We made it… one year since Lucy’s liver transplant- and we have the most amazing little girl! In the past year, Lucy celebrated her first birthday, saw her first parade, went trick-or-treating, and celebrated her first Christmas at home. Lucy loves the zoo and the playground. She loves sloppy kisses, hugs, and most importantly of all- laughing. Lucy is the bravest person we will ever meet. How lucky are we to have a 22-month old superhero who also happens to be our daughter.
We are endlessly thankful to the entire staff at Lurie Children’s Hospital. Every single person in that building treated us with kindness and compassion and fought for Lucy every step of the way. There is a very long list of people there who we know are directly responsible for Lucy being here today. Lucy is doing great! She had a fantastic one-year post-transplant clinic last week. One of her doctors even told us we can start looking at Lucy as a “normal” kid… Mom got very teary. This was the first time she was referred to as a “normal” kid without any added caveats (“we want to give her the best opportunity to be a normal kid” or “treat her like a normal kid, but just be careful about…”).
Lucy’s anniversary could not pass without recognizing the sacrifice and bravery of another family. On March 1, 2019, we received the call that Lucy had a donor and would go into surgery the next day. We had learned during the evaluation process that if Lucy received an adult liver, it would likely be big enough to split in half so the other half could possibly go to an adult or teenager in need of a liver. We arrived at the hospital that day and one of Lucy’s doctors met us. I remember one of the first questions I asked: it is big enough to split, right? Where will the other half go? I remember the doctor grabbed my hand and said, no it is much to small to split. And we knew… it was a small child. On the best day of our lives, another set of parents were having their worst day. But because of their decision, Lucy is here to give us those sloppy kisses today. Not a day goes by that we don’t think of that other family, and Lucy always gets an extra hug and kiss goodnight for her guardian angel.
On a lighter note, we are still collecting cards to share with Lucy on her 18th birthday. If you would like to write her a letter to open in 2036, you can give it one of us or send it to the following address:
Lucy McGrath
PO Box 56341
7101 W Gunnison St.
Harwood Heights, IL 60655
Lucy loved celebrating her day today. After all, a transplant seems to be a great reason for a second birthday celebration! (Side note: Lucy helped bake her cake!)
