Well it's about time for me to chart this amazing journey that my life has been and has been becoming for the past 29 years. Aside from standard life experiences like, school, marriage and career, life has managed to throw a few curve balls that have allowed me to grow and learn-- after all, the meat of life is in the triumph over the struggles that we face. Thus begins my story...
At 23, so many life changes began to happen: end of school, start of a career, marriage, and pregnancy. I realize that these changes happen to most people, and I would even say that it's not all that uncommon for it to happen all at once (aside from the pregnancy part), but the part that threw me was pregnancy... well, I should say having a baby. Little did I know, my life was about to change for the better, thanks to grace... life's good grace.
When I was about 22 or 23 weeks pregnant (full term is 40 weeks) I came down with bronchitis, and I was unable to get rid of it. And sometime around the 26th week I stayed home with fever and just general malaise. That same day, I had low back pain and side pain which I attributed to a urinary tract infection, and I called my doctor's nurse who prescribed me antibiotics over the phone. Later that night after staying up way late with David my husband, I began to have back spasms - -or what I thought to be back spasms. From midnight on, the back pains continued, and I stayed up the entire night worrying David. Throughout the night, we considered going to the hospital, but we had one trip to the ER 2 weeks prior to that with a false alarm, so we were in no hurry to get me back in for another unnecessary trip. Well, by 7:30am the pains were worse than ever, and David was scheduled to teach class at SFASU that morning. After he left the house and had arrived to teach class, I became sure that I was in labor, so I called him to come get me. He brought to me to the hospital with barely enough time to check me in before they carried me in to surgery to have an emergency C-Section. As it turns out, the baby was in my cervix, but thankfully the water had not broken. And so... Our daughter was born at 9:30 in the morning on November 20, 2003 in Nacogdoches, TX.
Mia Emmeline came into this world with an initial impact of trauma -- bruised arms and legs, difficulty breathing, and eventually problems with brain hemorrhages and keeping her heart rate up. She was a beautiful mess, at 2 pounds and 4 ounces, a head full of black hair, and her skin bright red from the traumatic delivery. By the grace of God, she pulled-through 3 months in the NICU and brain surgeries. She survived that rough beginning and is now 6 years old and finishing Kindergarten. Her condition: cerebral palsy, but in mild form. She struggles with asthma and seizures (which, fortunately, are rare for her), but somehow she is managing to keep up with kids her own age. Sure, her balance is off, she falls a lot, and her right hand is weak, but she makes the most of things, using her good spirit to brighten everyone's days. Oh yes, she can be a sassy and more than a little to obstinent at times, but overall she is this beautiful little charmer who can gain anyone's attention. Everyday, I am amazed at the ways she has overcome so many of her life obstacles--She really is a miracle.
...and I am thankful
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