Hi there ... so sorry your going through this journey... 

As a nanny with breast cancer , with a five year old at the time...amazing granddaughter. . I can only tell you how I tried to help my granddaughter Emily ... we are so close, both of us just adore being together... 

Well once I'd got over the shock of grade 3  ... and needing a total mastectomy .... those little ones pick snippets of conversations up ... and then they feel scared and confused ... I've always believed in gentle honesty ... I told her nanny was really poorly and the Dr needed to take the poorly part away and TRY to make nanny well again ... and she would ask me , when we were just laying here chatting ... are you going to die nanny ... well ive always told her my mummy the brightest star ... and she looks down to say hi ... and every feather we find I tell her it's from my mum to say I love you ... 

She came to see me in hospital , where she was really carefull with hugs coz of nannys ouchie (the noise we make with pain)  a few months later she accidently looked one day and caught me off guard ... and she squealed and just said ... nanny how will you feed babies now ... amazing ...  ; )) 

What I'm trying to say is children given the truth but in a gentle way they can understand really helps them through life not to be quite so scared ... I told Emily when I go , I'll be with my mummy, up there in a star next to her, and well both be there when she looks up ... I've also done a memory book for her, telling her all our adventures and pictures of the two of us ...maybe you could make her one of her nanny and her ...

I know she's only three ... and she will be sad, but if you can share tears with her, and she'll know it's o.k to cry, and it's o.k to miss her nanny too, coz you miss her, and hugs will help ... then they turn to something else and let it go ... they are better at coping then us adults ... sending you all a vertual hug ... Chrissie