Yesterday morning, I received a call from my friend that she had gone into early labor (she was 32 wks). She has 6 children at home ranging from 12 months to 11, and no family lives in the state. She said the kids were okay at home, but I picked up 3 of them (my other friend) took the other 3. I live pretty close to the hospital and one of her children, Maeli who is 5, has severe diabetes and had just had a new pump inserted and her sugar levels are all over the place. She is often on the border from going into a diabetic coma, so she has to be extremely closely monitored. So, it was a crazy day, checking her blood, having to quickly contact her dad and give her insulin/pump, snacks when her levels plummeted. I was nervous taking care of her, but she is truly such an angelic little girl. That sounds a little over the top, but if you met her you would understand. As I was checking her levels and poking her fingers and giving her shots, she would say "thank you Kim for taking such good care of me", "you're so nice to help me", "I like you Kim One-in-a-DeMillion (cute variation she has made up of my last name). She was being sickly sweet or putting on a show, this is how she is - all the time. As she is getting a painful shot in her stomach, through the tears she smiles and says thank you.
My friend had her baby at 4:15p and she is doing remarkably well for being 8 weeks early. She weighed 4lbs 4ozs and is incubated but stable. I'll admit to being a little more concerned about my friend who is in her early 40's and has a lot of health problems due to the pregnancy risks.
Before you think her too reckless, she was told she would never have children due to terrible scar tissue that had formed when she was in a near fatal car accident. 5 of the children are adopted, 3 having come from the same family and she was asked last year if she would take all 3 because they obviously didn't want to split them up and one of them had serious health issues. No sooner did they adopt them but they found out Mitzi was actually pregnant, and carried the baby to full term. Then 5 months later - she's unexpectedly pregnant again. This women is amazing and accepts everything that comes her way so gracefully. She is the epitome of unconditional love and is a bundle of energy.
When I first met Mitzi, I remember thinking to myself, that she was too hyper/nice/sweet and that people aren't really like that (I'm more from the bitchy/snarky/sarcastic garden variety). But I couldn't help but like her and enjoy her company, her perkiness was contagious.
After talking to her yesterday when she called in the middle of labor to check on the kids, she was her usual self (although understandably very scared for the baby) and actually was worrying that I was doing okay. See what I mean?!
I tell you all of this, because I'm grateful to have a friend who inspires me to be a better person and for the opportunity to spend time with such a family. I hugged my kids a little closer last night and felt more grateful for what I had. I feel that having friends in your life is such a blessing and you can never have too many of them. Especially not too many of ones like Mitzi, who make you want to be a better person.
My friend had her baby at 4:15p and she is doing remarkably well for being 8 weeks early. She weighed 4lbs 4ozs and is incubated but stable. I'll admit to being a little more concerned about my friend who is in her early 40's and has a lot of health problems due to the pregnancy risks.
Before you think her too reckless, she was told she would never have children due to terrible scar tissue that had formed when she was in a near fatal car accident. 5 of the children are adopted, 3 having come from the same family and she was asked last year if she would take all 3 because they obviously didn't want to split them up and one of them had serious health issues. No sooner did they adopt them but they found out Mitzi was actually pregnant, and carried the baby to full term. Then 5 months later - she's unexpectedly pregnant again. This women is amazing and accepts everything that comes her way so gracefully. She is the epitome of unconditional love and is a bundle of energy.
When I first met Mitzi, I remember thinking to myself, that she was too hyper/nice/sweet and that people aren't really like that (I'm more from the bitchy/snarky/sarcastic garden variety). But I couldn't help but like her and enjoy her company, her perkiness was contagious.
After talking to her yesterday when she called in the middle of labor to check on the kids, she was her usual self (although understandably very scared for the baby) and actually was worrying that I was doing okay. See what I mean?!
I tell you all of this, because I'm grateful to have a friend who inspires me to be a better person and for the opportunity to spend time with such a family. I hugged my kids a little closer last night and felt more grateful for what I had. I feel that having friends in your life is such a blessing and you can never have too many of them. Especially not too many of ones like Mitzi, who make you want to be a better person.
2 comments:
Congratulations to Mitzi!
What a wonderful post. My thoughts are with Mitzi, her new baby, and the rest of her family. I'm also sending a special thought to Maeli. I've been diabetic since age 12, and I know what a struggle it is. She sounds like a remarkable little girl.
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