- I don't mind being Down syndrome. Some of my friends have Down syndrome too. - Molly is my best friend. We always call us their favourite celebrities. So I call her Taylor Swift and she calls me Olivia Rodrigo. - Gabes and I do take taekwondo, dancing and having fun adventures. - It is a privilege to see these girls having this opportunity to have the whole flatting experience. - I'm on a journey towards independence. - I never experienced flatting with my best friend yet, so I'm very excited. (BRIGHT MUSIC) Captions by Kitty Wasasala. Edited by Maeve Kelly. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2024 (GENTLE MUSIC) - My name is Gabrielle, and I live in Auckland, and I am 22. - My name is Molly Dennis. I'm 22. Gabes is my best friend. (BOTH LAUGH) - All right, show ponies. Today we are shooting a video of Molly and Gabes performing their piece of choreography that they've been working on. - Zach is my brother. He records me on dance videos for Instagram. Yes, he support me a lot, and he always puts me in line. (LAUGHS) - I have Down syndrome. My brother and sisters don't have Down syndrome, but the one person has Down syndrome in that family is me. - Down syndrome is a genetic disorder in chromosome 21. I struggle with stuttering and try not to mumble the words up. - It is quite hard to live with Down syndrome, but... it's a lot easier together. - I have a mum, Lorraine, and my dad, Gary. - Molly is our youngest. She's got two siblings, an older brother and older sister. - We had our challenges with all our kids, but obviously, with having Down syndrome, it's a bit different. - ZACH: So from the top. - OK. - Five, six, seven, eight. Down. Nice, cool, and back up. Nice. And wide. Nice. - Molly is my best friend. She's fun, supportive and... 'hypo'. Yeah. She's amazing. I love her as a best friend. I met her at Unitec. We had so much fun together, like going to the movies, picnics. - They met as classmates, and then we connected with Gabes' parents. From there, a conversation began about the two girls being roommates. - I never experienced flatting with my best friend yet, so I'm very excited. (GROOVY MUSIC) - Well done. You guys are good. Nice! - Yoo-hoo! - Nice. How do you think you guys are gonna get along in the flat when you're living together? - Sometimes we are allowed to have ups and downs. - Yep. - But that's OK; we can all learn from them. - Cool. - And we will definitely... get along together. - Gabes, how do you think you're gonna support Molly with this new change and new flatting situation? - Um, uh, probably actually, uh, train Molly how to flat. - You're gonna train her? Yeah? - (LAUGHS) Yeah. (BOTH LAUGH) - Gabes' training course? - Yeah. Nice. Doing the washing... (ALL CHUCKLE) - GABES, MOLLY: Yeah. - The hopes for any parent of any child is to get to a point of independence where... they're settled and secure and living a meaningful life. And we get to go on holidays. (BOTH LAUGH) - Tomorrow's the move-in. - Yep. - Yeah? So we're down to the last bits. So how you feeling? - Mm... Very excited. - Yeah? Excited? Are you feeling any other emotions on it? - Sort of sad. I'm gonna miss my dog. - Gonna miss the dog? - (CHUCKLES) - I probably feel very mixed about it. Um, overall, really happy for Molly and for Gabes for the whole experience. And that's` you know, that's what you want for your kids. This is it. I think that's the last bag to the flat. - Yeah. (CHUCKLES) (LAUGHTER) (GENTLE MUSIC) (EASY-GOING MUSIC) - OK. Let's do this. - SIGHS: My God. - All right. - We just moved in into this flat. This is my first time at living with Molly. I saw my siblings going and flatting with other friends. And this is my first time and I'm learning about flatting. - It was a pretty big day, but still excited and a little bit teary as well, because it's sort of very real. So she was a little bit overwhelmed, I think, with, 'Oh, wow, this is actually happening and I'm going flatting.' So we had a little chat about we can still be home in the weekends and... Yeah, so, no, it was fantastic. - Hey, welcome to my room! You can come in. This is my uncle and me when I was a baby. - Here is my` That is my graduation. My dad, my mum, my grandma, my granddad ` me in the middle. - I have a lot of trophies. Gabes has got the exact same one as well. We came first place, which is quite amazing. And it's pink, my favourite colour. - I've got lots of medals. Some of them are from rhythmic gymnastics and some of them are from dance. In total, I have, like... 57. And this is the views I can see when I'm on my bed. Um, a Kindle. I actually read my Kindle. And I'm reading this. I like my bedroom. So this feels like home to me. - It has been a big change for me, and it's gonna be fun (CHUCKLES) living with Brittany and Gabes. - This one's` This one's done, Gabes. You can fold that one. So, the way I fit into the situation is just to guide the girls into being a little bit more independent, uh, sharpening up their skills that they've already honed at home. Making sure that chores are done, looking after the house... - So our room is bright and white. Do you wanna, um, clean the toilet? - Mm, yeah. - ...making sure all the doors are locked, our nightly routine, and making sure that they're making healthy choices. Gabes is really, really tidy. Molls ` that's probably gonna be one thing that we're gonna work on this year is just picking up bits and pieces here and there. - Gabes is a bit messy. - I'm the one who's clean and tidy. - Do not put things on the floor ` pick it up. - It's not me or Molly. Um, it's actually Brittany who has... mess in her room. (CHUCKLES SOFTLY) - So, I think it's a good time to talk about our flat rules, right? Our Barbie Dreamhouse flat rules. So what do you think the first one should be? - We need to be respectful to each other. - For the first rule? - Yeah. - OK. Mine will be... no loud music after 11. Gabes? - Mine is, um, no fighting. - No fighting ` that's a good one. - LORRAINE: We're really aware of Molly and Gabes being great friends and then putting them in a flatting situation together. But we are very careful about boundaries for friendship, um, for flatmates ` that everyone has space. - The girls work really well with structure, and I work really well with structure, so knowing that there are guidelines and there are rules for us so that we don't cross each other's boundaries. How's that, Molls? - That's really good. - There's Molls, Gabes and me. - It's important to have these rules so we can be good flatmates. (RELAXING MUSIC) - Hi. - GABES: Hi. - I'm just here to see Cam Martin. - I'll get Cam for you. - Thank you. - My job is Alvarium Investments. So, we manage people's money. Your room is now free. - Oh, thank you. - I'm the receptionist. So that means I'm at the front area. I do, like, emails, um, checking all the people in their rooms. And I do five days a week. So for this year, it's 10.30 to 2.30, and then next year, it's 10 to 4. I'm on a journey towards independence. Having a job is... feels great. - MOLLY: She's been amazing. Has a great, positive attitude while she's at work. - This is the view. I love working here. I like all the people. Some of the people are kind and some of them are funny. - I've been dancing since I was 4. I do hip-hop, lyrical and musical theatres. Maddy Hale is my dance teacher. She's awesome. - Good morning, Molly! - Morning! - Bring it in, bring it in. - Hi, Rose! - Say, 'Good morning!' Say, 'Morning!' - HIGH-PITCHED: Hi! - 'Good morning, Molly.' You ready for our lesson? - Yes! - Oh, yeah, girl. Last week we focused more on your solo, yeah? - Yeah. - This week, we'll touch base on a few of our dances that we already know. - Yep, yes. - We'll get into warm-up, obviously. All right. - Yes! - Let's smash it today. - Cool. - Positive attitude as always; bring the energy. - Yes ` sounds good. - Rock on, superstar. All right! - Let's get it. (GIGGLES) (EXCLAIMS EXCITEDLY) - LORRAINE: I put Molly into dance very early, more from a (CHUCKLES) neurological perspective ` I was very aware of the pathways that needed to be activated. - Five, four, three, other side. - Molly didn't walk till she was 3, and she was probably 4 when she went to her first hip-hop class. And Molly just loved it. - I've been working with Molly for about` going on to two years now. She's an incredible student to work with. It's a bonus that she's just incredibly flexible. She can do pretty much everything, and if she can't, she will put her mind to it regardless. - She pushes me hard. It's a good thing in dancing, because... she wants me to be better and better and better in dancing. - Utilising the studio time. The studio time is the most important time, yeah? Because that's how we grow and that's how we make mistakes; then we learn from those mistakes, yeah? - Yeah. - Practice makes what? - Perfect. - Yes, girl. All right, let's run that one. And a-gah, two, three, hard out. Let's go. Da-da, boom-boom, arms up. A-ba, ka-ka, a-da, da-da. And one, jab. Two, jab... - I'm learning to be a professional dancer. And my dream is to be a professional dance teacher. And I wanna teach dance. Makes me happy. - And gah, a-bap-bap-ba. Step, step, push and... - I wanna be famous. (GIGGLES) - And finish off strong, girl. Beautiful. Gimme five, girl. That was way, way better. Awesome. (PHONE RINGS SOFTLY) - Hey, Molls. - Hey, Mum. How are you? - I'm good. Where are you? - Just going for a drive. I just came back from dancing. - You're in... You're in the Uber on your own? - Yes. - Wow, OK. Oh, cool. And how's the flat going? - It's been so much fun. - The flatting's been going for a few weeks now, and it's been overall fantastic. - GARY: Now, suddenly she's got this level of independence she didn't have before and there's a trust factor connected to that. And she has expanded from there. So her ability to, 'OK, well I'm gonna go here, I'm gonna go there now,' independently. - Huge amount of independence, yeah. - Yeah, yeah. (PENCIL CASE UNZIPS) - Feel free to use the colours. - OK. - What did you do at work today? - Um... Uh, just the usual. - Yes. - Yeah. - How's your first week at the flat? - Uh, it's been good. - Cool. Being a good` amazing flatmate is to... be caring. Like, you should care about someone. Through flatting, I get very closer to Gabes. Sometimes I miss my parents, but I feel really safe with Brittany and Gabes. Hopefully this year, we'll get a Ragdoll cat. - Yep ` one is called Gabriella and one is Sharpay. - Yes, my one is Sharpay. - Yes. - It's gonna be fun. (SOFT MUSIC) (MELLOW MUSIC) - OK. - All right. - I'll do the chicken. - Cool. I'll do the cucumber. Do you know where the knives are, Gabes? - Knives? - Sharp knives? - Mm... There's that drawer there. Top one. - Thank you. So, Gabes and Brittany are having 10-minute super chicken, lentil and beetroot salad. And I'm having laksa. Sometimes it's hard to go flatting, because I need to do all the payments and... payments for food, electricity and all the different things in the house. Bills, bills, bills. - Bills; did washing; I know how to clean and cook, tidy our rooms. Because I'm the chicken expert. Barbie's kitchen. - BRITTANY: Yeah. - What's that? - Barbie's kitchen. - Barbie's kitchen. (SNICKERS) We're being crazy. Don't worry about us. - Yeah, the girls are both really good. If they have directions in, like, one through 10 steps, they'll execute it perfectly. - So how is yours? - Pretty good. How's yours? - Good. - And what's your pits and peaks of your day today? Pits and peaks are, like, the low pits of your day; then you can have, like, high peaks of your day. - My peaks are... that Natalie got into Sydney and Max published something. - Cool. Cool. - And my pits was... ooh, I lost my key. And you? - Um, so, my peak ` having our first flat dinner together. And my pits is that my granny is walking very slow at the moment. - Oh. - Yeah. So she's doing OK. (INTRIGUING MUSIC) - MAN: Knifehand strike, yep. Good. And punch. Hup. Good. Other side. - MOLLY: Me and Gabes are really good at taekwondo. Taekwondo is amazing because I wanna be empowered because you know how to protect yourself. - Good. Pump. Good, and elbow. Self-defence is very important. Not only does it mean if anything happens, you can defend yourself, but it just gives you that sense of security and self-confidence and all that type of stuff. Good. Pump. 'They're learning the basics ` so to strike safe targets 'that you're not likely to injure yourself with, 'that are very broad and hard to miss, like your elbow.' Good. - Being independent and protecting yourself. For example, if a stranger comes in to you, attacks you, you're gonna have to use your self-defence. Like, saying, 'Stop, stay away. I don't like it. Go away.' If they don't listen to you, you do a front snap kick. (BRIGHT MUSIC) (DOOR BELL CHIMES) - MAN: Morena. - Morning! - How are you? - Good. - I'm good. How are you? - Good, thank you. - OK. What shall we get? - We are shopping for a flat-warming. We are gonna have my mum and dad and also her mum and dad. - Yep ` Lorraine and Gary. - LORRAINE: So the girls have an exciting little event planned with their flat-warming. I think they're going to the market and cooking with Brittany and organising, decorating the flat and bringing their families and friends together, which will be lovely. (CICADAS CHIRP) - OK, let's decorate the table. - Have Dad next to Gary. And then let's sit your mum here... (CHUCKLES) Brittany here. - The table is looking really good. Like, in the Barbie vibe. - Yes, in the Barbie vibe. Yo, yo. Is that too much? - BRITTANY: It's fine. It's fine. - I'm just cutting cheese. My favourite. - Yeah. Yeah. (DOOR BELL RINGS) - Hi, hello! - This is my flatmate Brittany. - Hey, gorgeous. - BRITTANY: Hi, nice to meet you. - Hello, Gabesy-Ramesy. How are you, darling? - Good! - Lovely to see you. - You too. - Oh, you can just throw it. (LAUGHTER, CHATTER) - I'm very proud of myself, because I have guidance, support from my family and my siblings. - Yeah, I was just thinking today, actually, you` at 3 years of age, we were wondering, 'Is she gonna walk?' And, um... you're coming here to her flat-warming and you're just going, 'Wow.' It's been a massive journey. - GARY: Used to be Team Molly; now it's Team Molly and Gabes. But it's also a Team Molly, Gabes and two families managing that. - She's just been so looking forward to going flatting with her best friend, Molly, ever since they first hooked up at Polytech four or five years ago. So, um, yeah, it's been a long time coming. - RACHAEL: It's always been a long-term goal. Looking at Gabrielle's independence, even since she was a little baby, we just wanted to think about what life would look like for her in the future and what she could achieve. And going flatting has definitely been a priority on that. - You're never ready. - Well, in hindsight, I sort of think we would have held her back. - You know, get on with it in terms of them` Have a willingness to, erm, explore these ideas, and have a willingness to consider the potential of your child, you know? (ALL CHATTER INDISTINCTLY) - ...friends and our family and our food, we say thank you. Amen. - Thanks, Gabes. - Amen. - Thank you. - I'm just gonna say that we're very grateful to have really great family and my friends, and there's amazing food. - So shall we say cheers? - Yeah, cheers! - BRITTANY: Let's do a little toast. - Thank you, everybody, Paul and Rachael, for making all this possible. - Yes, thank you. - Thank you, thank you. - Thank you too, Brittany, for teaching us well and everything. - Thank` (LAUGHS) - Best of luck. - Yeah. - I'll need it. I think I'll need it. (LAUGHTER) - I don't mind being Down syndrome. An it's part of who I am. I'm Molly. I'm not Down syndrome; I'm Molly. This is who I am. In my future, I would love to dance and acting. - I want to live with Molly in the future. - I wanna stay flatting, because` so I can have more freedom. I just wanna be here.