When our newborn son was in the hospital fighting for his life, I wanted his doctor to be a super hero. Someone who could knock out infections with one fell swoop. Someone who could miraculously hook up his innards to make ‘em work. Most of all, someone who could take away my baby’s pain and assure us that everything would be okay. Doctors Are Human, Too In my youth and ignorance, I expected...

The fireworks and flags are long gone, but the holiday’s been on my mind ever since. Meet Chloe Downey The pre-occupation began with a post at Chloe Downy’s CaringBridge page. She’s a teenager who recently completed successful treatment for High Risk Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Though she’s pretty much done with doctors and hospitals, her mom often posts thoughtful...

Finally, Part 3 of the Support System for Parents series is up and ready to view at the Life Dreams Channel. Enjoy, Jolene

P31 Woman Magazine, a great resource for women,  published my article Wedged Between Two Worlds in their October 2009 issue. They even featured A Different Dream for My Child in their magazine book store, which was very gracious of them. Proverbs 31 Ministries Website But they did even more, posting a bonus article on their website.  If one of your friends or family members has had a hospitalized...

In the previous post, I explained the important role breast feeding played in our newborn son’s recovery from surgery immediately after his birth. In this post, I want to assure those of you who aren’t breast feeding for whatever reason, I am not trying to burden you with guilt or judge you in any way. That said, I encourage moms who want to breast feed, even if their newborns are struggling...

What about breast feeding? If your newborn is in neonatal intensive care, that’s a question you should be asking. Our son’s story tells you why. And it explains why I’m the proud owner of an early 1900s vintage breast pump. Allen’s Story When Allen was born with an esophageal birth defect, he couldn’t eat through his mouth for several weeks. “But what about breast...

When a child is unexpectedly hospitalized, having a clear-thinking parent by her side is very good medicine. Here are  five things clear-thinking parents do to help their hospitalized children: #1 Stay Calm It’s hard to stay calm when a child is in distress, on the way to surgery or enduring a difficult treatment. But conscious or unconscious, children pick up their parents’ emotional...