Our girl Maggie
I started this blog in January 2011 as a way to keep a few friends and family in the loop with doctor appointments and new revelations in Joy's pregnancy. And while those same friends and family continued to read, the blog changed a little bit over time. The baby we called Mabee while in my wife's womb turned into Maggie, our pride and joy.
Maggie lived on this earth for 26 days before going to heaven on May 25, 2011. She spent all 26 days in the hospital and all 26 days on life support, but her reach was big and God has done amazing work through her life. The day she died 17,800 individual viewers checked this blog. I see that as an indication that she touched a lot of people.
You can read my original introduction below, or you can jump over to the blog and see what is happening now. Above all, thanks for taking the time to read our story about God's work through Maggie. Although painful, it's pretty neat.
Maggie lived on this earth for 26 days before going to heaven on May 25, 2011. She spent all 26 days in the hospital and all 26 days on life support, but her reach was big and God has done amazing work through her life. The day she died 17,800 individual viewers checked this blog. I see that as an indication that she touched a lot of people.
You can read my original introduction below, or you can jump over to the blog and see what is happening now. Above all, thanks for taking the time to read our story about God's work through Maggie. Although painful, it's pretty neat.
Our Story
My name is Stephen Colwell. I'm a child of God, and my wife Joy and I live in Round Rock, Texas where I am a journalist. Joy and I are soon to be the proud parents of an unborn little girl whom we have yet to name, but God willing we will meet our precious child sometime between now and her May 21st due date. At that time we will give her a name to carry for the rest of her life, but until then, for the purpose of this site, I will call her Mabee.
Joy surprised me with the amazing news of her pregnancy in September, and about every week or two after that she made regular practice of getting ultrasounds done by one of her co-workers at the hospital. She loved seeing our baby every chance she could, and it made for a great collage of photographs on our refrigerator.
I took a "quick" trip from our home near Austin, Texas to Nebraska over the third weekend in December. At 9:30 p.m. on Sunday night, while sitting in a good friend's living room listening to the Black Keys on vinyl, I decided to give Joy a call to see how her day went. She told me she was just leaving the hospital after getting yet another ultrasound, but her voice didn't carry the same joy of seeing her baby girl as I was used to.
"He said there are some issues," she said fighting back tears. She went on to explain what he hesitantly told her about a thickened nuchal fold and abnormalities in the brain.
I broke down. Yes I was concerned with my baby girl's health and the prospect of what could be, but I was even more upset that Joy was 850 miles away and I couldn't hold her. Matt helped me pack up my car and I hit the road after gaining control of my emotions. I made it home by Monday afternoon and we got in to see our doctor on Tuesday. Her findings were even more concerning and she sent us on to see a specialist, but we had to wait two weeks with so many unanswered questions.
The extensive list of concerns will be best explained in the blog portion of this site which I will update as regularly as I can, both to inform those who care and to give myself a creative outlet for the hurt and stress that comes with being out of control. As new details emerge I will add a new post.
We have been overwhelmed with support and prayers from our families, friends, co-workers and neighbors -- and we feel so blessed that God has given us you -- but there is still daily hurt and healing to deal with. If you have any questions that this site doesn't answer, feel free to contact me through the contact link at the top of the page, but please refrain from using our Facebook walls as a means of communication.
Thank you for love and prayers. We trust in our God whom we don't understand, and that makes heartache even more difficult. We completely expect the outcome of our struggles to build us up at some point, but right now it's difficult to be positive. Please be understanding of this while reading my blog. My faith in an all-powerful God has never been stronger, but questioning who God is and what his intentions are is important for me right now. I hope you will learn more about His strength through my battle of weakness.
Stephen Colwell
Joy surprised me with the amazing news of her pregnancy in September, and about every week or two after that she made regular practice of getting ultrasounds done by one of her co-workers at the hospital. She loved seeing our baby every chance she could, and it made for a great collage of photographs on our refrigerator.
I took a "quick" trip from our home near Austin, Texas to Nebraska over the third weekend in December. At 9:30 p.m. on Sunday night, while sitting in a good friend's living room listening to the Black Keys on vinyl, I decided to give Joy a call to see how her day went. She told me she was just leaving the hospital after getting yet another ultrasound, but her voice didn't carry the same joy of seeing her baby girl as I was used to.
"He said there are some issues," she said fighting back tears. She went on to explain what he hesitantly told her about a thickened nuchal fold and abnormalities in the brain.
I broke down. Yes I was concerned with my baby girl's health and the prospect of what could be, but I was even more upset that Joy was 850 miles away and I couldn't hold her. Matt helped me pack up my car and I hit the road after gaining control of my emotions. I made it home by Monday afternoon and we got in to see our doctor on Tuesday. Her findings were even more concerning and she sent us on to see a specialist, but we had to wait two weeks with so many unanswered questions.
The extensive list of concerns will be best explained in the blog portion of this site which I will update as regularly as I can, both to inform those who care and to give myself a creative outlet for the hurt and stress that comes with being out of control. As new details emerge I will add a new post.
We have been overwhelmed with support and prayers from our families, friends, co-workers and neighbors -- and we feel so blessed that God has given us you -- but there is still daily hurt and healing to deal with. If you have any questions that this site doesn't answer, feel free to contact me through the contact link at the top of the page, but please refrain from using our Facebook walls as a means of communication.
Thank you for love and prayers. We trust in our God whom we don't understand, and that makes heartache even more difficult. We completely expect the outcome of our struggles to build us up at some point, but right now it's difficult to be positive. Please be understanding of this while reading my blog. My faith in an all-powerful God has never been stronger, but questioning who God is and what his intentions are is important for me right now. I hope you will learn more about His strength through my battle of weakness.
Stephen Colwell