Flying Through Turbulence

It’s 6:30am on Friday, January 19, 2024, and I feel great. Yesterday was the final bless off, ( my spin on check off) for my little one’s weight consistency of 5 lbs. It was our last Maternal Fetal Medicine appointment to assess his heartbeat, his weight and room to grow, given the summersaults he was performing in there. It was hilarious how the attending nurse kept popping through the curtain asking me if I was alright. “ Mom he’s beating you up, are you ok? Is he always this active?”

And like clockwork, I received my morning soccer kick from Elijah that signified he was up and needed his usual green apple and grits breakfast. But, before I got out of the bed, I told him, “Ok kiddo, you’re 5 lbs. You can come anytime you’re ready!” And sure enough, little Elijah arrived later that evening at 11:00 pm.

And Then…

30 minutes after his grand entrance, the labor and delivery team begin to gather and check latching and bilirubin. His temperature was dropping, he was placed on a heater monitor and the words, “Failure to Thrive”, surfaced to sew a seed of doubt and unbelief. Now in my head I’m thinking, “Not this little soccer kicking boy.” And at this time my aunt was rounding the corner with the car seat. I began pointing into the warming room where he was being fed sweet food to boost his blood sugar. It was like the atmosphere shifted once we had family standing around. Shortly afterwards, the nervous-looking nurse staff said, “We need to move him to a step down, the NICU with possibly a feeding tube.” “I’ll be there to feed him everyday,” I responded.

The L&D room we had been admitted to was ice cold, the technician did not get there to adjust the thermostat until after Elijah was moved to NICU. We were in fact, Flying Through Turbulence- not a Failure To Thrive. There were many pockets of air that caused a firm grasp on our seatbelt during this flight, but the engine on this plane was not about to fail, not by a long shot.

The Neonatal ICU can be daunting with all of its islets and tubes, etc. But, if you take the Lord with you everywhere you go, He will meet every aversion to going home and healthy restoration at the door. He will cancel every bad report and give you peace nobody will understand. This is how bumpy our journey felt. This is my story of becoming a mother and Elijah’s strength that gave me the sustaining love bomb to champion his healthcare early on, (and help surrounding babies as I pumped breast milk and kangaroo’d my sweetheart). Showing up everyday is the saving grace with consistency in fervent prayer.

My Email to the New DS Moma:

Hi New Mom,

This isn’t the motherhood story I thought I’d be writing.

I still remember sitting in that doctor’s office, hearing words that broke my heart and changed everything I imagined for my baby. For a long time, my prayers sounded more like tears than sentences.

Maybe you’ve been there too.

Maybe you’re there right now.

Out of that place, God and I have been quietly working on something together, and today I finally get to share it with you:

The Miracle TouchDowns21 Prayer Book for Moms

Real, raw prayers for momas walking an “extra” journey.

This Prayer Book is for you if:

• You’ve ever left an appointment numb and afraid of what comes next

• You waited years—maybe over a decade—for motherhood

• You’re raising a child with Down Syndrome or special needs and you feel both deeply grateful and deeply tired

• You sometimes don’t have the words to pray, but your heart is still crying out to God

  
  

Inside you’ll find:

• Prayers for diagnosis days and sleepless nights

• Prayers for hospital rooms, waiting rooms, and therapy days

• Prayers for when you feel strong—and for when you feel like you’re falling apart

• Scripture and encouragement to remind you that God was not surprised by your story

This isn’t a book written from a distance.

It was written in cars, waiting rooms, and quiet living rooms with a sleeping baby on my chest—by a Moma who was told her baby “wouldn’t be perfect,” and then watched God write a different story.

How to get your copy

👉 Grab your copy of the Prayer Book for Moms here:

https://a.co/d/00iXmrBv

You can keep it on your nightstand, in your diaper bag, or in the car—wherever you find yourself needing a reminder that you’re not alone and that God is still writing miracles in the middle of medical reports.

A Mother’s Day note from my heart

If today feels tender—if you’re in the middle of the diagnosis, the waiting, the therapies, or the uncertainty—I want you to hear this:

• Your baby is not a mistake.

• You are the exact Moma they need.

• God has not forgotten you.

  
  

Whether you pick up the Prayer Book today or not, I’m praying over the Moma’s reading this email. Over you.

With so much love,

Ambassador Coach

Founder, Miracle TouchDowns21

www.miracletouchdowns21.com

P.S. Know a Moma who needs this?

Forward this in an email or send her the link to the Prayer Book. Sometimes the greatest Mother’s Day gift is simply knowing we’re not walking this journey alone.