Kidney Stones

Dear Princess,

I just realized tonight that I hadn't posted in a while - because I've been so preoccupied by what's going on in my life - I just had the first of two surgeries for kidney stones last week and I've really been hurting a lot, it was hard to think about much else, although of course I'm always thinking of you!  Current events have also reminded me of another sweet memory of you though, the one I'm going to share tonight.

You were almost seven - oh so very close - your birthday was just a couple weeks away.  M's birthday party had been the previous night and you had both spent the night at my house.  In the morning, as I drove M home, I started to feel a pain in my side while we were in the car.  I knew what it was right away, because I had had them before.  I was in for a good day or so of painfully passing a kidney stone.

I knew it was going to be impossible to care for your baby brother while this was going on, but I'd promised you a fun day since you'd struggled a bit the previous day with all the attention being on M, and I didn't want to let you down.  So your grandparents took AJ, who was only about six months old, for us.  Then I took some medicine to help me with my pain, laid some blankets and pillows on the couch, pulled out some toys, turned on a movie, and settled the two of us in down in the family room.

First we watched Nemo.  Then we both fell asleep for a little while.  When we woke up I took some more medicine and you came over and sat next to the couch where I laid on my belly so that we could do puzzles and play games together.  We put together all the big wooden puzzles, even the United States one, and played Don't Break The Ice a few times.  Then when I needed to rest again, you sat on a bedsheet and played with play-doh.  My mom brought us dinner and we ate while we watched Noggin and talked.  After dinner, we read a couple books.  You played with some of your toys.  I watched you and smiled.  Your happiness did more for my misery than any pill could have.

Only maybe twice all day did I have to use a stern voice with you at all.  Then I would remind you that Katie didn't feel good and I really needed you to have good choices and use your listening ears.  You would shape right up after that.  When it was your bedtime, I had my mom come and get you to put you to bed - give you a bath and read your stories and everything.  You came back downstairs to hug me after your bath at my request, and then you fussed a little bit because you wanted me to put you to bed.  But when I explained why I couldn't and gave you lots of hugs and kisses to make up for it, and promised that my mom was the best story reader ever, you went off to your room cheerfully.

As I lay on the couch that night after you had gone to sleep, I remember thinking how impressed I was with you that day.  You had understood that I was not feeling well and that I needed your best behavior, and that as long as I had it, we could still have fun.  Because of your cooperation and understanding, a day that could've been a big let down, just lying around, turned into a special day of lying around and just enjoying each other's company.  It's one of the best memories I have.  I appreciated then, as I do now, your sympathy and kindness toward me even though I couldn't do as many fun and exciting things as I'm sure you'd hoped... and your ability to make your own fun.  That's a special quality - especially when you're only six!

Love you forever,

Katie