Happy Birthday Syd!!!

12 years ago today, I met the single most amazing person I've ever encountered.

To celebrate this special day, I'm going to share a little bit about her birth and why I have no doubt that she's going to go on to do big things. (Basically, I'm gonna brag about my baby and tell the world why she's amazing.)

The deck was stacked against Syd from the very beginning. While I was pregnant, the tests showed that my baby would have Down's Syndrome. I was surrounded by people telling me that abortion was the best option for a situation like this. I didn't know how I was going to handle raising a special needs child, but I did know that I wasn't going to kill my baby just because she wasn't "perfect" by the world's standards. I loved her, no matter what.

Fast forward to when I was 37 weeks pregnant and I went to the doctor for a routine test. The results didn't come out right, so they sent me to the hospital to have the same non-stress test done again with better equipment. In the middle of that test, my baby's heart inexplicably stopped beating.

An emergency c-section was done immediately and I officially became a mommy. I truly believe that nothing but the hand of God had me hooked up to heart monitors at the exact moment her heart quit beating. She is alive today because of the unexpected chain of events stemming from that bad test result at the doctor's office.

I was mentally prepared to be handed a baby who had Down's Syndrome that day. Instead, I was handed a baby who had no such condition. Were the test results wrong? Did God heal my baby? I don't know, and I'm not sure that it matters. What does matter is that four days after she was born, I took my perfect little baby girl home.

It is my belief that the Lord brought Syd through that wild pregnancy and delivery completely unscathed for a reason. He has a plan for her life that is bigger than I could ever imagine.

Syd has spent the last 12 years growing into a remarkable young lady. She is an honor roll student who has been in accelerated classes since first grade. She strives to do the right thing, is dependable, and has very strong morals. She spent over a week helping others in the harsh conditions of a 3rd world country, and she started saving money the moment we got home so she can go back again. She has a compassionate heart and even at this young age, her faith is evident in her daily life. Not only does she WANT to make a difference in people's lives, she KNOWS that she will do so.

Some people say that the teenage years are something for parents to dread. I don't feel that way. I am looking forward to those years because with a kid like this, how could the teen years be anything other than incredible?

Happy Birthday, Sydney.