Today is Whitney's due date. Sean and I miss her every second of every day, but we know we're not the only ones missing her dearly. We are missing out on things that parents get to do, but there are other people in Whitney's life who are missing out on special things, too.
I thought and thought about what I wanted to do on this day. Some way to remember Whitney, to acknowledge that she was indeed real and to just honor the people in our lives who love us and Whitney more than anyone else could. So.... Sean and I came up with the idea to declare Whitney's due date "Aunt & Uncle Day" in our family! (Kind of like Grandparents' Day or Mothers/Fathers Day) April 16th will now always be remembered as Whitney's due date, but also as a day to celebrate the "aunts and uncles" in our family.
So here's a little about Whitney's aunts and uncles...
Aunt Audrey
Aunt Anne & Uncle Kyle
Kyle is Sean's brother, and he just made the smartest move of his life last November, when he married Anne. We had a great time at their wedding in Indy. They now live in Indy, and I can't wait for the day when we will hopefully live close to them. There's nothing I'd love more than to raise our curly-haired brunette babies with their (some day) blondie cuties. This picture is actually a picture of us four with Whitney, too... its just none of us knew it yet!! This was taken just a few days before I took my pregnancy test!
Uncle David
David is my brother, and he lives in Chicago. We don't get to see him nearly as much as we'd like to, but he came out here just a few weeks ago, on his Spring Break. He was able to go with us to a memorial service hosted by Angel Babies. It was simple but sweet... they lit some candles, read a poem, sang some songs, and then read the names of all the angel babies who were born in February. When we went to San Francisco, we wrote Whitney's name in the sand and took this picture. I love this picture for many reasons: I love Whitney, I love my brother and I love the ocean. David is already an awesome Uncle to his two nieces, Emmalia and Kaira. And I know he would have been just as awesome with Whitney.
Aunt Megan & Uncle Eric
Megan is my sister. The moment we called her and told her that Whitney would be born in less than 24 hours, she was on the quickest flight out of Phoenix. And that wasn't an easy task for her. She is a pastor's wife and busy mom of two little girls, Emmalia (2 years old) and Kaira (who was just 3 months old when Whitney was born). Eric was a champ and played single dad for several days so Megan could come and be with us. It was the greatest moments we have yet to share as sisters. When Megan arrived with my Mom on a late flight from LAX, she still took time to help teach me some breathing techniques and what to expect in labor. The next day at the hospital, she rubbed my feet through contractions, helped me breathe and stay calm, and helped make sure that everything was done the way I wanted it done. Other than the nurses, Megan was the first person to see Whitney. She was right there by my side (holding up my dead-weight leg!). Most people have the reward of a healthy baby to look forward to and to help make it through labor. I didn't have that. I had my sister looking into my eyes, telling me "its ok, you can do this." Megan was the one who gave Whitney her bath. She dressed her. Weighed her. Measured her. She got to cuddle her, hold her, love her and kiss her. I am so glad my sister was there. She would have been such a great Aunt to Whitney. And Christmases would have been so fun with Whitney and Kaira and Emmalia. I would have loved the hand-me-down girls' clothing too! I will never be able to express, for as long as I live, how much it meant to me to have Megan there. Here's is a picture of her adorable family... Megan said the girls did great while she was with us here in Fresno. I am so thankful that God allowed us that time together, and that her girls were so lovingly cared for while their mommy was gone.
So Aunts & Uncles, we are so grateful for you. We long for the day when we can all be reuinted together in Heaven with so many others who have gone before us, including Whitney. I can't wait for you all to meet her, to hold her and to love on her. We love you all and miss you! We hope you enjoy the packages we sent... and I hope they all got there in time! The candle is for you to light today and just think about sweet Whitney when you smell the sweetness of the candle. Love you guys!
Shey,
ReplyDeleteYou are amazing. Being the aunt of Kyah, who although had a different diagnoses, had much the same life as Whitney, you have no idea what this means to Whitney's aunts and uncles. To recognize that they, too, care and love for Whitney, and miss her dearly no matter if they saw her at the hospital or not.
Reading your blog over the last few months has really helped me begin to cope with Kyah. I never knew how to really cope or understand, or know what my part was in all of it. And even though I still don't really know the answers to those questions, I feel better about it all now. Thank you for being so open about your life and sharing with others so they can be helped through Whitney's life.
BTW-- I had a dream about you last night. Nothing major- but we were just hanging out as if that's what we did everyday. It was weird, because we've never even met, but you were happy and carefree, and that made me smile.
i thought a lot about you guys today. and i thought a lot about little whitney too. our family would like to adpot the aunt and uncle day too as a way to honour whitney. that way we will always be thinking about your little one on this day. love you friend :)
ReplyDeleteI just wanted you to know that you and your family were in my thoughts and prayers yesterday! Hugs!
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