I hope to be half the mom she is…

Last week Brett and I had the pleasure of having my Sister, Brother-in-law, Mom and Nephew visit from Colorado Springs. The days were here and gone in a flash. We had a wonderful and very relaxing time with all of them. We hit up a Boise Hawks baseball game, lounged at the pool, the boys played golf, the girls did some shopping, had a nice bonfire where we roasted marshmallows and made s’mores (s’more what? ;) ) then we ended the week with a night at WAHOOZ! I was once again reminded of what a wonderful family I have, and how much I miss them when they’re gone.

Many of you are aware of my nephew Kal, and the day-to-day struggles he faces. For those of you who don’t know, here’s a quick overview of the past nine years.

He was in and out of the emergency room/hospital with breathing problems starting at age of 6 months (I believe) thinking it was just asthma or RSV they would release him and it kept getting worse. I’ll never forget the call….we were in Kansas visiting my grandparents for the 4th of July. I heard the phone ring, my Dad answered and you could tell something was seriously wrong. He hung up the phone said Kal was in the hospital, we had 10 minutes to throw our things together and be in the car. We were headed home!!

Kal stayed in the hospital July 3rd- 0ct 1st. During that time the Lord’s almighty hand was at work (although I had serious doubts). I witnessed so many things a baby should NEVER have to endure. It didn’t seem just for a tiny little baby that was so helpless to desperately be fighting for his life. Those 3 months seemed like 3 years. He was resuscitated and bagged numerous times, sedated, had so many wires attached to his little body making it nearly impossible to hold. Many times we would hear from nurses and his Dr.’s that he shouldn’t be alive. After about a month in the hospital they trached him and hooked him up to a ventilator. They told us he would never be able to talk, or walk. Well, today he is nine years old…SMART as can be, talking more like a 20-something year old, and FULL of life. I can’t tell you what a joy it is to be around him. He still has his vent; he was able to walk until a case of pneumonia set in at the age of 4 and took all his strength away. The specialists are classifying his condition as a type of Muscular Dystrophy. I have always been around him since he was born when I was 15, and it just became normal to me to have a nephew with a vent, and just learned to accept it.

For some reason this time being around Kal really broke me down. There wasn’t a night while he was here that didn’t I cry myself to sleep. Why Lord? Why does my sister have to work so hard to care for her 9 year old? Why can’t he do all the things all the other kids his age are doing. Why can’t he just walk? Why is my son healthy, and my sister’s isn’t? UGH! Sometimes I get so mad and my heart is broken! IT’S JUST NOT FAIR!!

However, I was encouraged when I was sitting back and watching Stephanie (my sister) care for Kal all week, and how she does it so lovingly. Never with a complaint, always, and I mean always patient. She must be worn down, and exhausted (He requires a lot of extra care: suctioning, trach care, taken to the bathroom…which is a task in and of itself. He’s getting bigger and heavier and has very little strength in his legs requiring you to take all the grunt work in getting him on/off the toilet.) but you would never know. She is the most positive person I have ever met. She’s incredibly genuine and loves her son with every bone in her body (literally). I have so much to learn from her and strive to be exactly like her. She gives off an energy that just makes you want to be around her constantly. She’s so selfless, and has a heart of gold. Jesus shines through her, and Kal is one blessed boy to have her as his Mama. Stephy, you are an amazing woman, and for very good reason I consider you one of my best friends. I love you.