"Magic Mommy Kisses"
Each night I tuck you into bed,
I brush my hand across your head,
and in each tiny little fist
I place a magic mommy kiss.
Full of love and hope so bright
To keep you safely through the night,
Mommy kisses in your hand
To guide you off to slumberland.
If you should dream of monsters mean
Or witches with faces masked in green,
Of snakes that squeeze you oh-so-tight
Or darkness with no sign of light.
When nightmares hold you stiff with fear
A part of mommy still is near,
Just open up your hand and blow
One mommy kiss and nightmares go.
 | ||||||
| ||||||
Holding Her For The First Time
Right Before Surgery
Her Back Right After Surgery
Incision Above Diaper
Same
Still Resting On Her back
Bed Sores On Her Knees
Right After Shunt Surgery
| ||||||
Located On The Home Page!
Close Up Of Back
When Joanna was born she spent the first two weeks of her life in the neonatal intensive care unit at Children's Hospital of The Kings Daughters. At two days old Joanna had the lesion on her back repaired and closed. At 4 days old Joanna had a VP shunt placed in her brain due to hydrocephalus. (fluid buildup on the brain) Having a perfectly healty baby can be make you very nervous and stressful, but having a child with a birth defect makes life even more challenging. Already a parent of two girls, me and Joe were scared to death. Not knowing what tomorrow would bring. Wishing that now we had documented the entire thing. Looking back on those moments is still hard, but looking at our little girl now is wonderful. She is truely a blessing to us. So sweet and graceful; Little Joanna has filled our hearts with complete joy. She has become the little girl others thought she could never be, she is that miracle that people talk about, she is that diamond in the rough, she is my Joanna Lee!
These are pictures of Joanna in the NICU at Chkd during the first few days of life. Unfortunately the one roll of film we took of her in the hospital was a damaged one. I was devasted! Now only having video of our Joanna's jouney......Until I decided to try taking pictures of the video as it played on the tv. As you look at these please remember that. Some are alitttle blurry, but they are gold to me!
| ||||||
My First Few Days.........
