angel

Blown Away {Epilepsy Awareness}

May 7, 2013 by Dana

I’m sitting here tonight, blown away. Earlier tonight another sweet angel was called to Heaven. This sweet boy had Epilepsy. He was only a year older than my sweet baby Laycie.

6 years old seems like such a short life. Laycie is 5. I cannot understand how a child can suffer such a thing and have brought God Glory in such a short time. Things are not for me to understand.

I pray daily for children, like my babies, who suffer from Epilepsy, among other things. I have so many people that I love who’s beautiful babies have this dreadful disorder. And I wonder why must our children suffer from this?

Another friend told about her day as an Epilepsy Mom. She was confronted by a woman who told her that her precious son has Epilepsy because of her choice to have tattoos. It was God’s way of punishing her. I say if that’s God’s way for doing something so simple then I guess everyone would be punished. And if Satan has a hand in it then that should be a simple fix!

Unless you have a child with Epilepsy or some similar debilitating disorder, you cannot understand what it’s like as a Mother to deal with insolence and stupidity when it comes to others who don’t understand. Stereotypes and stigmas surround Epilepsy. People truly believe that demons possess those of us who have Epilepsy. People think holding an exorcism will simply take them away. But that’s not how it works.

This disorder is VERY REAL. It’s real for all of us who daily watch our babies struggle to hold on for life. And it’s real for those of us who have to watch our children slip away, who have to say goodbye way too early to those precious beings that we love so much.

I cannot imagine what it is to lose a child. I pray to never have to know. But the reality is that my own baby could leave me just the way this sweet boy left the world today: in a coma induced from her seizures, never again waking to tell me “I love you, Mommy” or “sleep with me Mommy” or “I need some Mommy time”.

Tomorrow, I will make it a point to go to her therapy with her, to hold my baby boy, to kiss my eldest head and to hug my sweet artist a little tighter. Tomorrow I will make it a point to be there in the moment and be thankful for the blessings I do have because they aren’t promised but they are a gift to be appreciated. Never take them for granted and keep the family of the sweet boy who passed today in your thoughts and prayers.

God bless <3 p="">

Happy Birthday to My Birthday Girl!! {Thoughts From Me}

April 11, 2012 by Dana

April 8, 2012

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby Laycie. She’s 4 year’s old today. I can hardly believe it. Time has passed so quickly.

It seems like just yesterday I was being prepped for surgery in anticipation of seeing her precious little face for the first time. Due to complications, I was put to sleep and the first time I saw her face was in a photo. She had thick dark hair and a scrunched up baby face. Within an hour, I was holding her tiny body in my arms loving on my sweet girl. It was as if we’d never been apart.

The first time Emmalee saw Laycie, she told me “Mommy, she’s our Angel”. And she surely has been. She is a true blessing to each of us and fills our heart with Joy every single day. She is the sweetest little girl I know. She’s thoughtful and fun and filled with God’s light. A precious gift of God.

The older she gets, the more her personality shows and it is such a strong and triumphant personality. She has strong opinions and a strength to overcome so much in life. Nothing seems to get her down. She loves everyone, loves to ask questions, sing, dance and read. She has a hard time choosing between Mommy and Daddy’s girl and that’s just fine with us.

She loves playing outdoors, riding in Daddy’s truck helping him do whatever he needs, getting dirty, and looking for life at the pond with Mommy or Daddy of course! I fully expect she’ll be a logger just like her Daddy and Grumpy when she grows up though Daddy wishes a different life for her.

She’s definitely no longer a baby and my Mommy heart is a bit sad to say goodbye to her little days though I am overjoyed to watch her become a little lady a little more each day. God blessed me with each one of my children and my Laycie is certainly a blessing to everyone she comes in contact with. She is a true gift from God and I could never imagine life without her!

So on her 4th birthday, I send my little girl lots of love and joy, just as she’s given to me. I pray for her to grow into the young lady God wishes for her to be and she seems to be well on her way.

My Sweet Laycie {Thoughts from Me}

March 1, 2012 by Dana

Laycie is my beautiful 3year and 10 month old daughter. She is my baby girl. She’s a joy to everyone who knows her.

The day Laycie was born her big sister Emmalee took one look at her and deemed her our Angel. She definitely is. She has blessed each of us more than we surely deserve. She was sent straight from Heaven above.

Laycie starts her day by seeking out her brother first thing. She loves their special morning time together. She has him fix her cereal and milk and he always happily obliges.

After that she finds me with a beautiful smile, saying “you awake Mommy?” “You ARE awake Mommy… good morning!” with a laugh. I love it when she tells me that!! I love to hear her say it almost as much as I love her “I love you, I like you, Mommy”. She is precious my sweet girl.

The next thing she asks me is “Where is my Dahee?” (Daddy) “Is Dahee at work?” “Yes, Daddy’s at work.” “Oh,” is often her reply. “Do you miss Daddy?” “Yea” she tells me.

When it’s time for her medicine she is always ready and willing to take it. She knows it makes her feel better. She doesn’t mind. She’s taken it since she was a baby so it’s a routine part of her life.

Laycie spends most days alternating between each of us. She was born into family and she doesn’t know what alone is. She chooses by the minute who she wants to be next to and she loves spending time with everyone of us. We love spending time with her too.

Last month, Laycie started doing preschool work. She is learning her colors and shapes. She is learning concepts. She is learning to pronounce her “p’s”, her “k’s” and her “g’s”. She loves to learn. And every night she loves telling her Daddy what she has learned that day. And of course he loves to hear her.

When Daddy isn’t working you can bet you will find him and Laycie somewhere together. She is his shadow when he is at home. He doesn’t go far without her at least knowing where he is at. She loves her Daddy and he loves her.

When Laycie was born, her bassinet carried the last name Lambert. Today I believe that was a promise from God because not only is it her Mommy’s last name but it’s her Daddy’s too. One day Laycie will carry that last name once again. In her heart, she already does.

Laycie doesn’t know much of her past. She’s three. There’s no need to tell her about the then. For her there is only now. Now, living in the home she will grow up in for life, with her Mommy and Daddy and her Bubba, her Sissy and her Justain. Now, living next door to her Mama, her Grami and Grumpy and behind her Papa’s pond and her Maw Maw’s house. She talks with her Nanny, her uncle Lance and her Aunt Terris and cousin Megan on the phone every chance she gets. These are the daily consistancies in her life. This NOW is her life.

I daily thank God for this life, for this child He has blessed me with. There was a time I wasn’t sure if I’d ever see her again. There was a time that I worried that the abuse she was being raised in would catch her before I could save her from it.

I would give my life for all my children. I will fight for them forever. There is nothing I would not do for them. They are my life and all I want is for them to live their’s happily and in a safe, protective environment.

I’m thankful this is the only life Laycie knows, the only one she remembers. I am thankful she has a Daddy who is here with her every day, who would give his own life for her. I am blessed to see the love he has for our daughter, blessed that she is able to know the unconditional love of a father and family as she has. This is the life and family she was meant to have and she loves every single minute of it.

Laycie, our Angel, has been more of a blessing than I could ever have imagined. Blessed I am to be able to call myself her Mother.