Mum forced to say goodbye to her children after being given just weeks to live
A mother of two has been given the devastating news that she only has weeks left to live, leaving her to organise her own 'farewell' party.
Laura Patience has been battling liver and kidney failure since the end of last year, with the support of her husband Matt and their two children, Lucas, 12, and Zoe, 11.
The Australian mum was given the heartbreaking news in February when doctors told her that she would only have a month left to live.
This tragic news came as Laura was celebrating her eighteenth wedding anniversary.
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Despite the prognosis, the brave woman has lived longer than a month and is now looking to spend as much time with her family as possible.
Her story warmed millions of people's hearts when she made a public appeal for help in organising a final farewell party.
Laura was hoping to have a big party with family and friends, and had gone to Facebook looking for somebody who could make a poster for the event.
Talking in an interview with Sea FM, the mum explained: 'I was hoping that someone could make a poster, as people were coming in, just saying, 'Have fun, don't ask about my illness, or I'll throw you in the pool'.
"Just making a joke of it all. I even had someone paint a picture of me kicking the bucket, which I thought was hilarious. Nobody else did."
Laura's condition means she has been on and off life support due to internal bleeding, and she was even put into a coma in December.
This sadly meant she wasn't able to spend Christmas with her family.
But now she's defied the odds and lived longer than the month doctors predicted for her, Laura wants to make the most of the time she has left.
She said: "It's school holidays, so I plan on squeezing my kids as much as I can during this time.
"They just light up my life, that's what keeps me going, when I'm laying there in a boring hospital bed. I think of the kids always smiling. I love them to bits.
"It means everything to me now that I have a bit of a break, just trying to do fun things, enjoy every minute with them, spoil them rotten as much as I can.
"Make some happy memories for them to hold onto."
Laura's story has touched the hearts of millions of Australians who have reached out to offer words of comfort.
Ben Thompson