Sick Kids

There is absolutely nothing worse than sick kids. It doesn't matter if it's the common cold, cancer, genetic defect or something else. Sick kids are the most awful thing in the world. Every sick child I've ever seen have these same cloudy, pitifully sad eyes that simply melt my heart.
Sick kids try so hard to put on a brave face. They smile. They play. They snuggle. They try to laugh. All with these sad, sad eyes.

I cannot begin to imagine how the parents of critically ill children cope. I guess it's the same way the kids do, you put on a brave face.
As I tucked in my beautiful daughter tonight I thought about how 3 years ago I was 38weeks pregnant and just diagnosed with pulmonary embollis (PE's- blood clots that traveled from my legs into my lungs).
Up until that moment I had a text book pregnancy. I had gained 16 pounds, was still active, had maybe 3 days of morning sickness and my biggest complaint was some mild heartburn after eating entirely too much ice cream.

We had gone through so much to get pregnant I felt I was entitled to a smooth pregnancy. After all we had already been through three rounds of invitro. More injections, medications, and doctors visits that even I can imagine.
The first attempt failed before transplant and left me quite sick from a overdose of all the fertility drugs. The second attempt resulted in a miscarriage around 10 weeks. Finally, the third was a charm. Instantly, everything was perfect.
Perfect until the 38th week. Then it was back to injections, medications, doctors visits.
In the end at exactly 40 weeks on her due date Miss. K. was born. And she was perfect.
We went through all this medical intervention to make sure she didn't have VEDS, to make sure she was perfect and there she was, flawless. She was worth every penny, every injection, every medication.
I never wanted to experience a sick child, I still don't. I'll take it all. Every cold, every sniffle, every upset tummy. Just keep my child safe and healthy.

I know that this is every mothers wish.
Every time our child has a fever, a bad cut, a broken bone, we wish we could take it away.

So tonight I'm spending some time thinking about all the sick kids out there. I'm sending love and prayers. I'm hoping for strength and courage for their parents. I'm feeling grateful that while my child has a 103 fever I know it's just a virus. I wish I could just wrap all the sick kids in a giant blanket and fill them with love.