Today was meant to be candles glowing and frosting-covered fingers.
It was meant to be laughter filling the room, tiny hands clapping, a first birthday wrapped in balloons and joy 🎈.

Instead, today was scrubs, soft footsteps, and long, quiet hospital hallways 🩺.
My son turned one… and I went to work.

I missed the smile I’ve memorized.
The way his eyes light up when he hears my voice.
The little clap that says I’m happy and I don’t even know why yet.

But today, I held space for another family.
I carried their fear, their prayers, their fragile hope 🤍.
I stood beside a child fighting a battle far bigger than their years, and parents who would give anything to trade places.

And tonight… that child made it home.
Safe. Breathing. Loved. 🙏

So this birthday lived between two worlds — one where my heart ached with absence, and another where gratitude poured in quietly, deeply ✨.

I am thankful for the work I was called to do.
And I am endlessly grateful for the little boy waiting at home, wrapped in love, surrounded by prayers, growing stronger with every breath 🤍.

If this touched your heart,
leave my son a birthday wish 🎉
or offer a kind thought for the family who gets to hold their child tonight.
Both matter more than words can say 🤍🙏.