I can vividly remember wondering why in the world a family hadn't scooped up this precious little treasure. Of course now that answer is clear as crystal - nobody chose her because she was OUR daughter. Hundreds of families reviewed Lily's file, and the word "terminal" inevitably scared every single family away. Ironically, that very same word had Jacques and I running toward her with reckless abandon. We were both desperate to love this child for as long as God allows her little heart to beat. I had never been so sure of anything in my entire life as I was that this little orphan girl thousands of miles away was our daughter.
Fast forward to this week. Lily has been in the hospital since the day before Thanksgiving. She was admitted to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit with Hyponatremia (low sodium). What the cardiologists initially told us would be a relatively easy thing to fix, has eight weeks later turned into a tremendously complicated ordeal. Lily has never done anything by the textbook, and as a matter of fact she has supplied her doctors with plenty of never seen before data to write their own textbook.
Last weekend Lily began decompensating rapidly. Her oxygen levels dropped, she was short of breath, wouldn't walk, she stopped eating, and her hemoglobin and hematocrit were dangerously low. Jacques donated blood, and Lily received his gift early last Sunday morning.
Papa's blood being transfused into Lily Grace
The blood transfusion initially seemed to help, but Lily's blood work quickly became concerning again. It was determined that Lily's body is not making enough of its own red blood cells, and that she would need another blood transfusion. When people are being evaluated or waiting for a heart transplant, it is very important to minimize the amount of blood donor antibodies that are introduced to their system. Last year when Lily needed a blood transfusion, Jacques donated blood since I was pregnant with Addy Hope. There are some antibodies that can put up red flags for transplant, and we know that Jacques does not have any of those. Since Jacques was not able to donate blood for another 50 days, I got my chance to donate blood to Lily. This morning, Lily Grace received my blood - her mommy's blood.
Mommy's blood being transfused into Lily Grace
I stand in awe of our great God. The God who knit all of us together in our mother's wombs. The God who knows how many hairs are on your head. The God who created Jacques, Lily, and I with the exact same blood type for such a moment as this. As difficult and gut wrenching as this journey is sometimes, I am absolutely breathless at the thought, and humbled that our adopted daughter has both my husband and my blood running through her veins right now.
Only God.
Also, please take note of our blood type -
B+
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.
How precious are your thoughts about me, Oh God.
They cannot be numbered!
Psalm 139:13-17