ferriday &8212; While there will be lots of presents this Christmas for the Beatty family, they all agree that having their mother with them is the best of the lot.

&8220;It&8217;s so exciting because I didn&8217;t know if I&8217;d see her again,&8221; Taylor Beatty, 8, said.

Taylor and her siblings &8212;Heather, 12, and Jacob, 11 &8212; had their lives thrown into confusion when their mother, Shannon, suffered what doctors think might have been a mild stroke Dec. 12.

After a week in the hospital, Beatty is back at home and her family is thrilled.

&8220;January makes 14 years and I couldn&8217;t imagine not having her here,&8221; her husband, Jerry, said.

Beatty, 33, said she began to feel numbness in her fingers and developed a severe headache on the night of Dec. 11.

She went to city hall the next day, where she works as the city clerk for the Town of Ferriday.

As the day wore on, Beatty began to feel worse; concerned co-workers told her she should go to the hospital.

Beatty&8217;s mother-in-law, Rea Beatty, took her to Riverland Medical Center, when an MRI exam was called for she was transferred to Rapides Regional Hospital in Alexandria.

&8220;The last report was that they think I had a very mild stroke that could lead up to something bigger, that&8217;s the reason they haven&8217;t let me go back to work,&8221; she said.

She said she is being treated with medication and rest.

Doctors&8217; appointments in early January will determine when she can return to city hall. Until then, Beatty will relax and enjoy the holidays with her family.

But she won&8217;t do it in the same way as years past.

&8220;Being 33 and going through this makes you look at life differently,&8221; she said.

&8220;I&8217;ve started looking at the little stuff, the little things you take for granted.

&8220;The other day, my little 8-year-old came in and sang me a song she had memorized, &8216;Jesus Take the Wheel,&8217; that really touched me.&8221;

Singing together is one of the family&8217;s favorite pastimes. A recent visit caught them just as they were preparing to go sing karaoke. Shannon Beatty didn&8217;t know if she would have the strength to sing herself, but looked forward to savoring one of those moments she used to take for granted.

One thing&8217;s for certain, she herself will not be taken for granted by her family.

Heather Beatty said it was scary not knowing what was going on with her mom, but she was glad to have her home.

&8220;Because if she wasn&8217;t here, I wouldn&8217;t have a cell phone under the tree,&8221; she said.

&8220;There is no cell phone under the tree,&8221; her mother replied.