Tomorrow is my daughter’s ninth birthday. Unlike a lot of parents, I can’t look back on the day of her birth as the happiest day of my life. Instead it was terrifying. Terrifying, because tomorrow is December 29th, and she was due March 10th. I went to the hospital for a routine ultrasound and my doctor didn’t let me leave.
To say the least, the experience wasn’t all sunshine and butterflies. Okay…I’m not saying labor and delivery is sunshine and butterflies. It’s more like torture and gore. But, at least if you deliver a full-term baby you have a pretty good idea whether or not your kid is going to live. When you have emergency surgery, more than ten weeks too soon, and your 2 lb. 9 oz. baby is whisked away to have a breathing tube put down her throat, you’re not real sure what the future holds.
One of her preemie diapers.
She didn’t wear the apple…it’s just to give perspective.
We were some of the lucky ones. After five weeks, and after gaining a pound-and-a-half, we brought her home. That teeny, tiny baby? Well, she was a fighter. That sure hasn’t changed much, though now she mostly just fights with her brother. She’s nine, going on nineteen.
We still can’t be sure of what the future holds, but one thing’s for sure…this sweet daughter of mine is (aside from that fighting with her brother stuff) pure and unequaled perfection. Her heart is so big, I don’t know how it fits in her chest. And, though the day of her birth was the scariest day of my life, she’s given me sunshine and butterflies ever since. Happy birthday baby girl!
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