Blessed Be

So, it is Sunday evening and the weekend has slipped by in record time. However, in spite of it flying by, Thursday seems like an eternity ago. I'll cut to it, Pat and I had our first incident with Georgia being sick. Initially, I would follow that up with "really" sick, but after a brief minute of thought, I realize just how ridiculous that sounds. On Thursday evening after putting her down for the night, she awoke with a scream followed by 45 minutes of inconsolable crying. A traumatic first for both of us. She fell asleep again and slept for just 2 hours before awaking this time with a fever and severe vomitting. After calling the doctor, we decided to take her to the ER to make sure she wasn't dehydrated. After a couple of hours there, with encouraging news, (she was simply fighting some respiratory issues), we headed home and continued the sleepless night. On Friday, I just felt like it would be best for her pediatrician to check her out. After looking at her, her doctor ordered an x-ray to rule out pneumonia, a blood draw to test the white blood cell count and two shots of antibiotics to help her fight whatever was going on. After wrapping her in a straight jacket type sheet with only her little arm left out, they asked me to hold her face still in my hands while they attempted to find her vein. We both wept together as they tried in vain and ultimately drained the blood from her big toe. This is something I know she will never remember and I will never forget. As the nurses left the exam room and I held her close, my prayer as we both cried was not for healing, but for thanks. Thank you, God, that she is over 5 months old and has never had a blood draw before. Thank you, God, for her health and her joy. Thank you for blessing us with such extraordinary health that 2 hours in a doctor's office is all we've spent. How my heart aches for the parents all over in hospitals and Ronald McDonald houses dealing with real illness. In the 20 minutes I waited for test results, I thought of our amazing friends, the Harasimowisz family and wondered how many hundreds of times they have waited and wondered, prayerfully anticipating God's miraculous works in their son, Joshua. Yes, we have had a long weekend, one of utter joy and thanksgiving that it is simply a weekend and that we are blessed with health.