Our Princess

She may not yet be ready to marry her prince, but she is our princess.

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And while her every move was not watched by millions today, she captured the hearts of doctors and nurses, custodians and volunteers, techs and aids, patients and visitors.

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She is our princess. Even with an i.v. adorning her head instead of a crown...

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Sweet, sweet baby. These were taken after 2 in the morning on Wednesday night. We had arrived at the ER about 9:30. After several unsuccessful hours of attempting to get an i.v. started in the tiny dehydrated veins in her arms, a nurse from the NICU came and (in the most lovingly way possible) placed one in her head.

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As you can tell, once the i.v. was in, my cheerful darling was back. She still had a fever (from her infection) and was terribly dehydrated (from not eating and drinking most of the day) but couldn't help smiling. She just loves life and loves people.

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Then we sat down and she promptly fell into a deep, restful sleep.

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She did not respond as quickly to the i.v. fluids as our doctors would have liked so they admitted us early Thursday morning. We got to our pediatric room about 6:00. Lieren was so tired by then after a long night in the ER...

...but still had to smile when she realized I had the camera out...
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We stayed the day Thursday and were told to plan on an overnight. Shane came up for a few hours in the afternoon so I could go home, see the boys (who were with Grandma), shower, and rest for a bit. I brought Silas back up to the hospital so I could be with him longer, so he could see Lieren, and just to get him out of the house.

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Then the boys left to go get themselves dinner and head home.

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And I cried.

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I was exhausted and knew it was going to be another long night. But Lieren was tired as can be, took a bottle (which was cause for rejoicing in itself as she needed to start eating well before our doctor would send us home), and went to sleep fairly early. So I took advantage of the quiet and read. There at the end of Colossians 3:15, the Lord spoke through His Word: "...and be thankful."

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There are so many parts of my earthly self that I am begging the Lord to strengthen me to put off. So many godly traits I am begging to put on. So many weaknesses I fall into. Too many patterns of selfish behavior. And I DO NOT want to pass them on to the little princess who was laying in that hospital crib next to my chair.

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To that end, I took time to be thankful last night. Thankful for our Lieren, whose gentle and quiet spirit has been of great worth to me in the past 10 months. Thankful for hours with her alone. Thankful for a chance to give her full attention. Thankful for the reminder that she was created by the King, who knows her and adores her more than we ever could. And thankful that He is gracious enough to entrust His children to terribly imperfect parents.

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My favorite moment of the past few days was early this afternoon. A volunteer was walking Lieren and I out to the car. We saw Shane and Silas coming to meet us down a long hallway. Lieren squealed with delight and began kicking her legs when she caught a glimpse of her Daddy and brother. Silas came right up and gave her a hug. Then announced that he loved her "headband."

We girls are so thankful to be home with our prince charmings!