Birth Story

The birth story of Ryan and Spencer begins back on January 13. A routine visit with our maternal fetal specialist showed that my cervix had shortened from a normal 3cm to 1cm. I was sent to Shady Grove Hospital for monitoring. After an hour at the hospital, it was confirmed that I was having contractions. I was kept overnight until the next evening. During this time, I was given steroid shots to strengthen the babies' lungs in the event they were born that early. The next evening I was sent home with medication and instructions to remain on horizontal bedrest. I was 26 weeks pregnant.

Bedrest- it's really hard to not sit up for a prolonged amount of time. It was a trying time for our family. I was expecting to have to cut back on my activity level as I neared delivery, but this really caught me off guard. We hadn't even started the nursery and there were lots of little projects that I wanted to do before the babies came. And one big project on the list- potty train Eli. And just a week or two into my bedrest we had a pipe burst in the basement that caused a lot of water damage. My dear husband did everything- took Eli to daycare and picked him up, worked, cleaned the basement, made dinner, did bathtime and bedtime routines, got up with Eli if he woke up in the middle of the night, etc. My parents helped a ton too. They took Eli to Milton for a few days a couple times, so that Kevin could work normal hours without leaving early to pick him up. They also spent time down here helping me get organized. My dad painted the nursery and my mom worked on potty training Eli. They did laundry, cooked, and cleaned. We also had lots of help with meals from Kevin's parents and dear friends. I was allowed to continue to work from the couch, and while it was difficult to deal with my accounts laying down, it was nice to have some structure to my days (and to not have to use leave time). It was just so difficult to not be able to do things for Eli. I couldn't hold him or get him dinner or give him a bath. We did read lots of books together and played "letters" on the computer.

Each Thursday Kevin drove me to my appointments. Each time they checked the length of my cervix and every couple of weeks they checked the babies' growth. For weeks my cervix remained at 1cm which was great news. We'd celebrate each appointment with a trip through the Krispy Kreme drive through for a donut. Then back to the couch I would go until the following Thursday. This routine continued into February until something happened that changed my life.

My Nan wasn't doing well. Although no one knew for sure how much time she had left, family members were making arrangements to travel home to see her. I spent a lot of time with Nan at Christmastime but bedrest had kept me from visiting Milton since then. Kevin and I talked and decided to drive up to Milton to visit. We had an appointment scheduled that coming Thursday and would leave afterwards for an overnight trip. Kevin made arrangements with my doctor to pick up my medical history and we were going to make tentative arrangements with Geisinger in the event I went into labor while I was home. I felt better knowing that I had plans to see her.

On Wednesday, February 23 my mom called me to tell me that Nan was worse. She was home with three of her daughters and the other on her way. It was around 7pm- I was on the couch while Kevin was upstairs giving Eli a bath. My mom held the phone up to Nan's ear while I talked to her. She couldn't answer me, but I know she heard me. I also knew this would be the last time I would speak to her this side of heaven. My dad called around 8:30 to let me know that Nan had passed away. She was one of the most special and most important people in my life. Family was gathering at her house while I laid in bed and cried. I could feel Baby B doing somersaults in my belly. I just wanted to be in Milton with everyone. I kept thinking of a phone conversation with Nan just the week before about the babies. She had told me, like many times prior to that, that she was praying for them.

The next morning Kevin and I went to our usual Thursday appointment. It was day 43 of my bedrest. The tech checked my cervix and called the doctor in. The doctor checked me and told us that I was 3cm dilated. She sent us to Shady Grove to get monitored again and told us that I would be on hospital bedrest for the duration of the pregnancy. I had been feeling contractions for weeks- but not that many and they were pretty sporatic. We also learned that Baby B had flipped to head down. Baby A was still breech. On the walk down the hall to my hospital room, I felt contractions pretty regularly- not really painful- but regular. It was then that I thought that maybe I was in labor. Sure enough the monitors showed that I was contracting. They quickly became more painful- but nothing like they were when Eli was born. Dr. Apgar, my OB, came in to check on me after getting the call that I was coming over. He decided to give me magnesium to try to stop the contractions. He also ordered another round of the steroids for the babies' lungs. I was given one shot and was supposed to get the second shot 24 hours later. That first shot would be the last.

Dr. Apgar said that I would stay until I delivered. He thought it would be anywhere from 1-2 days up to a week. I was 32 weeks and 5 days at this point. Then he double checked to see how dilated I was. While checking me, he jumped about a foot and yelled "Whoa, I just got kicked!" He hadn't expected to feel Baby A's foot. I was now 5 cm dialted. He said to prepare for a c-section sooner than later. "How soon?" we asked him. He responded, "In 15 minutes."

I called my brother to let him know since he was in Milton with the rest of my family. My mom was at the funeral home, but she was able to call me before I went back for the delivery. The prep time took about an hour or so and we soon found ourselves on our way to the operating room. I was given a spinal block and checked out the surroundings while nurses continued to prep the area. On the other side of the room were two hospital cribs ready for the babies. Babies. Our two babies were coming today.

I remember thinking that there were a ton of people in there.
I remember hearing Lady Antebellum's "I Need You Now" playing in the background.
I remember thinking it was odd that music was playing.
I remember being thankful that Dr. Apgar was there to deliver my babies.
I remember thinking about Nan and knowing that she was watching this all happen.
I remember praying during most of it.
I remember feeling peaceful.
I remember tears running down my face. Tear of intense happiness and intense sadness all at the same time.

Soon Baby A was born at 1:58pm. He didn't cry, but I wasn't overly alarmed for some reason. Baby B was born a minute later. He cried right away. Baby A let out a small cry shortly after that. Both babies were quiet while the NICU nurses tended to them.

I remember thinking how it was possible for one of the saddest days of my life to also be one of the happiest. I felt guilty for feeling so sad on such a happy day. And I felt guilty for feeling so happy too. Less than 24 hours after one of the most special people in my life left this earth, two of the most special people in my life entered it.

Ryan Robert was born at 1:58pm on February 24. He weighed 4 pounds 4 ounces and was 17.25 inches long. He was breech and had one of his arms twisted around the back of his head. Dr. Apgar said he untwisted it, but was unsure if it was broken in the process. He soon said that it looked like it was fine. Ryan's middle name Robert is in honor of Nan's husband, my pappy, who passed away in 1982. His hair was dark- darker than Spencer's. He was perfect.

Spencer Lee was born at 1:59pm on February 24. He weighed 4 pounds even and was 16.25 inches long. He was head down at delivery. Spencer's middle name Lee is in honor of Kevin's mom's family. Lee is his mom's maiden name. His hair was lighter than Ryan's and he reminded me of Eli when he was born. He was perfect.

The boys were taken to the NICU where they stayed for 2 weeks and 2 days. They were good size for being almost 2 months premature.  And most importantly, they never needed oxygen or assistance breathing.  My Nan had prayed for them- for their safe delivery. And I like to think that God took her breath and breathed it into these babies.