Our Story

  The story of our two sweetie pies starts several years ago. After I graduated from college and moved back to Independence, MO, Trevor and I started dating. We had known each other through church, but after school things clicked. After a whirlwind romance, 3 and a half weeks later we were engaged. 8 months later on April 15, 2006 I married the love of my life.
  We decided to wait a couple of years before trying to have any children. Finally we were ready and then the first positive pregnancy test! We were elated. However, a few short weeks later, I miscarried. I was devastated. After a short wait, we decided to try again. We got pregnant right away. This time, I was a little more nervous and cautious. My worst nightmares came true when after several ultrasounds, they were not able to detect a heartbeat. I miscarried again and once again my heart was broken. This time we decided to wait a little longer before trying again. Emotionally, I was a wreak and needed time to heal.
  The next time we got pregnant, I hoped and prayed that this time would be different. The doctors had figured out that the cause of  my miscarriages was a genetic mutation that didn't allow me to process folic acid correctly. But that could be fixed with extra vitamins and a baby aspirin daily. An early miscarriage scare left me off work so that I could be on modified rest. No strenuous activity, no standing for a long time, basically: take it easy. So I did. Things were going well. Then I got gestational diabetes and had some preterm labor. Now it was full on bedrest. However it was totally worth it when at 36 weeks and 4 days, our little Baby Z as we'd been calling the baby arrived (we didn't find out the sex of the baby and both names we had picked- Zachary and Elizabeth- both had Zs in them).

Elizabeth Noelle, born Dec 20, 2009. 7lb 8 oz, 19 in

  Being a mom was wonderful and I loved our little family. However, I knew I didn't want Elizabeth to be an only child. I thought 2 years apart would be perfect spacing, so we started trying again. I got pregnant right away. But I miscarried again. My doctor told me that a combination of my previous history and breastfeeding had most likely caused it this time. I needed to wean Elizabeth before trying again. I was sad because I still enjoyed my special time with Elizabeth and thought it would be fun to tandem nurse. But I wanted another baby more than I wanted to keep nursing. So we weaned. I tried to relax and not stress about getting pregnant again. 2 weeks after a fun trip to California, I got another positive pregnancy test!

Our California Trip

  This pregnancy was going great. I felt good and was able to keep working. We decided to find out this time, and our 20 week ultrasound showed it was a girl! She wasn't cooperating fully so I was going to need another ultrasound later on to look at the things that they couldn't see on this one, but everything they could see looked fine. More good news when I wasn't diabetic this time around! I went in for my follow up ultrasound at 30 weeks. Her back (which they couldn't see the first time) looked fine. But the US tech said that her legs were measuring short. Very short. So my doctor scheduled me with an ultrasound at the perinatologist's. I had to wait a week for that appointment. When we got there, the tech remeasured. The baby's legs and arms were measuring 8-10 weeks behind the rest of her. An appointment with a genetics counselor and the perinatologist was set up for the next morning.
   The meeting with the genetics counselor was one of the hardest things I've ever done. She was going over things that could cause short bones: chromosomal issues (like Down's syndrome, trisomy 18, etc) and skeletal dysplasias (achondroplasia, osteogenesis imperfecta, thanatophoric dysplasia, etc). She felt based on the measurements that the bones were too short for either down's syndrome or achondroplasia. That basically left the very bad or fatal diagnoses. I was sobbing and thinking "What's wrong with me? Why can't I keep my babies alive? How long will I have to hold her before she dies?" and on and on. The genetics lady said they needed more information before they could tell us more so another ultrasound and did we want to do an amnio?
   Well the perinatologist did the ultrasound and the chest to abdomen ratio was not in the lethal range! Also she felt fairly sure looking at everything that our darling baby girl would have Down's Syndrome. After thinking that my baby was going to die, we were so relieved and happy. We decided to do the amnio, since it would tell us by Monday (it was a Friday) if that was indeed our diagnosis. Then we would be able to be prepared and informed. On Monday when the FISH results came back normal, I was upset. We were back to the great unknown. It could still be something very bad.
   5 very long weeks later, all the tests were done. The results: achondroplasia. Trevor was relieved and happy. I was relived, happy, upset, worried, and in a little bit of shock. I guess that I has always hoped in the back of my head that everything was all right and when she was born, she would just be "normal." But after joining some online support groups, doing a lot of research, and a lot of prayer, I once again began to just be excited for the birth.
   At 39 weeks they induced me (due to her large head size) by breaking my water. After less than 6 hours of natural childbirth, our Charlotte Anne arrived with a little help from a vacuum there at the end. And that is the story how we got our two little sweetie pies! Now on with life and the rest of the story!

Charlotte Anne, March 30, 2012. 7lb 12 oz, 18 in

Two Sweetie Pies