Mother’s goodbye to baby girl Isabella

Lisa Dowd always knew her time with her daughter was limited.

But she thought she’d have more.

Her 19-month-old Isabella died on Wednesday, September 27, after an ongoing battle with Noonan syndrome, a genetic condition that affected Isabella’s heart and growth from birth.

‘‘Everyday was so special with her,’’ Lisa said.

‘‘There’s been a lot of grief for a long time knowing we wouldn’t have a lot of time with her, but I still believed we would have more than we did.’’

She’d recently returned home after a long stint in hospital, Lisa said.

‘‘She got through the winter without getting sick, even though her brothers both got colds.

‘‘But, the seizures have continued to be a problem and we’ve been unable to get her to grow.’’

On Thursday, September 21, Isabella had trouble breathing after having multiple seizures during the night, Lisa said.

‘‘Usually when she’s had seizures I turn her oxygen up a bit but this time I ended up having to turn it up a lot more and she was still struggling.

‘‘She ended up with a really high temperature, so I knew something was wrong.’’

Isabella was taken to Waikato Hospital by ambulance the next morning.

She started aspirating, which turned to aspiration pneumonia, Lisa said.

On the Monday Isabella was transferred to Hospice.

‘‘The last couple of days she wasn’t really very conscious.

‘‘When she would open her eyes she wasn’t able to focus, she was really pale. Her body was really tired and she was struggling to keep control of her seizures.

‘‘It was too much for her to get through this time.’’

At 11pm on Wednesday, Sept- ember 27, Lisa felt her baby slip away.

‘‘I knew beforehand. She was cuddled into my chest and I told her it was okay.

‘‘I don’t think any parent wants to ever go through that.’’

Isabella was farewelled at Mountain View Church, Te Aroha, on Saturday, September 30. A lot of guests were sick children and parents of children who have died and were in Hospice with Isabella.

The service was followed by a burial at the Te Aroha Cemetery, where her brothers let pink balloons go.