Nurse Kimak

First of all, let me just say that it is a travesty that I am just now getting a picture of my girls with their favorite NICU nurse-Kim Kimak! She has come to see the girls several times since they were born, but sleep-deprived Mom has completely forgotten to get a picture of them with her! Let me tell you why she is so special...
Kim is one of my very best friends. We go way back to our crazy college days. We met because she was an (awesome) tennis player at UCO, and I played volleyball. We met one hot summer during our grueling summer workouts for the female athletes. Kim has one of the funniest, bubbliest, and brightest personalities I know. My last semester of college, I moved in with 2 other of my very dear friends, Shayna and Brooke, and the 4 of us had an absolute blast together! We have remained super close even today, and I'm so grateful for our friendship.
Kim has always known she wanted to be a nurse. She worked her tail off in college and nursing school and always knew she wanted to work with kids. So she became a NICU nurse. I so admired her for taking on such a challenging role, but I knew she would thrive at it. Little did I know she would someday take care of my babies. When the girls were born 5 weeks early, I learned the difficult news that they would be spending a little time in the NICU. However, this difficult time was made tremendously easier by the fact that one of my best friends would be taking care of them for 3 of the 8 days they were there. To say she took great care of them would be an understatement. Words cannot describe how amazing she was with my girls. And to know they were in the care (even when I couldn't be there) of someone who I knew cared for them so much was a dream come true. I could go into a million reasons why she was so amazing with them, and I will forever be so unbelievably grateful for the wonderful care they were given by her (and of course the other amazing nurses). Kim was also responsible for allowing me to hold both of my babies together for the first time. I moment I tear up thinking about and will always remember. She would listen to me vent, let me cry on her shoulder, and prayed with me when I thought I didn't have anymore strength. I knew that week that God had put her in my life for such a special reason, and how lucky are all of the babies who will be taken care of by her.
This week, I also learned that she will be taking care of 2 of the 3 triplets my friend, Stephanie Coy, just had. Although my heart breaks for the Coys and the journey they will be taking the next several weeks, I am confident that Kim will help them in the same way she helped us, and she will show them the same hope she showed me.
So our special friendship to begin with was multiplied a hundred fold by this experience. Kim, I don't know what I'd do without you, and I love you dearly!