Joy Comes in the Morning

This is literally what happened to me this morning, bright and early. God filled my heart up with pure joy. Just like every other appointment I make to get Hudson's blood count checked, I got the earliest appointment they have- 7:45. You may think that's crazy to be at Children's hospital at 7:45 in the morning but let me remind you I am the mother of a newborn and a 5 year old early bird. The other reason we like that early appointment time is because if the results are not-so-great then we can head over to the infusion clinic to get a blood transfusion without having to come back the next day. I am getting to be such a pro that I pack extra bottles, blankets, and snacks for big brother to leave in the car just in case it ends up being an all day visit. I wasn't expecting BAD results today really, because usually at the two week mark after a transfusion Hudson's blood count isn't necessarily GREAT but usually isn't low enough to warrant another transfusion THAT quickly. I was expecting his number to be around an 8. Double digit blood count numbers would be a dream come true but something we were told would probably never be the norm for Huddie. A normal baby of his age has a red blood cell count of 9-14 and they generally transfuse when it drops past 8. So I was okay with getting an 8 because it meant we were transfusion-free for about another week. In fact, every night we pray together as a family- Wes, Brian, Huddie, and me- and Wes prayed that the results would be good but that we would just be prepared and at peace for whatever the results may be. Well, this Mama had been praying something a little differently on my own. I asked God to not only give us good results but results that were better than they'd ever been. But in my heart I also knew that if they weren't, that was okay. At least we had doctors who were monitoring him closely and we would just get through another transfusion. But when we got there this morning, I should have known this day was going to be different. First off, Hudson didn't cry one single bit when he got his blood drawn- first time that's ever happened! He actually coo'd at the nurse when he finished. Then, we actually got our results much quicker than usual. When the nurse came out and said "Hudson?" I immediately jumped up and started towards her. But then she told me to sit back down that she would come to me. Dun dun dun. She had a HUGE smile on her face as she showed me the usually dreaded circled number- a 10!! My heart lept out of my chest! She said that he was holding onto his blood so much better. I thanked her about 75 times and then immediately turned to my mom and told her about my prayer. Hudson's RBC count had NEVER been that high that long after a transfusion. The only other time he had a double-digit number was after his first transfusion. But even them they checked it only FIVE days later (not 2 weeks like this time) so it was expected to be high. My mom and I stood in front of the elevators and had chills up and down our arms at how God had answered my prayer. Even Brian fist pumped at the good news. I was prepared and at peace to have to make that dreaded walk to get the IV going but God chose to bless us today in a different way. Yes, I've actually come to even feel blessed with a transfusion because it is God's way of helping our baby. Maybe He was just waiting for me to get to that point.

So tonight I will lay my head down and thank the Lord again for all his blessings He literally pours out to us each day. And I will continue to be bolder in my prayers, asking specifically for things. I have walked around all day with a smile that you couldn't slap off my face :) Pure joy.