Super Sibling-o-saurus

The arrival of a sibling marks a major change for a firstborn child. Some are excited and some are scared. Some are curious and some are jealous. Some avoid their sibling while others are eager to help care for the new baby. At two and a half years old, Adam was eager to become a big brother. He excitedly followed along during his mother’s pregnancy and was keen to update his friends about his sister’s growth. When Emily was finally born, Adam was determined to be the best big brother ever.

Sadly, Emily began having seizures soon after her birth. She was admitted to the Neonatal ICU, but that didn’t stop Adam from giving her as much love and attention as he could. Adam visited Emily every day during her 97 day stay in the NICU.

Emily was eventually discharged under only palliative care. Although Adam wanted to play with her, he recognized that Emily was very sick. Instead, he took care of her. Singing songs to her and laying with her helped her feel like she was not alone.  He also helped Emily’s specialists and nurses and took pleasure in learning special things he could do to help Emily feel better.

After a little over a year, Emily passed away. Nonetheless, Adam’s devotion to her remains robust. He is still eager to share stories about Emily with friends and family and often talks to her as if she were still right beside him. Altogether, Adam is undoubtedly an amazing older brother.

After a challenging year, it is time to celebrate Adam’s fifth birthday. He deserves to enjoy every bite of this dinosaur cake made by Angela Saban of
Angel Cakes Bakery. Adam’s family was at a loss for words to describe this cake, saying “cool” hardly did the cake justice. Likewise, “amazing” is not sufficient to describe Adam’s compassion for Emily. We at Icing Smiles are happy to celebrate with such an inspiring kid and such a super sibling.

With love and smiles,

Molly Sargen

Icing Smiles Blog Writer