Morgan Kate

It has been one of those weeks.

A week full of things I wasn't prepared for. And things I hadn't anticipated. But also a week with some proud moments and moments that made me smile. A week that I am honestly glad to see go.

It has been a week full of life lessons. Some good, some not so good. Some I am ready and anxious to share and others are lessons I am still processing and will save for another day and another post.

Wednesday I learned that our baby girl is highly allergic to penicillin. And this was the result...

The sad part? Those pictures were actually taken on a "good" day. The splotches and blotches got much, much worse. They covered her head, her entire face, her ears, her neck, her stomach, her arms, her fingers, her bottom, her legs and her toes. They were everywhere. They didn't appear to be itchy, but were very, very warm. The splotches and blotches were accompanied by some throwing up, some diarrhea and a fussy, fussy little girl.

Later Wednesday I learned that I too am allergic to one type of antibiotic. There are no pictures to prove it and I didn't look like Morgan Kate, but the right side of my face was swollen, especially my eye and my entire right side was tingling.

Thursday I learned that despite some difficult days and a heavy heart, I could still stand before an audience and share "our story".

With these people at my side I can do almost anything.

(It may not appear this way, but my dad really was happy to be there. That's his "tough man" face.)

We attended the Orangeburg March of Dimes Kickoff breakfast Thursday morning. We spent the morning meeting some amazing people and we got to share "our Morgan Kate". We also spent the morning feeling like we needed to explain that our daughter was not contagious, just experiencing an allergic reaction, a bad one. I stood before a crowd and shared from the heart what we had experienced and what the March of Dimes had done to help our baby girl. I would like to say that I was very poised and didn't shed a tear, but I have promised to be honest. I was quite emotional, but was able to pull it all together and get through it. I just kept focusing on these two...

And before it was all over, Travis even won a door prize. This March of Dimes hat, which Morgan Kate was very fond of.

Thursday evening, on our second visit to the pediatrician's office in just two days, I learned that my husband has a very soft heart for his daughter. I actually already knew this, but he shared with me while sitting in the waiting room that his heart had just broken for the first time as a daddy. He watched a little boy look at Morgan Kate and then turn to his own daddy and say, "What is wrong with that baby's face?" I tried to comfort Travis, while also restraining him, and remind him that the little boy was in fact a little boy, a child, and he probably meant no harm in it. And really, whether he meant any harm or not, kids say those things and will continue to say those kinds of things, despite how we feel about it. We just have to remember to be adults and not physically harm every child who says mean things, no matter how bad we really want to.

Besides, how could you look at this face with blotches and all, and not just fall in love?