Imagine....finally finding the man of your dreams and blending two families into one.

Imagine....getting pregnant, exciting the whole family, only to miscarry 8 weeks later.

Imagine.....getting pregnant 5 months after a miscarriage and just praying that they see a heartbeat at the first ultrasound.

Imagine.....seeing that heartbeat and praying that it will go on and on.

Imagine....the only OB visit your husband doesn't go to, the doctor tells you to rush right to the hospital.

Imagine....being 26 weeks pregnant and your OB asking you if you believe in prayer, then encourages you to pray because he doesn't have any other answers.

Imagine....being awakened at 6AM and told that you will be told within the hour whether they were going to "take" your baby, and they have already predicted that she weighs less than a pound.

Imagine....during the hour of waiting, not only for the news but for your husband to arrive at the hospital, you plan your baby's funeral if she dies, name her if she turns out to be a him, pick out what she will wear to be buried in, pick out what he will wear to be buried in, pray for the best, but plan for the worst.

Imagine....the docs telling you that your baby will be born today at 26 weeks gestation, but they can't guarantee the baby's outcome.

Imagine....calling your family that live 850 miles away and them rushing to your side, not knowing when they get there if their daughter or granddaughter will be alive.

Imagine....everyone else getting to see your baby before you do.

Imagine....every hormone in your body screaming for the baby that is struggling for life in the NICU.

Imagine....seeing that tiny 1 lb. 7 oz. baby for the first time almost 30 hours after her birth, realizing that she is yours only because your name is on the incubator and crying because you don't know if you will hurt her if you touch her.

Imagine....leaving that tiny baby at the hospital while you go home, with every fiber of your being telling you this is the wrong thing to do, that this isn't the way it should be happening.

Imagine....walking into your living room after your discharge from the hospital and finding the bassinet, the only piece of furniture you have bought for your baby and you don't know when or if she will be lying in it.

Imagine.....having to tell your four year old son, who was promised that his sister would still be in Mommy's tummy when he got home from vacation with his Dad, that his baby sister has been born but has to stay in the hospital and we don't know when she will be coming home.

Imagine....having to wait 13 days to hold your tiny baby and when you finally do she is as light as a feather, you hold her for 15 minutes and then kiss her for the first time, before having to put her back to bed, not knowing when you will get to hold her again.

Imagine....hearing the dreaded news "your baby is very sick" and "we are hoping for a good outcome".

Imagine....the day you see your baby's face for the first time without any tape on it.

Imagine....missing your baby's first bath because the nurse couldn't wait until you were there.

Imagine....waking up from a nightmare that your baby had died and you weren't there.

Imagine....watching another baby in the NICU die, knowing that grieving mother could have been you.

Imagine....finally seeing your baby with clothes on.

Imagine....finally getting to take your baby home at 3 lbs 10.2 oz, after 12 weeks in the NICU.

Imagine....that in 6 short months, your baby is off oxygen, off the monitor, is laughing, cooing, going, smiling, laughing, and weighs 10 lbs.

Just imagine...........

Michele Reeves....Mom to the miracle Amanda, Brandon and wife to Bill....on second thought they are all miracles!!!!!