Becky and Sadie.

So, my best friend had a baby today. A little girl named Sadie.

Everyone say, "YEAH BECKY!"

Sadie was born about five and a half weeks early, because her pregnancy has taken quite a toll on her mama. Who has asthma normally, but literally has been unable to breathe without steroids and oxygen for quite some time now. It's been a ROUGH month for her.

But Sadie has now been surgically removed, and is currently taking up residence in the NICU at a local hospital. The same NICU, in the same hospital that my wondertwins once lived in, for six months.

And I can't say that I am sad, or anxious that Sadie is there. I'm a little jealous, even.

Because I LOVE that place. I don't associate it with losing a son or terribly premature babies. Or surgeries, or strokes, or feeding tubes or endless alarms. Though, that is DEFINITELY the events we witnessed there.

But that NICU, for me, is nothing short of a miracle. What do you say about a place that, literally, saved the lives of my children? I don't have words for it, really. Except that it has been 5 years since we have left it, and I still ache for it a bit. I still think of it as a place that breathed life into my soul, when I could have gone on living a predictable, selfish and highly expectant life.

Don't hear me say that you have to have a sick child to be a better person.

Cause I'm still rotten.

But I guess I always thought that babies were born healthy and wore onesies from the GAP. And all families wear matching seersucker. And children never whine. And math is easy. Scratch that. I didn't *think* those things, I expected them.

And then we had our horribly sick chickens (translation: premature babies), and in ONE SINGLE INSTANT, I knew that none of my crap mattered. Because when faced with my sick kids or a perfectly monogrammed family, I would have taken their ventilators and scars and oxygen monitors any day.

Though. I *might* have monogrammed their equipment.

And the doctors and nurses! Don't even get me started.

All I can say, is that it is amazing to be served by people who fight so intensely on behalf of your children. I wish everyone could know the kindness of (then) strangers, who literally saved their lives. Not just with medicine, but with hope and grace and strength and humility. You can say it is a job, but I will tell you right now, there isn't a monetary amount that could possibly pay them what they are worth, and what they survive on a DAILY basis.

But.

On top of all this hub-bub, Becky is still struggling a bit. Her body has taken quite a beating, and we need it to get better, pronto. I NEED it to get better, like, 5 minutes ago. Because I miss her and she is walking the tightrope of some heavy stuff, if her symptoms don't clear up now that she isn't pregnant anymore. I don't know exactly what it is that's attacking her, but it is playing dirty and aiming for her heart and lungs, and well, she NEEDS those. And I am praying that she is as well attended on labor and delivery, as I know little Sadie is in the NICU....

So, if you have a moment and could say a prayer for Becky and her family, I know they could use it. Because it's been a hell of a road, and they are tired and running on fumes and steroids. And they need to get some good answers, over which they have ZERO control.

Healing, comfort, rest, ANSWERS, wisdom, trust, faith. Got it?

Thanks blogworld, I owe you one.