\u200bOur greatest blessing, our beautiful daughter, Harper Louise. Her start to life was not what we had hoped for, but we are so grateful for the wonderful doctors and nurses at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. I don't know where we would be if it weren't for them and their quick thinking, their resources, and their expertise! We owe them everything for saving our daughter's life! So, after 84 days in the NICU, two major surgeries, and countless ups and downs we were able to go home and be a family of three.

\u200bAs a parent with a child in the NICU, you feel like you miss out on those monumental memories that are first made when you get home with your newborn. So, it was our time to really cuddle our sweet baby without any wires and any background machines beeping, and for it to truly feel like we were her parents! Before we knew it, it was time for her to startdaycare and for me to go back to work. Luckily, we had found a wonderful daycare that loved her as much as we do, but don't get me wrong dropping her off was still very hard! Picking her up from daycare was the best part of my day. As weeks went by, Harper began to develop really bad congestion, labored breathing, and had difficulty finishing her bottles, which then led to difficulty gaining weight. Of course, I went into mom mode and was taking her to her pediatrician and they would say "she is too young for any medications, we just have to let it run its course". I soon began to hate that saying, because as a mom I knew it was more than just a little virus she got from daycare. I even took her to different pediatricians hoping for a different answer/solution each one we went to, but I would still hear those same words! There was even a couple of overnight visits at different TCH locations, because we would take her into their emergency clinics, and they would put her on a little oxygen and monitor her, and then we would be released to head home. It began to become a routine, and let me tell you it wasn't a fun one! As her parents we began to feel hopeless!

\u200bThen one January night, my phone alerted me with an alarm that Harpers oxygen level was dangerously low. Thank goodness for the owlet! I will forever recommend that product, as it saved her life, cause had she not been wearing it, I wouldn't have known she was having difficulty breathing. So, I immediately call 911, and we decide to go to the closest TCH to us, which was the Katy location. From the ambulance to the entrance of the hospital, Harper turned blue, so they quickly took her into the emergency room and intubated her. The number of doctors and nurses that were in that room working together to save her was absolutely amazing. I remember us sitting outside the room, wondering if we had done everything we could. I have never cried like I did that night before in my life!

\u200bWe spent the next 8 days by her side, trying to comfort her as much as we could while she was intubated. Her lungs neededto have a break from all the hard work they had been doing, and for them to have time to heal. Trust me we were not leaving until we got some answers as to why this was happening to our daughter! So, during our stay we met a pulmonologist, and boy let me tell you he is the best of the best and I am forever grateful that he is in our lives! He feels like family to us! In that time of the unknown, he performed a bronchoscopy, and ran a few other test to get us some answers. As those results started to come in, it became clear as to what her diagnosis was. He came to her room one day and said I believe your daughter has Cystic Fibrosis, but we will have to transfer you all to the TCH in the medical center in order for her to have the sweat test done. My heart sank, and of course my first question was, life expectancy. He then began to explain what CF was, because before that moment I had never heard those words in my life, or even knew that my husband and I were carriers, as neither of us has any family history of Cystic Fibrosis. We quickly realized that our daughter was going to get to live a normal life, but that her normal would just be a bit different than that of her family and friends.

\u200bOnce we were transferred to TCH in the medical center, the sweat test was scheduled and the results came back 100%. As any parents would do, we said "okay what do we need to do for our daughter to have a normal life" and the learning process began for all of us. It was especially hard for Harper because she had been living a normal life up until now, and so introducing all of these things and to not be able to explain to her, why she needs these lifesaving treatments and medicine, and for her not to be able to understand was very difficult to watch. Thank goodness for our CF team at the hospital, they helped make the transition a little easier! They continue to care and to be there for us and for that we are eternally grateful!

\u200bDuring that last stay at the hospital everything started to make sense to us. Her surgeries, the labored breathing, the congestion, and the difficulty gaining weight. I only wish we could have found out sooner and that she wouldn't have had to go through all of those struggles, but it has only made us a stronger family. She is our ROCKSTAR and always will be! She is the most resilient, strongest, and bravest little girl I know! I always say she has experienced way more in her short life than I have in my 35 years! Now her and I spend our days together making up for lost time!

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