Last year, on April 1st, Archer was discharged from the hospital for what we thought would be the last time. Spoiler alert, we do end up back in the hospital. However, we were so excited to get him home.
We sat him on the couch the moment we got home, even though it was late, and he played with his cups that he had clearly missed. He babbled away. My heart was so whole. I believed that Archer being home would allow him to start to heal. I have always thought that he would heal best at home since he was not being woken up, poked and prodded constantly, it was quieter, and it was HIS environment.
During the week, we took Archer to Target. Archer loved to shop because he was so content being pushed around in the cart, feeling the movement, seeing the colors, and looking at the lights.
Seeing as Easter was only about two weeks away, Theo and I decided that we were going to shop for Archer’s Easter basket with him. However, we wanted to wait until Easter to surprise him with it.
He got this cute basket; it was a little cloth dino basket, but my memory may be wrong, as I haven’t seen it in almost a year. We picked out a piano toy, which he loved at daycare. He got new dino socks, even though he hated socks on his feet. I was getting him ready to wear shoes more often, so he needed bigger socks. Then we bought him some yogurt bites.
As Archer got sicker on April 13th, Theo and I realized he most likely wouldn’t make it to Easter (April 17th) unless God performed a miracle. After Archer’s final bath, we pulled out the Easter basket and broke open the socks. We wanted him to be able to use something we had put so much love into and spent time picking out.
This last weekend, Theo and I left the house to get a few things from Target with my parents. We just looked around and saw the Easter baskets, candy, and decor. However, we have no Archer to shop for.
I immediately thought about those little socks and how they kept his feet warm when he needed them most. Archer was not himself, and we knew it. It was probably one of the first times that Archer didn’t pull off his socks; he wore those little socks until he stepped into heaven.
His Easter basket sits behind his nursery door, which has been closed since April 14th. It is full but has one little pair of socks missing.
