The Threads That Weave Our Family Story

Now that all three of my kids have been back in school (one at high school, the other two in elementary) for a full month now, we are back into a routine and I’m back to my quiet household during the day. It truly does take some getting used to. Just last week I saw a viral post on Facebook that made me pause. It was a mom sharing her child’s empty bedroom as he was all packed up and ready to move out to start university. She urged mothers to appreciate those little day-to-day moments because, before you know it, there you are packing up their bedroom to send them off into the world!

It’s certainly hard to have that perspective when they’re little. Perhaps it’s the Timehop notifications, or maybe just that time of the year when the seasons are changing, but it’s made me quite introspective about our little family and our journey to where we are today.

Our first pregnancy was a long-awaited one; our middle child held no surprises in pregnancy and birth, and our youngest was the most tense experience ending in a C-section. Each of our babies was born in a different city (thank you RCMP career!) but there have been some similarities along the way. We’ve encountered some delightful doctors (I ran outside our house in our small community of 2600 to show my doctor a photo of the ultrasound I had received in the city earlier that day, while he was out on a walk with his wife) and caring Registered Nurses who helped support us through our pregnancies, and among them, two miscarriages.

Like police officers, Registered Nurses often find themselves dealing with people at their most vulnerable and sometimes most frantic (I’ll never forget the time my water broke at the feet of the RN who was helping guide me out of bed to take a walk shortly after arriving at the hospital for baby #2!)

Registered Nurses are vital to patient safety and care, and we’ve learned that – especially in smaller communities where doctors are often otherwise quite busy – with their high level of education, they’re really your front-line caretakers in times of need. Research shows that registered nurse staffing levels and patient outcomes are linked, which seems almost too obvious to me (they needed a study for that?)

Our family’s story, every silly, scary, and exciting part of it, is the thread that weaves the fabric of who we are today, and having these quiet days at home helps me reflect on them more. I’m thankful to everyone we’ve met in our journey to bring our children to us, from the doctors, registered nurses, friends, family, and friends-who-became-family when we were far from our own. They often don’t realize the impact they have on those around them. Perhaps that’s something we need to remind them all of more.

For more information please visit: makingthedifference.ca

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post in partnership with SUN. All opinions are, as always, my own.