A stolen post from my sister

I stole this from my sister's blog. She really captured my feelings that I haven't been able to put into words just yet. Thanks, Nanny!

Miracle Mark

If you know the movie I modified the title of this post from, 100 bonus points for you!
Now, on to the important stuff. Just over a year ago, perhaps on New Year's Day (?) I was reading my sister's blog. This is her opening to hew New Year's post: "This past year we received two thousand ten plus blessings. I'm excited for the one more blessing we'll receive this new year. I am just feeling really blessed in my life right now." As I read that I stopped and asked myself if she was pregnant. Apparently others thought the same thing too, because some friends commented asking if she was indeed expecting. I realized quickly that she was referring to the year (2010, hence the two thousand and ten blessings, plus one more for 2011) and I laughed as I told her of her almost-folly the next day. To my surprise she got really quiet and looked around to make sure no one else was around then told me that she was indeed expecting! A Freudian slip! She really did mean the number of blessings to equal the year, but it just worked out that she would be receiving one more blessing in the form of a child. Little did we know that this one blessing would lead to so many others.
Being around for this pregnancy was a lot of fun, and a lot of work at first! It was so hard to know and not be able to tell! I was in charge of making sure that my sister got to eat when we needed to at parties, and that she didn't get too tired. I kept waiting and waiting for her to make the big announcement so that I wouldn't have to keep the secret anymore! Tell she did, on Valentine's Day, which was a lot of fun. Sam started saying "baby, baby, baby" and patting his tummy, and we all started making preparations for the new little guy to join our family.
On August 23rd little Mark Emmitt Clay was born at 7:15 pm, weighing in at 7 lbs 4 oz, 20 1/2 inches long. His best feature-his flaming red hair! Marmitt, as his Nanny likes to call him, is like the horse of many colors when it comes to his hair; sometimes it's strawberry blonde, red, flaming red, and all shades in between. I got to meet him the very night he was born and introduce myself, which I loved! Little Marmitt being born also meant that I got to spend some Nanny time with Sam, which I loved! We played, had tons of fun, and got things ready for when Mommy and the baby came home. It was great! I got to stay with the happy family for a few days to help everyone adjust, and then I got a new job so I had to take off for home. It was hard to leave my little guy, but a Nanny is never far away!
On September 4th I was in the middle of a long Sunday nap when my Mom woke me up. I could hear panic in her voice as she told me that our Marmitt had been taken by ambulance to Primary Children's (hospital) because he was having seizures. I jumped out of bed and in less than 5 minutes we were on the road, heading to SLC.
When we arrived at the hospital we were taken to the ER room, but everyone was gone to a test. We anxiously waited and a few minutes later everyone came back, little Marmitt on a big stretcher hooked up to machines, with Mommy and Daddy close by his side. We found out that he had bleeding on his brain, which was causing the seizures. This started a long and scary road for our little miracle boy.
Marmitt spent 13 days at Primary's, with lots of ups and downs. So many prayers were said for him, and I know that the faith of those prayers is what saved that little boy. At first we weren't allowed to touch him while he was in the PICU because they didn't want him to get over-stimulated. Seeing him hooked up to all of those machines and wires was really hard. One of the many miracles that this little boy experienced was in his Uncle J and Aunt Fishy's wedding day. Jolene and Nic left him in the PICU to come to the sealing and wedding brunch. When they got back to the hospital they found out that the little Marmitt had been graduated to a regular room-no more PICU! It was a perfect addition to that day! I know that the temples of the Lord bring blessings for those who attend, and this day was no different. Our entire family was in the temple that day, and we were blessed for it. We had a wedding miracle! There were plenty of other miracles that the little Marmitt boy experienced, this is just one of them.
Finally Marmitt got to come home after 13 days. It was a crazy time for everyone, but eventually life got back to "normal." Marmitt has been getting services from Early Intervention, and from them we learned that he is even more of a miracle. For the severity of his bleed he is doing amazingly well! He has a slight weakness on his right side, but that is it. The little miracle boy kept proving to be a miracle!
Earlier this month Jolene took Marmitt in for his regular checkup with his neurosurgery team. That was when they found out that Marmitt had hydrocephalus, also known as swelling of the brain. The doctors had initially believed that Marmitt's body would take care of everything on its own, but now it was telling them otherwise. The solution: a shunt. A shunt is a device that is surgically placed in the body that moves excess fluid from one place to another, in this case from Marmitt's brain to his belly. We were all nervous about this "minor" surgery, but excited for something that was going to help Marmitt in the long-run.
My Christmas wish this year was that our little Marmitt would be home to enjoy Christmas with us. His surgery was on the 19th, just days away from the festivities. More prayers were said for the little miracle boy, and once again, faith overcame fear and doubt. Marmitt came through the surgery like a champ, impressing his doctors and nurses. He came home as scheduled, and is doing great. It's crazy to see the difference the shunt has already made in the Marmitt boy! He was a happy baby before, and even happier now! (Minus a little minor grumpiness due to a cold...) He is truly a miracle boy! And my Christmas wish came true-the little miracle boy was with us on Christmas morning! Our entire family got to celebrate Christmas together, which is a great blessing!
I know that God hears and answers our prayers. Sometimes we go through hard times, but the Lord it with us through it all. When we are weak He is there to be our strength. The Little Miracle Boy, Miracle Mark, is proof that God is not absent from our lives. He still works miracles in our lives every single day. God loves us and showers us with his blessings.

Photos:

Top: Marmitt's hospital "mugshot"

Second: at home, a few days old

Third: Marmitt's hospital stay

Last: Marmitt 2 days post-surgery