I will never forget the day we found out Olivia was terminal. We knew she wasn’t doing well but it was still a huge shock.

When we stepped out of the hospital that day my husband and I resolved to make the most of the time we had left with our princess. From that moment on she was never alone.

She slept in the bed right between us each night. And during the day someone was always holding her on the couch.

We talked to her. Prayed endlessly over her broken little body.

We told her that it was okay if she wanted to let go.

In those final days she slept nearly around the clock in the crook of my arm with her head on my shoulder. I would cry silent tears while we waited breathlessly for her last breath.

No parent ever expects to go through the agony of watching their child die before their eyes. But yet that is exactly what happened.

I knew we were running out of time so I tried my hardest to memorize everything about her.

I would run my hands over her beautiful face to feel her high cheekbones and pointed little chin.

I took mental notes so that I wouldn’t forget all of the little things that made Olivia so special.

The way she laughed at everything.

The way she was so incredibly sweet even when she was being a naughty toddler.

The way she liked to sit in my lap with her legs wrapped around me while she brushed my hair.

Olivia was one of a kind. And I know without a doubt that God delights in her in Heaven.

Olivia Caldwell Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit that raises money for pediatric cancer research. You can learn more and donate at www.oliviacaldwellfoundation.org.