Lacey and Chris Buchanan began a new chapter of their lives when they got married in 2009 after being in love for 6 years. Very soon they received news that Lacey was pregnant with a boy baby, which the couple named “Christian”. Life was bright and hopeful.
However, one day the doctor told Lacey and Chris that Christian has some physical defects and may not be able to live like a normal child. Their hearts were crushed and their world seemed to crumble down suddenly.
As Christian grew in Lacey’s womb, doctors doubted about his healthy birth. Lacey and Chris had many questions and could not comprehend what actually went wrong. They wondered if Christian would survive during childbirth. They also thought he might be mentally impaired even if he survived.
On February 18, 2011, Lacey and Chris went to the hospital to give birth to Christian. They were relieved when the baby was born without any complications at 9:32 am on the same day.
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But Christian was born with a condition called Tessier cleft lip and palate. He couldn’t close his mouth. His eyeballs are missing from the eye sockets.
This was too much to take for the young couple and they were heartbroken.
Christian had a surgery when he was only four days old and was placed in the NICU for 4 weeks.
The pain in the parents’ hearts became more severe after they brought Christian home. People would stare and whisper behind the back and say things like “look at that baby” or “what’s wrong with that baby”. Some people would ask Lacey daringly, “What’s wrong with your kid?”
In one occasion, Lacey was labeled as a horrible person by a stranger girl for not aborting Christian in the uterus.
Pain and sorrow for the Buchanan family began to fade away as Christian grows up. He started to laugh and play. When people stared, baby Christian would giggle and they would giggle back.
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Things started to turn around as people seek out Lacey on Facebook and tell her how Christian inspires them.
“I don’t bother about the whispers anymore. He is the love of my life,” says Lacey.
Lacey’s love for Christian is an inspiration for many and stands as an epitome of unconditional love.