- D
- C
A few years ago the most amazing , inspirational, life changing event happened to me, I had a baby….
I was 24, just graduated from college and planning a wedding. My fiancé, Chris, and I had been together for three years and to be honest had been thinking about having a baby before we even started planning our wedding. Chris had just started a new job selling cars and we were moving around a lot. He spent about five days a week out of state at car auctions and getting new car lots up and running. .
It took Chris and I over a year to conceive Ethan, so when we did get pregnant neither Chris or I could believe it. I had missed my period twice and had taken multiple (about 30) pregnancy tests and they were all negative, including the blood test at 10 weeks! At about eleven weeks I decided I should take another test, because all of the signs were there, even though I did just want to believe I was having a second growth spurt and finally getting big breasts and beautiful skin, I knew I was pregnant, especially because Chris kept asking me why I was being so mean all the time.
Chris had just left for work, I peed on the stick and guess what, two pink lines! I was so happy and scared at the same time, I called Chris and the conversation went like this,
Me: “Honey…We’re pregnant“!
Chris: “Are you sure? Don’t get to excited. Sit down! I don’t want you to lose it jumping around. Maybe you should go to the doctor to have it confirmed“.
Me: “Chris I am sure, are you not excited“?
Chris: “No babe I am super excited I just want to make sure you are really pregnant, I don’t want you to be disappointed“.
Me: “Um, ok. Well, I love you I am going to call my mom“! Click.
Little did we know that this moment would be one of the very few happy moments throughout the duration of our pregnancy.
I scheduled a doctors appointment the next day, and because I was a week away from my second Trimester we did a full routine blood work up. The doctor said I would have the results in a about three days. However, by the next morning my doctor had called. It was 8am and I was exhausted from being up all night with “morning sickness”. I answered my phone and I could hear the doctor hesitate for a moment. His voice was a bit shaky as he said “Ms. Whitney…I have the results of your quad screen, your baby was positive for a neural tube defect, we would like you to come in today or tomorrow and have an ultrasound done. Sometimes the results can reflect a false positive so we just need to have a look. ” I was so tired I could hardly process what he was saying. I was confused and terrified but clinging to the comment that it “could be a false positive“. Of coarse I couldn’t sleep and made the appointment for that day but couldn’t be seen until late afternoon, so I turned to google and tried to figure out just exactly what the doctor was trying to tell me. My advice for you parents going through something like this is to stay off of google before seeing the doctor.
Later that day, I got to see my thirteen week old baby for the first time. The sonographer was very quiet and wouldn’t tell me anything, (this was the first time that I realized that the sonographer knew what she was looking at but was so sad that she pawned the news off on the doctor because she couldn’t bare the bad news). She tried to keep a poker face but I could see the worry. I was looking at the screen and wondered what exactly I was looking at because something just didn’t seem right. After a two hour scan the doctor came in with my pictures and said, “Your baby has a condition known as gastroshcisis (intestines on the outside of the body). There is no sign of spina bifida, that is good news. The spine looks completely closed and this is a treatable condition. I don’t want you to worry, the baby is still young and there is a chance that the abdominal contents will still go back into the baby’s body”. I was speechless. I wasn’t sure if I should be worried or not. I know I needed to call Chris and tell him what was going on but at that same time I was hesitant. I felt like I had done something wrong and was afraid to tell him believing he would hate me, but I knew he had the right to know and I couldn’t bare this alone. Repeating to myself, “this is a treatable condition” I called Chris with the news, he had a million questions but I didn’t know how to answer any of them. All I could say is that the baby was getting bigger and it’s heart was strong.
A few weeks later (19 weeks), The baby was finally big enough to see its “parts”. I was so excited but we had used up our allotted ultrasounds through insurance so I had to schedule an ultrasound with a private company. I brought my friend Lorelie with me, I intended on keeping the sex of the baby a secret from daddy, and I needed to have someone to share the excitement with! She had never seen an ultrasound so she was also excited to be a part of this experience. The tech put the wand on my belly and that same familiar face appeared. I told her that I knew he had gastrocschisis. She said “oh, ok”. She didn’t say much else. I was filled with love and excitement as your image popped up on the screen. I could see that my babe had grown significantly since the last time I had seen it, and I just couldn’t wait to find out if I was having a boy or girl. Honestly, I wanted a girl. Daddy had predicted a boy. Either way I was going to be happy, I just wanted it to be healthy.
As the tech scanned my belly, measuring every bone, and taking pictures of what I thought was my placenta, my friend makes this comment that really upset me and I will never forget. She says, “Wow Laura, your baby looks like a zombie”. The tech saved the moment though and said oh look here are the boy parts! I was still upset but this was great news! I instantly started thinking of boy names and how I could reveal your sex at a baby shower. I’m terrible at keeping secrets, I knew I just had to tell Chris. We were given a special rabbit, it had a blue ribbon tied around its neck, with a special surprise inside. If you squeezed the bunny you could hear Ethan’s recorded heart beat.
The entire trip home I pushed the belly of that rabbit. Listening to my baby’s heart beat,it was so strong. When we got back in to town I was dropped off at Daddy’s work. After finding him I said I have great news. I found out the sex of the baby! He said, “It’s a boy, right”? I just told him to close his eyes and hold out his hands. I put the bunny in his hands and pushed the belly. When he heard the heart beat he opened his eyes and saw the blue ribbon. The biggest smile I had ever seen from him formed on his face and he gave me the biggest hug! I was elated to see him so happy.
I left the lot feeling the happiest I had ever been. Unfortunately the moment was short lived. About the time I arrived home I got a call from my OB/GYN, he tells me that he has more bad news. “Ethan’s condition is more severe than we previously thought“. The ultrasound facility had called him right away. They explained that, “Ethan’s liver and other major organs are on the outside of his body with no protective membrane. It’s something we call a giant ruptured Omphalocele. I have already called a specialist for you in Des Moines. He will be able to answer your questions. I don’t know much about the condition. My prayers are with you. Good luck”. And with that “Good luck”, my hope and dreams were shattered and he was off of the phone.
We arrived at the specialists office, and are now 20 weeks pregnant. We had another long ultrasound scan, which didn’t bother me because I loved seeing my baby boy again. However, this was about to become the worst day of my entire life and the beginning of a mother’s worst nightmare.
The sonographer had that same look of worry on her face. I started asking questions. She didn’t say much, so I started pointing at the screen and asking specifically what things were. I said “I know the intestines are out, but what is that? Is that my placenta? That looks like a bubble, what is that“? She avoided all of my questions, telling me that she isn’t a doctor and isn’t aloud to give a diagnosis or tell me what she “thinks” she is seeing. She then went on to look at the baby’s feet, head, brain, hands, nose, mouth etc. She printed at least 100 pictures and left the room almost in tears, saying only “the doctor will be with you soon.”.
As I wiped the jelly residue off of my stomach the doctor came in. He looked at us with a cold face, and with the most callas voice said, “You’re baby is very sick and has a lot of issues. He has a condition called a giant ruptured omphalocele. The omphalocele is so large that his intestines, liver, gall bladder and part of his stomach are on the outside of his body, and there is no protective sac around the organs, exposing them to amniotic fluid which in turn may cause damage to his organs”. So I asked what any mother would ask, “So what does that mean exactly? Is it treatable”? To which he replied “Babies with this condition typically die in utero before the 29th week of gestation. The baby also has clenched hands, overlapping fingers, bilateral clubbed feet, fluid on his brain and I am certain some type of syndrome or underlying neurological disorder that we can not determine on the ultrasound. We can do an amniocentesis for you to find out if he has a genetic defect, which I am certain he does. If I were you two, I would terminate the pregnancy as soon as possible. You two are young and healthy and these things can be random. I suggest that you two just try again. I can terminate the pregnancy in the office for you today. I know you need to talk about it, so I will give you a few minutes and then I will be back”. Then left the room in a hurry.
I was in shock. I couldn’t even cry. All I could do was sit there, stunned…speechless. After a minute or two I started putting a list of questions together in my head. Chris was standing behind me, next to the table. He put his hand on my shoulder he looked very worried and disheartened. he asked me with tears in his eyes, “Laura, you’re not going to do it, are you”? “NO WAY! I could never do that to our baby” I replied firmly. A flood of tears fell from his eyes, he grabbed me and hugged me like never before and said “Laura I love you so much more than I ever thought I could right now. Thank you”.
My eyes were clouded by tears, raging at the waterline of my eyes, trying hard to fall. I took several deep breathes to calm myself. I knew I had to be strong and advocate for all of us. I knew before the doctor even left the room that I was going through with this pregnancy, be it the baby passed in utero or was born living, this was our baby. He was alive and wanted to be born. I could hear the lord loud and clear in my heart. This wasn’t about Chris or my quality of life. We chose to have this baby and we weren’t going to give up on him because he would inconvenience our lives or because he wasn’t what society deemed “normal” or “healthy”.
The doctor came back into the room, with the same cold voice he asked, “So have you two decided”? I replied, “Absolutely. We are keeping the baby”. He looked at us in disbelief and rolled his eyes as if to say, these two ignorant kids have no idea what they are in for.
He then started to “counsel” us. He said that he was obligated to tell us how difficult it would be to take care of a baby with special needs, especially since we were so young. He said that he wouldn’t have a “good quality of life“, he would most likely fail to thrive and that our quality of life would also suffer. The baby would be bed bound, which could cause even more health issues. We could correct the feet and hands and make him look cosmetically , “as normal as possible“ but the chances of the baby not having a neurological problem was slim to none. He could be blind, have respiratory issues, and only have the cognitive ability of a newborn for his entire life, he may not even be able to move. All I could think was that his heart was beating strong and even though he may not be able move much or at all, he was moving me...
I continued to write about Ethan in a journal throughout the pregnancy and you can read more on his webpage https://www.facebook.com/Ethangiantsandmiracles
Ethan is now three years old and growing like a weed. He is non-ambulatory, which means he cannot walk, crawl, sit up or support his own head on his own. He also has chronic respiratory failure and is on a ventillator 24/7, but we don't let that stop him from getting out of the house. We believe that Ethan deserves the best quality of life possible for him! We try as hard as we can to get him out of the house for activities however, it has become quite difficult. Ethan has two other siblings (ages 2 and 1 month) and being that he needs so much care, I am a stay at home mommy (which I love)! He does have a private duty nurse , but a nurse can call in any day (and it is at least once a week), and I would have to drop everything to be home with him, hence why I can't work. Believe me I tried to work and my first scheduled dayI had to call in becuase the nurse called in.
My husband is supporting our family of five on his own. He works six days a week about 12 hours a day. He never complains and he never misses work, unless Ethan is in the hospital and I need him to watch the other kids. We just moved to a new city, and our closest family is about four hours away so we rely on each other a lot. I try my best to help in any way I can. I learned a bit of photography so we could have some nice professional looking pictures of the kids and give Ethan's nurse the camera to get family pictures ;), I coupon like crazy, but I am not the best at it, and I am always on pinterest to find cheap, easy, creative and educational ways to have fun with the kids without spending a ton of money.
Anyway, as I was saying before, getting Ethan out and about to have sibling time and fun outside of the house has become extremely difficult because we do not have a handicap accessible van. We can't afford to put a ramp in our van and Ethan, although 100% disabled, does not qualify for social security, his insurance won't pay for a ramp or a lift to be installed, and Ethan was even denied by Make a Wish Foundation because they didn't see chronic respitatory failure as a life threatening illness. We don't want a trip to disney world, we just want a van so we can take Ethan with us on family outings and events. We need a van to be able to take him to doctors appointments. We need a van so he can be included with the rest of the family on the holidays when we have to travel. Right now, Ethan has to stay home with a private duty nurse if we travel for the holidays becuase there is simply no way to transport him four hours in our mini van.
My husband and I work very hard to give all of our children the best life possible, on our own. I didn't want to ask for help but sometimes there is no other option and right now is one of those times.
We don't know how much time we have with Ethan, every professional puts his life expectancy as day to day. So, we want to make each one of those days count as much as possible!
Please, if you can, help us give Ethan this gift of quality and comfort!! Help Ethan be included as much as possible!
I know how important time is, we thank you for yours!
The Bliss Family
A Special Note to my son Ethan
~^~
Dear Ethan, You were born August 26. Weighing 5lbs 8.5oz and 19.5” long and you were full term, 37 weeks 6 days to be exact. YOU ARE A MIRACLE. I CELEBRATE every single day that you are here. We are so GRATEFUL to GOD that you are so STRONG. Your COURAGE and STRENGTH even at your most vulnerable moments reminds your father and I why we have FAITH. Ethan you are FEARLESS. Even with the odds stacked against you, you continue to prove the doctors and pessimist wrong. That is why I am writing your story. I don’t want you to remember the pain you felt or the tears that you cried, rather I want you to look back and see the adversities that you overcame. I want you to remember how STRONG you are. How SPECIAL you are. How LOVED you are, the GOOD TIMES we had, and how BLESSED I am to have you in my life.
THANK YOU for teaching me how to LOVE UNCONDITIONALLY, how to PERSEVERE through hard times, how to see the light through the darkness, to be COURAGEOUS and most of all, thank you for being the miracle that saved my life. We still have an endless amount of memories to make!
Forever,
Mommy.
I was 24, just graduated from college and planning a wedding. My fiancé, Chris, and I had been together for three years and to be honest had been thinking about having a baby before we even started planning our wedding. Chris had just started a new job selling cars and we were moving around a lot. He spent about five days a week out of state at car auctions and getting new car lots up and running. .
It took Chris and I over a year to conceive Ethan, so when we did get pregnant neither Chris or I could believe it. I had missed my period twice and had taken multiple (about 30) pregnancy tests and they were all negative, including the blood test at 10 weeks! At about eleven weeks I decided I should take another test, because all of the signs were there, even though I did just want to believe I was having a second growth spurt and finally getting big breasts and beautiful skin, I knew I was pregnant, especially because Chris kept asking me why I was being so mean all the time.
Chris had just left for work, I peed on the stick and guess what, two pink lines! I was so happy and scared at the same time, I called Chris and the conversation went like this,
Me: “Honey…We’re pregnant“!
Chris: “Are you sure? Don’t get to excited. Sit down! I don’t want you to lose it jumping around. Maybe you should go to the doctor to have it confirmed“.
Me: “Chris I am sure, are you not excited“?
Chris: “No babe I am super excited I just want to make sure you are really pregnant, I don’t want you to be disappointed“.
Me: “Um, ok. Well, I love you I am going to call my mom“! Click.
Little did we know that this moment would be one of the very few happy moments throughout the duration of our pregnancy.
I scheduled a doctors appointment the next day, and because I was a week away from my second Trimester we did a full routine blood work up. The doctor said I would have the results in a about three days. However, by the next morning my doctor had called. It was 8am and I was exhausted from being up all night with “morning sickness”. I answered my phone and I could hear the doctor hesitate for a moment. His voice was a bit shaky as he said “Ms. Whitney…I have the results of your quad screen, your baby was positive for a neural tube defect, we would like you to come in today or tomorrow and have an ultrasound done. Sometimes the results can reflect a false positive so we just need to have a look. ” I was so tired I could hardly process what he was saying. I was confused and terrified but clinging to the comment that it “could be a false positive“. Of coarse I couldn’t sleep and made the appointment for that day but couldn’t be seen until late afternoon, so I turned to google and tried to figure out just exactly what the doctor was trying to tell me. My advice for you parents going through something like this is to stay off of google before seeing the doctor.
Later that day, I got to see my thirteen week old baby for the first time. The sonographer was very quiet and wouldn’t tell me anything, (this was the first time that I realized that the sonographer knew what she was looking at but was so sad that she pawned the news off on the doctor because she couldn’t bare the bad news). She tried to keep a poker face but I could see the worry. I was looking at the screen and wondered what exactly I was looking at because something just didn’t seem right. After a two hour scan the doctor came in with my pictures and said, “Your baby has a condition known as gastroshcisis (intestines on the outside of the body). There is no sign of spina bifida, that is good news. The spine looks completely closed and this is a treatable condition. I don’t want you to worry, the baby is still young and there is a chance that the abdominal contents will still go back into the baby’s body”. I was speechless. I wasn’t sure if I should be worried or not. I know I needed to call Chris and tell him what was going on but at that same time I was hesitant. I felt like I had done something wrong and was afraid to tell him believing he would hate me, but I knew he had the right to know and I couldn’t bare this alone. Repeating to myself, “this is a treatable condition” I called Chris with the news, he had a million questions but I didn’t know how to answer any of them. All I could say is that the baby was getting bigger and it’s heart was strong.
A few weeks later (19 weeks), The baby was finally big enough to see its “parts”. I was so excited but we had used up our allotted ultrasounds through insurance so I had to schedule an ultrasound with a private company. I brought my friend Lorelie with me, I intended on keeping the sex of the baby a secret from daddy, and I needed to have someone to share the excitement with! She had never seen an ultrasound so she was also excited to be a part of this experience. The tech put the wand on my belly and that same familiar face appeared. I told her that I knew he had gastrocschisis. She said “oh, ok”. She didn’t say much else. I was filled with love and excitement as your image popped up on the screen. I could see that my babe had grown significantly since the last time I had seen it, and I just couldn’t wait to find out if I was having a boy or girl. Honestly, I wanted a girl. Daddy had predicted a boy. Either way I was going to be happy, I just wanted it to be healthy.
As the tech scanned my belly, measuring every bone, and taking pictures of what I thought was my placenta, my friend makes this comment that really upset me and I will never forget. She says, “Wow Laura, your baby looks like a zombie”. The tech saved the moment though and said oh look here are the boy parts! I was still upset but this was great news! I instantly started thinking of boy names and how I could reveal your sex at a baby shower. I’m terrible at keeping secrets, I knew I just had to tell Chris. We were given a special rabbit, it had a blue ribbon tied around its neck, with a special surprise inside. If you squeezed the bunny you could hear Ethan’s recorded heart beat.
The entire trip home I pushed the belly of that rabbit. Listening to my baby’s heart beat,it was so strong. When we got back in to town I was dropped off at Daddy’s work. After finding him I said I have great news. I found out the sex of the baby! He said, “It’s a boy, right”? I just told him to close his eyes and hold out his hands. I put the bunny in his hands and pushed the belly. When he heard the heart beat he opened his eyes and saw the blue ribbon. The biggest smile I had ever seen from him formed on his face and he gave me the biggest hug! I was elated to see him so happy.
I left the lot feeling the happiest I had ever been. Unfortunately the moment was short lived. About the time I arrived home I got a call from my OB/GYN, he tells me that he has more bad news. “Ethan’s condition is more severe than we previously thought“. The ultrasound facility had called him right away. They explained that, “Ethan’s liver and other major organs are on the outside of his body with no protective membrane. It’s something we call a giant ruptured Omphalocele. I have already called a specialist for you in Des Moines. He will be able to answer your questions. I don’t know much about the condition. My prayers are with you. Good luck”. And with that “Good luck”, my hope and dreams were shattered and he was off of the phone.
We arrived at the specialists office, and are now 20 weeks pregnant. We had another long ultrasound scan, which didn’t bother me because I loved seeing my baby boy again. However, this was about to become the worst day of my entire life and the beginning of a mother’s worst nightmare.
The sonographer had that same look of worry on her face. I started asking questions. She didn’t say much, so I started pointing at the screen and asking specifically what things were. I said “I know the intestines are out, but what is that? Is that my placenta? That looks like a bubble, what is that“? She avoided all of my questions, telling me that she isn’t a doctor and isn’t aloud to give a diagnosis or tell me what she “thinks” she is seeing. She then went on to look at the baby’s feet, head, brain, hands, nose, mouth etc. She printed at least 100 pictures and left the room almost in tears, saying only “the doctor will be with you soon.”.
As I wiped the jelly residue off of my stomach the doctor came in. He looked at us with a cold face, and with the most callas voice said, “You’re baby is very sick and has a lot of issues. He has a condition called a giant ruptured omphalocele. The omphalocele is so large that his intestines, liver, gall bladder and part of his stomach are on the outside of his body, and there is no protective sac around the organs, exposing them to amniotic fluid which in turn may cause damage to his organs”. So I asked what any mother would ask, “So what does that mean exactly? Is it treatable”? To which he replied “Babies with this condition typically die in utero before the 29th week of gestation. The baby also has clenched hands, overlapping fingers, bilateral clubbed feet, fluid on his brain and I am certain some type of syndrome or underlying neurological disorder that we can not determine on the ultrasound. We can do an amniocentesis for you to find out if he has a genetic defect, which I am certain he does. If I were you two, I would terminate the pregnancy as soon as possible. You two are young and healthy and these things can be random. I suggest that you two just try again. I can terminate the pregnancy in the office for you today. I know you need to talk about it, so I will give you a few minutes and then I will be back”. Then left the room in a hurry.
I was in shock. I couldn’t even cry. All I could do was sit there, stunned…speechless. After a minute or two I started putting a list of questions together in my head. Chris was standing behind me, next to the table. He put his hand on my shoulder he looked very worried and disheartened. he asked me with tears in his eyes, “Laura, you’re not going to do it, are you”? “NO WAY! I could never do that to our baby” I replied firmly. A flood of tears fell from his eyes, he grabbed me and hugged me like never before and said “Laura I love you so much more than I ever thought I could right now. Thank you”.
My eyes were clouded by tears, raging at the waterline of my eyes, trying hard to fall. I took several deep breathes to calm myself. I knew I had to be strong and advocate for all of us. I knew before the doctor even left the room that I was going through with this pregnancy, be it the baby passed in utero or was born living, this was our baby. He was alive and wanted to be born. I could hear the lord loud and clear in my heart. This wasn’t about Chris or my quality of life. We chose to have this baby and we weren’t going to give up on him because he would inconvenience our lives or because he wasn’t what society deemed “normal” or “healthy”.
The doctor came back into the room, with the same cold voice he asked, “So have you two decided”? I replied, “Absolutely. We are keeping the baby”. He looked at us in disbelief and rolled his eyes as if to say, these two ignorant kids have no idea what they are in for.
He then started to “counsel” us. He said that he was obligated to tell us how difficult it would be to take care of a baby with special needs, especially since we were so young. He said that he wouldn’t have a “good quality of life“, he would most likely fail to thrive and that our quality of life would also suffer. The baby would be bed bound, which could cause even more health issues. We could correct the feet and hands and make him look cosmetically , “as normal as possible“ but the chances of the baby not having a neurological problem was slim to none. He could be blind, have respiratory issues, and only have the cognitive ability of a newborn for his entire life, he may not even be able to move. All I could think was that his heart was beating strong and even though he may not be able move much or at all, he was moving me...
I continued to write about Ethan in a journal throughout the pregnancy and you can read more on his webpage https://www.facebook.com/Ethangiantsandmiracles
Ethan is now three years old and growing like a weed. He is non-ambulatory, which means he cannot walk, crawl, sit up or support his own head on his own. He also has chronic respiratory failure and is on a ventillator 24/7, but we don't let that stop him from getting out of the house. We believe that Ethan deserves the best quality of life possible for him! We try as hard as we can to get him out of the house for activities however, it has become quite difficult. Ethan has two other siblings (ages 2 and 1 month) and being that he needs so much care, I am a stay at home mommy (which I love)! He does have a private duty nurse , but a nurse can call in any day (and it is at least once a week), and I would have to drop everything to be home with him, hence why I can't work. Believe me I tried to work and my first scheduled dayI had to call in becuase the nurse called in.
My husband is supporting our family of five on his own. He works six days a week about 12 hours a day. He never complains and he never misses work, unless Ethan is in the hospital and I need him to watch the other kids. We just moved to a new city, and our closest family is about four hours away so we rely on each other a lot. I try my best to help in any way I can. I learned a bit of photography so we could have some nice professional looking pictures of the kids and give Ethan's nurse the camera to get family pictures ;), I coupon like crazy, but I am not the best at it, and I am always on pinterest to find cheap, easy, creative and educational ways to have fun with the kids without spending a ton of money.
Anyway, as I was saying before, getting Ethan out and about to have sibling time and fun outside of the house has become extremely difficult because we do not have a handicap accessible van. We can't afford to put a ramp in our van and Ethan, although 100% disabled, does not qualify for social security, his insurance won't pay for a ramp or a lift to be installed, and Ethan was even denied by Make a Wish Foundation because they didn't see chronic respitatory failure as a life threatening illness. We don't want a trip to disney world, we just want a van so we can take Ethan with us on family outings and events. We need a van to be able to take him to doctors appointments. We need a van so he can be included with the rest of the family on the holidays when we have to travel. Right now, Ethan has to stay home with a private duty nurse if we travel for the holidays becuase there is simply no way to transport him four hours in our mini van.
My husband and I work very hard to give all of our children the best life possible, on our own. I didn't want to ask for help but sometimes there is no other option and right now is one of those times.
We don't know how much time we have with Ethan, every professional puts his life expectancy as day to day. So, we want to make each one of those days count as much as possible!
Please, if you can, help us give Ethan this gift of quality and comfort!! Help Ethan be included as much as possible!
I know how important time is, we thank you for yours!
The Bliss Family
A Special Note to my son Ethan
~^~
Dear Ethan, You were born August 26. Weighing 5lbs 8.5oz and 19.5” long and you were full term, 37 weeks 6 days to be exact. YOU ARE A MIRACLE. I CELEBRATE every single day that you are here. We are so GRATEFUL to GOD that you are so STRONG. Your COURAGE and STRENGTH even at your most vulnerable moments reminds your father and I why we have FAITH. Ethan you are FEARLESS. Even with the odds stacked against you, you continue to prove the doctors and pessimist wrong. That is why I am writing your story. I don’t want you to remember the pain you felt or the tears that you cried, rather I want you to look back and see the adversities that you overcame. I want you to remember how STRONG you are. How SPECIAL you are. How LOVED you are, the GOOD TIMES we had, and how BLESSED I am to have you in my life.
THANK YOU for teaching me how to LOVE UNCONDITIONALLY, how to PERSEVERE through hard times, how to see the light through the darkness, to be COURAGEOUS and most of all, thank you for being the miracle that saved my life. We still have an endless amount of memories to make!
Forever,
Mommy.