Jason and I began this journey June 15th, 2010 at 3:45 am when Reece was born. We had no idea when she was born, and only thought she had bruising on her face. It wasn't until later that early morning that a nurse informed us of her birthmark. We had no idea what to expect, and my heart broke for her. My mind raced with ideas, and most of them were horrible thoughts. I thought she would forever be
changed, and have a hard life. We goggled all night on what a Port Wine Stain was, and the internet is a BAD idea. We heard horror stories, and we heard about laser treatments. I was scared to put my newborn baby through any of those options. By day 3, we had an idea of what to expect and we felt better. My mom was a HUGE support for us, finding doctors all around the country that could help us. We went to Reece's first doctor's appointment and before we could utter the words, Dr Baker started the referral for Dr Stuart Nelson at Beckman Laser Institute. I will forever be indebted to both of those doctors. They calmed me, and made me feel as though Reece was going to have a chance at removing her birthmark. It's been almost 5 years, and I wish I knew then, what I know now. We survived. She is braver than most, and God gave me to her because he knew we would help her be strong. We would control our emotions so she knew we would be her support. It's scary watching her be put to sleep once a month but I'm fortunate for my support team. My husband. My daughters. My family. My friends. We would like to pay that forward and help others that we just as scared as we were. We want to make a difference, just like all the wonderful people in our lives have made a difference for us.
