Hello!
My name is Jamie. I am Mama to two beautiful little girls, Stella and Nora. My husband, Mike, and I had a rocky start to parenting, as both of our girls were born with a different birth defect. Stella was born in 2013 with a Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH). Two years later in 2015, we had Nora, who was born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate. That makes 2017 the first year since we became parents that neither of our children is scheduled to have a surgery (knock on wood here).
Having a child with a birth defect, disability or anything that makes them “special” is really hard. As Mama’s we still worry about all the same things that every other Mom does, but we also worry about whether they are gaining enough weight, breathing okay, if the next surgery will be successful or if this new medicine will be the one that actually makes a difference. It makes some seasons of life very stressful and others literally life and death.
I created this blog as a place to share our story with the hope that it will be a support to other Mama’s who have health affected children; because sometimes it’s just nice to know you aren’t alone and someone else out there gets it.
I named this blog “Becoming Joyful Mama” because while I have moments as “Joyful Mama” I am more often worried, fearful, tired or stressed Mama. However, I want my girls to look at me and see the true joy they bring me and not the stress of their health conditions. But more importantly I want them to see that true joy comes when we put those worries, fears and stresses in God’s hands.
Thanks for reading and joining me on this journey in becoming a joyful mama. 🙂
Becoming Joyful Mama 