoir of loss and joy and everything in between.

My mind is racing. I'm trying to make sense of what the doctors have told us, to understand what life is going to look like now, for Levi and for us.

We need to tell our families, I think to myself. But Mum is so unwell - how are we going to tell Mum?

On a Melbourne afternoon in the eerie early days of the pandemic, young parents Jordan and Gary Ablett finally learned why their beautiful baby boy, Levi, had not been hitting the milestones that most new parents celebrate and are reassured by.

After months of concern and worry, the specialists' diagnosis gave them clarity, but with it came an overwhelming sorrow at the loss of the life they had imagined for their son, and for themselves as a family.

In One Day at a Time, Jordan bravely shares how she struggled to come to terms with Levi's condition and the new, unexpected path her life had taken raising a child with a disability, while helping to care for her beloved mother as she lived through the final stages of cancer.

Raw and honest, this is a story of devastating grief and pain, but it is also the story of how, with the love and unwavering support of her family, and with her faith as her anchor, Jordan and her AFL legend husband found the courage to go on and learned to celebrate every day with Levi as a blessing. It's about finding joy in what you have, even as you mourn what you have lost, and never taking life for granted.

About the Author

Jordan Ablett is an advocate for children with additional needs and their parents. She is passionate about encouraging, connecting and helping to empower families who find themselves on the unexpected journey of parenting a child with a disability.

Jordan is an ambassador for the Good Friday Appeal, which raises much-needed funding for the Royal Children's Hospital. She also supports the My Room children's cancer charity, and is the founder of House of Hope, an online community for parents raising children with disabilities.

Jordan lives on Victoria's Surf Coast, where she and her best friend and husband, Gary, are raising their three precious children, Levi, Grace and Ezra, surrounded by family and friends. She loves to travel to Queensland, their home away from home, having spent several years there while Gary played for the AFL's Gold Coast Suns before returning to Geelong, and the Cats, in 2018.