LaraElissa: Kylie's Early Birth Story

Posted Wednesday, March 03, 2010 5:11 PM

"My husband and I had a lot of time on our hands during that extra time in the hospital to think about how life was going to change drastically in just a few days."

Ready for baby

After many years of trying to conceive, Kylie Elizabeth Mark was born on December 23rd, 2009 at 11:31 a.m. weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces and measuring 18 inches  long.

On December 21st, I went to see my doctor for a routine checkup at 35 weeks. I had been on bed rest since 32 weeks from a mild case of pre-eclampsia. My blood pressure was very high and I had low iron, really bad headaches and major bloating in my feet and ankles. I had been seeing my doctor twice a week for a while now and during this visit, my doctor had had enough:  my symptoms were progressing quickly and getting worse by the day.

I was admitted to the hospital to monitor the baby,  her movements and heart rate, any contractions I may be having, and my extremely high blood pressure. I called my husband frantically, saying I was going into the hospital and could be delivering at any time. He finished up his work, went home, grabbed our hospital bag, and joined me a few hours later. After monitoring me for a while, the doctor said I would not be leaving the hospital until I gave birth to my baby. As they prepared a room for me, I realized our miracle baby could be joining us very quickly.  

The waiting game

For the next two days before Kylie was born they gave me shots to help her lungs progress, along with a handful of tests. My husband and I had a lot of time on our hands to think about how life was going to change drastically in just a few days. We were eager to meet our little girl and hoped everything would go according to plan. We had lots of friends and family members visit us, bringing food, magazines, and early Christmas presents -- I even had a girlfriend come and give me a pedicure.

On the morning of the 23rd, I was mentally preparing myself for the cesarean that was supposed to happen at noon when the labor and delivery nurse came in to the room at 10:30a.m. to say that my doctor was at the hospital and planning to deliver within the hour. I had already been getting nervous and now I was officially shaking and breathing heavily. After all the pregnancy issues I had -- from bronchitis at 8 weeks to  the flu at 16 weeks to a low lying placenta for a good part of the pregnancy to now full on toxemia -- our little girl was about to be born. This was it!

Time for Kylie

Within an hour Kylie Elizabeth Mark was born. She was a very healthy 4 pound, 15 ounce baby. The nurses did their routine examinations and within an hour after the birth she was in my arms in the recovery room. She barely had any jaundice, didn’t need any oxygen, and her hearing was perfect -- she passed all the tests with flying colors. We both stayed in the hospital for a few days and then went home together. At her one month visit, she up to 6 pounds, 8 ounces.

I couldn’t have imagined a better Christmas present than the one my husband and I received this year! We are truly blessed!