Meeting Angelica

Today my sister Candice is going to be induced to have her 2nd baby daughter. As most mothers are at nine months pregnant, she is anxious to meet her and hold her in her arms. But Candice has been less anxious to deliver than I usually am. That's because her baby has thrived while in the protection of her womb. But once she is born she knows that her time with her daughter will be brief. Since the ultrasound at 20 weeks, Candice and her husband Peter have known that their daughter has a condition called Trisomy 13 which involves a host of problems that are not conducive to life outside the womb.  She may not survive birth at all or live only a few hours. They so want to be able to hold her and love her in their arms before she passes on.

I am praying really hard for her and Peter today. They have been such an example to all of us as they have anticipated this birth. They spent a lot of time early on choosing a special name for her and finally fell in love with the name Angelica. Candice loves to sew and spends much of her time sewing dresses for her 2 year old daughter Laura. She decided to sew baby clothes for Angelica too, even though she knows that she most likely won't be alive to enjoy them all. She hasn't blamed God or been angry at the fact that she has spent 9 months of her life sacrificing, losing her figure, being sick, all the hard stuff that comes with pregnancy. .  .and not to even get to keep the baby in the end. She continues to thank her Heavenly Father for this experience to carry a special child who has taught them already so much about the preciousness of life. I am so inspired by her unselfish desire to give life and love to this angel baby who will have such a short life among us. No child could be more loved. 

We love you Candice and Peter and are praying that this will be a sweet experience as you meet and enjoy the time that you have with Angelica. Thanks for teaching us so much.