Lessons learned.

1.      

It’s no fun being the patient, but it was a helpful reminder of how it feels on that side of the needle.

2.      

The capacity to bear bad new grows.*

3.      

Maintaining a sense of humor is essential when facing ORGAN REMOVAL (from a spouse or loved one) and ORGAN REPLACEMENT (in your child).

4.      

Yep. When you have chronically ill kids and an uncertain future, it’s extremely helpful to still adore your husband.

5.      

Praising the kids all day, every day is so much more pleasant than yelling “NO!” or “Don’t!” or “STOP THAT!” all day long.

6.      

It never gets easy to distribute 14 meds a day to your kids…so get over it.

7.      

It’s still cool to have a simple therapy goal met – even after over 200 appointments.

8.      

I don’t say “yes!” when I really mean “no.”

9.      

All milestones, however small, were meant to be celebrated.

10.   

Savoring friendships should be a priority.

* Technically I’ve plagiarized myself because this was in last year’s list, but it is worth repeating.