Lifetime of Clicks Photography
Meet Valerie. She is Beauty Revived.
From the moment I heard about the mission of Beauty Revived, I knew that I had to be a part of it. I received countless nominations but one stood out among the rest. This nomination best represented a mother who is an example of real beauty by “her service when weary, grace in defeat, and kindness when tried.” The nomination came to me from a foundation called Caring4Katy located right here Katy, TX. It was for a woman named Valerie and I am honored to introduce you to her and share her story with you.
The Nomination
“Caring4Katy has been blessed with the opportunity to assist numerous families over the past few years who have courageous children battling to overcome life threatening illnesses. Although each and every family that we have helped to this point all deserve to take part in the Beauty Revived campaign, we came to the agreement that Tinsley and her beautiful mother Valerie have shown exceptional qualities that make them an inspiration to us all.”
Valerie’s Story
“Being a mom is something I will never regret! My son Tallon is 6 years old and when he was 2 years old I met my husband Kris. We got married in October 2013 soon after Tallon turned 3. By December of 2013, we got a wonderful surprise that we were expecting. Tinsley was born in August of 2014 and was the perfect addition to our family. She had always been a very happy baby but in November of 2015 she started to get very sick. By the end of December, after many trips to the doctor for ear infections, we noticed her stomach to be very swollen. My mother’s intuition just knew something was wrong. I prayed and prayed but I knew deep down something was very wrong. On January 11, 2016 we heard the most feared words a mother could hear, ‘It is leukemia’.
I immediately cried out to God to save my baby. I did not get mad or ask God why but prayed that He save her. I told God that as long as I live I would do His will if he would save my baby. Tinsley was in the hospital from January to May undergoing chemo for Leukemia AML. We had no idea what childhood cancer was about and how many children are diagnosed with it. My mom is the most patient, kind person I know and I can’t thank God enough for allowing me to be her daughter. I pray that I will become half the woman she is and I will consider myself truly blessed.
God answered our prayers and Tinsley was in remission and finished with her treatment in May 2016. We got to bring her home and start our normal schedules again. Playing outside and wrestling with her brother was such a wonderful thing to see Tinsley do again.
Unfortunately on November 27, 2016 we got news that Tinsley’s cancer had relapsed. We were devastated but knew God was obviously trying to get our attention. We prayed and I told God that I loved Him and that He is the one that made Tinsley and gave her to me so if it was only to borrow this sweet precious baby for only a short time that it was well with my soul. It was the hardest thing I have ever prayed! To tell God that I’d give her back to Him since she was not mine in the first place, she is His child and even though it is hard to believe but He loves her more then I ever could.
I immediately felt a peace about everything. I knew we had another long hard battle but the words Thy will just rang in my ears. There is a Christian song called Thy Will and my kids love it. It played over and over in my head.
On February 4, 2017, Tinsley received a bone marrow transplant that was all God controlled. Not only was it a perfect match and a female but the blood type was the same and it went so beautifully well. She is doing so well with it, we know it is only to God be the glory for saving her life again!”
It was a true honor to be a part of the Beauty Revived movement this year. I can’t help but think about how truly fortunate I am to learn from people like Valerie. It is my hope that you will find Valerie’s story as inspiring as I have and that it will give other mothers in her situation the strength and courage needed to overcome the difficult moments that may come our way.
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