Clara's Heart: Clara's Corners

Amazement awaits us at every corner.
James Broughton

My main system of faith and belief is family. When I think back to my childhood and any struggles I experienced, the story always ends with comfort and acceptance from my parents and siblings. Childhood fights with 'best friends', feeling left out, unpopular, alone...all the normal ups and downs of being a girl-I traversed these challenges with a relatively strong sense of happiness and esteem because my family was always there to tell me I was smart, and kind, and prettier than I really was (you have to tell your kids that, right?)

So it's not surprising that the biggest challenges I've faced in the last few months have been met head on by my mom and sisters, and met with action-these ladies are the busiest people I know, and they pushed and pulled and dragged me through this stressful time by inspiring my to join their cult of crafting, vacuuming and service.

When we first found out about Clara's heart defect, and our world felt about to collapse in every way, my mom and sisters happened to all be out of state at market, finding new product lines for their store.The call we made to them that night was full of tears and fears, but left us feeling so hopeful. They have been amongst Clara's biggest cheerleaders from day one, and they made me see this challenge as an opportunity and a blessing-we would not have been given this child by accident. She was coming to us because we were meant to be her parents, we could to the best by her. And through all the ups and downs, we have maintained so much faith that Clara would be happy and well, and boy has she!

We try to avoid the inevitable comparisons that come with parenting, observing differences and similarities with other babies. But at the same time, the reality is that so many CHD and 22q kids have traveled harder paths than Clara. While we don't know what the future holds, we feel blessed to be where we are with this little girl. We've seen stories and met friends with very different challenges. A baby a few weeks older than Clara who is also missing her thymus, but does not have enough t cells, resulting in a bone marrow transplant from her brother. Her boyfriend, a few years old, who has not slept through a night more than 10 times in his life (his poor mom!) A sweet friend who spent her first 18 months of life in a hospital and endured many painful surgeries. And countless heart friends with a severe defect called HLHS who have 1 heart surgery in the first few days of life, and then their moms take them home and basically stare at them for about 6 months to make sure they are alive until they are ready for a 2nd surgery. And don't worry, that is shortly followed by yet a 3rd open heart surgery. These are true warriors. And while we are thankful to have breezed through our first OHS and will (hopefully) not face another for years, I want so much to use this outlet as a way to help encourage them, and educate others.

My mom and sisters own a local small business at Gardner Village named Upon the Shelf. They have dedicated a corner of their store to Clara and all the heart moms out there. They have filled it with hearts and flowers and so much love, we couldn't be more grateful their support and dedication to this cause. They have even helped me make items to sale in this area, all to help our sweet girl have every opportunity to grow and thrive. This Clara has invaded the corners of our hearts and brains and our living room and her nursery and our car...and she wiggles her way in to the heart of everyone she meets. And now she has one more corner of the world that is all about her and her friends. We love having the opportunity to tell people about this journey.

Thank you to the builders of Clara's Corner