by Joanna Maharis

Created on: July 14, 2009

Lacey Richards was her mommy's firecracker, sparkler, and all of the fireworks combined. She was born on a humid summers day on the 4th of July. Mrs. Katherine Richards, Lacey's paternal grandmother made a huge fuss over her, by tickling her belliy to make the baby laugh, cooing over her, or lulling Lacey to sleep with the music stylings of Nat King Cole. Two songs in particular Mrs. Katherine Richards often sang to the child were Mona Lisa, and Unforgetable. There were times when Lacey would keep her mother Mrs. Connie Richards up all hours of the night for a diaper change, a feeding, or to sooth her restlessness. No matter what Connie did, she just couldn't soothe her little girl. So she asked her mother in law to hold the baby for a while to see if she could soothe the baby enough to be able to sleep comfortably. Unsually, the lulling worked, but one rainy night, the baby was screaming throughout all hours of the night. Grandma Katherine Richards picked up the baby and stroked her face and found little red spots on the baby, and shouted, "Connie, get in here. There something wrong with the baby. I think she could be coming down with rose'ola. The top of her head is swallen, and she's burning up as well. We've got to get her to the hospital."

The doctors worked on the baby to calm her while they made haste to bring down the swelling at the top of her head, and the fever. The child screamed out, "Gam. Gam. Gam."

When the doctors asked Connie Richards what the child meant, she responded, "That's her word for grandma. Evidently, she wants my mother in law in here with her.."

Doctor Menace went out into the waiting room to get Mrs. Katherine Richards, who was wearing white pants and a white blouse. She was told she would have to wear a mask, gloves, and a gown over her clothing "before entering the child's room," exclaimed Dr. Menace.

Lacey wouldn't accept her grandmother they way she was dressed, because Grandma resembled the doctors. Lacey was so frightened, she kicked her legs back and forth and flung her arms back and forth, pounding every in the arms with her fists.

A team of three doctors held her arms and legs, and secured her head of which Lacey shook back and forth. They had to put needles in the child.

Mrs. Katherine Richards couldn't bare to see her little grand baby suffer so. "I'm going to go home and change my clothes, Dr. Menace. I live a couple of blocks from here. I can drive my car to my house and back here to

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