Hi, my name is Lilah

....and I am very happy with who I am. I know you might be scared of me because I look different from most other children. I know you may not know what to say around me, and that is OK. Just know that I need you in my life. I need you to talk to me. I need you to love me. I need you to love my family. I need you to understand that my Mommy loves me very much and when she is fighting for me she may do things that you do not understand. She may cry sometimes. She may ask God why. My Mommy loves me with all of her heart and wants you to love me too. My Mommy has worked really hard for me. I know she will continue to work hard for me. She will fight for me and will not stop until the world can treat me like Jesus does. I am beautiful. My Mommy tells me about a million times a day. I believe her because I smile like this when she says it....


Please get to know me. I take a little bit more patience than other children. I am not as fast as others. I am 29.5 months old and cannot walk un-assisted, yet. I cannot speak in words or phrases, yet, but I will do those things...someday. I am happy being me. I want you to be happy around me. Please do not be scared of me. God isn't. He made me JUST as I am. He planned me to be unique. He planned me to be a miracle. An unexplained birth, with an unexplained diagnosis, with two very rare visual impairments. If you see me on my Mama's hip, in the grocery store, at church, or at my home...please talk to me. Give me a few minutes to respond. I may smile. I may stare. My eyes don't work like yours do, so it takes me just a few minutes to understand what your face looks like. I can see you. Just not like my Mommy can.
I can hear really well. Please don't shout around me. Because my eyes don't work well, my ears work better than yours.
If my Mommy tells you about me, listen. She wants you to know me. I want you to know me. I want to feel your love. My family needs to feel your love.
I want you to know how much I appreciate you praying for me. My eyes are better because of your prayers. I am getting stronger everyday because of your prayers. I believe in Jesus. My Mommy tells me about Him and how special I am to Him everyday. I am a gift He created just for my Mama.
Please know that I need you in my life. All of you. Each one of you plays a very unique roll in my life, and in the life of my family.
Please know that we all love you very much.
Right now my Mommy is still learning how to care for me. She is trying to learn how to walk this path. She may require a little more love and patience... just like me. God didn't tell her about me. I was a surprise, and so was my diagnosis. Bare with my Mommy and Daddy...they are trying. Know that they love me, and my sisters and brother with all of their heart.
If you get to know me you will find that I have the BEST smile, the cutest giggle, and the tightest hugs. I will spend hours feeling your hair, necklaces, shirt, etc. I love to look at you. Because my eyes move, they take a little bit more time to focus.
Thank you for loving me. Thank you for accepting me. Thank you for loving my family. Above all, thank you for the prayers.

I love you all,
Lilah