On May 6, 1999 we discovered that we are
pregnant again! We were so very excited and surprised at how
quickly it happened....what a true blessing. (in fact, I ended
up taking 5 home pregnancy tests altogether because I just
didn't believe that it was really true!)
Our newest little bundle of love is expected to join our
family around January 11, 2000....our very own Millennium Bug!
We are saying many prayers to God and asking that we be allowed
to keep this next baby much, much longer than we were given
with Peyton.
Our chance of having another baby with a heart defect
increases slightly. But because of the great amount of love
that Peyton brought to our lives in just one short week, we are
willing to take the chance again....just so that we are able to
experience the love of a child in our earthly family.
We had an ultrasound on May 24th (at 7 weeks) to get an
early glimpse. And there it was...our little bug measuring in
at 6 millimeters long with tiny a heart beating away. What an
absolute miracle life is.
Check back to this page for periodic updates throughout this
pregnancy as we meander along this path of true happiness
....sprinkled with some fear and uncertainty. Through the loss
of Peyton, we have come to realize that we are not in ultimate
control of the things in our lives. We are doing everything in
our power to bring a healthy baby into this world, but--beyond
that--it is all up to Him.
June 16th
We had our first appointment with the doctor on June 7th at
9 weeks. Mike came with me. We discussed what lies ahead for
this pregnancy and Dr. Placek examined my growth thus far. My
uterine size felt right for the baby's gestational age, but
upon examination, Dr. Placek found a small mass on my lower
right abdomen that I had noticed a couple weeks before. To rule
out anything problematic, she ordered an ultrasound to take a
look. The ultrasound revealed no abnormalities, so we will
continue to monitor it. This ultrasound allowed us to have get
a 'bonus' peak at our growing baby! The baby measured 2.2cm
(almost 4 times bigger than it was just 2 weeks before!). The
little heart was beating away at 157bpm. The baby looked much
more human-like and was starting to move around a bit. It was
wonderful to see our little peanut again. I could sure get used
to having an ultrasound every 2 weeks. =) Out next visit to the
doctor is July 6th when we will hopefully get to *hear* the
baby's heartbeat.
July 6 (13weeks)
We heard the heartbeat!!! And what a wonderfully reassuring
sound it was! The nurse found the baby's heartbeat right
away....153 beats per minute. Mike and I could have listened to
that pitter-patter all day long. Everything else looks fine, as
well. I have only gained 1/2 a pound so far, so I need to start
eating more, I guess. Now that I am *finally* able to keep all
my food down, maybe I will start gaining a little faster. I
have actually been very sick with this baby...much sicker than
I was with Peyton. I am just now able to drink fruit juice
again...boy did I miss my OJ!
My next doctor appointment is set for July 29th. On August
2nd I will be receiving the maternal blood tests to check for
Down's syndrome and neural tube defects (i.e. spina bifida,
anencephaly).
Dr. Placek informed us that Dr. Kenney, a perinatologist,
will perform a level II ultrasound on our baby at 18 weeks to
check for a heart defect and to examine our baby in full. If
there is anything questionable about the baby's heart, he will
send us to a pediatric cardiologist to have a fetal
echocardiogram completed. I am looking so forward to this
ultrasound which will be on August 9th.
I am *officially* in the second trimester now and am just
waiting to feel this little person moving around inside me!
July 21 (15weeks, 2 days)
Today I went into the doctor's office just to hear the
baby's heartbeat. I was beginning to feel somewhat overwhelmed
and needed some reassurance that the baby is still okay. The
baby's heartbeat was strong at 142bpm. What a huge relief it
was for me to hear that noise again....it brought me much
needed comfort. Otherwise, I am feeling very well
lately....almost normal! =) I have felt a few little bumps and
thumps from within that I *think * are the baby moving around,
but they are very faint and far between.
July 24 (15 weeks, 5 days)
I felt many little thumps today, and I am now certain that I
am feeling the baby! I had forgotten how wonderful that feeling
is and am looking forward to these kicks and pokes getting
stronger and stronger as our baby continues to grow.
July 29 (16 weeks, 3 days)
I had another appointment with Dr. Placek today....I always
look forward to these appointments! I have finally gained some
weight and now weigh 115 for a total weight gain of 5 pounds so
far. The nurse had a difficult time finding the baby's heart
beat at first....the doppler kept finding my heart beat instead
of the baby's. She'd say, "There it is." And I'd say, "Nope,
that's my heart beat." After a few times, she was certain that
she had the baby's heart beat and it was registering at 171bpm.
That seemed quite high to me, and I was still not convinced
that it was accurate. When the doctor came in to see me, I
explained to her that I didn't think the baby's heart rate was
accurate, so she put the doppler on my belly and found that
joyful rhythm immediately....beating away at 153bpm. I felt so
much better then. Dr Placek told me that I can come into the
office any time I want to just to hear the baby's heart beat
for reassurance. She said she is very pleased at how well I am
doing with this pregnancy considering the circumstances, and I
agree. =) She also told me that she is "very optimistic" about
this baby, and I told her that I am, too!
My tummy is really growing quickly and is starting to poke
out now. For the first time, I was able to feel the baby kick
from the outside yesterday...Yet another wonderfully, beautiful
milestone! Some of my favorite foods now are plums,
cinnamon/raisin bread, and milk. I can hardly wait to see this
little baby during the ultrasound on August 9th!
August 9th (18 weeks)
We had the long-awaited level II ultrasound today and
everything looks good. Mike and my mom were there, too. Most
importantly....we have a healthy heart, healthy-looking
internal organs, a nice-sized brain, and a perfectly-sized
baby! Her heart beat was a strong 150bpm, and we could
*clearly* see all four chambers. And, it looks like we are
having a little girl! Both the ultrasound technician and Dr.
Kenney were "pretty certain" that she is a little girl. We have
2 beautiful pictures of her and a wonderful videotape....she is
sooo adorable. She has a pointed little chin just like her big
brother! =) She was doing lots of somersaults for us! I didn't
know little arms and legs could move around so much! She is all
of 8 inches tall and weighs in at 7 ounces! I can hardly wait
to meet her and can't believe I have to wait 5 more months to
do so! If she is indeed a girl, her name is Mya.
We will have a fetal echocardiogram completed by a pediatric
cardiologist in few weeks just to be 100% certain about her
heart. Dr. Kenney said he really has no concerns but likes to
be certain, given our history.
Our little baby has become very active in the past few days.
In fact, both Daddy and Gramma Pam were able to feel her strong
kicks through my belly last night! I could sit around all day
just feeling her little bumps and thumps. It really puts a
smile on my face and eases my mind. I know that Peyton is
smiling down on us, too.
We also received the results from my blood work today, and
everything looks normal. The statistical odds of our baby
having a neural tube defect is 1 in 12000 (even though we were
able to see her entire spinal cord and brain during the
ultrasound). The chances of her having Down's Syndrome is 1 in
1,134. We feel good about these results.
Our next appointment with Dr. Placek is on August 26th, and
our fetal echo will probably be scheduled for sometime around
then, also.
August 27th (20 weeks, 4 days)
We had an appointment with Dr. Placek today, and everything
continues to look good. I have gained another 5 pounds for a
total weight gain of 10 pounds. I had a feeling that I had
gained weight lately because I finally have an appetite! Plus,
my belly really sticks out now. =) The baby's heart rate was a
strong 148bpm today. She has been very active lately. Her kicks
and pokes are now so strong that I can *see* them through my
tummy!
September 19th (23 weeks, 5 days)
I have not updated our baby's page for a while for no other
reason than that my modem was struck by lightning a few weeks
ago, and we moved into a new house over Labor Day weekend. So,
we have been busy around here....but everything is going fine,
and our new baby is growing very fast!
On August 31st (at 21 weeks), we had our fetal
echocardiogram with Dr. Martin, the same doctor who diagnosed
Peyton's heart defect. Mike and I both had mixed feelings about
seeing her again because of the way she presented the
information about Peyton's heart to us in such a cold manner.
The echo took about 40 minutes, and she took a long time
closely examining every aspect of the baby's heart structure
and function. We sat in silence most of the time, which was
somewhat stressful for us. It turned out that she was unable to
get a clear view of one of the baby's pulmonary veins and
seemed to be picking up some abnormal bloodflow through one of
them. She tried and tried to get a good angle on that part of
her heart, but she just couldn't. Well, she proceeded to tell
us about three or four different things that could be wrong
with our baby's heart because of what she was (and wasn't)
seeing. Although they are all fixable and 'minor' in comparison
to Peyton's anomaly, we left there with an uneasy feeling about
the inconclusiveness of this test. Even though we both knew
that everything would be fine, it was just scary hearing that
there is a small possibility something could be wrong with our
newest baby's heart. She said that we would have another level
II ultrasound with Dr. Kenny around 28 weeks to look at the
heart once again and that the baby would have an echo on her
heart soon after she is born.
Well, four days later on September 3rd, (the day we closed
on our house) Dr. Martin called me to say that she had reviewed
our baby's video with another colleague and realized that the
only time an 'abnormal' blood flow could be detected was when
the baby was either moving, kicking, hiccoughing, or
bearing-down...and--in fact--it is NORMAL for venous blood flow
to increase during those times. She said that she no longer has
any concerns about the health of our baby's heart, and we do
not need the level II ultrasound to look at it again. However,
our baby will still have an echo before she leaves the hospital
just because of our history. Whewww....God does answer
prayers.
Also, Dr. Martin took a peek between our baby's legs during
the echo and agreed with everyone else that our baby is indeed
a girl! So, we are banking on the accuracy of two doctors and
an ultrasound tech that this little person inside me is baby
girl Mya!
Our baby is very, very active these days. I am constantly
reassured by her strong kicks and bumps that she is doing just
fine in there and growing bigger every day. I can hardly wait
to meet her and hold her in my arms....I hope the next 4 months
go by just as fast as the last 5 months have. We are in the
process of getting her nursery all set up in our new
house....yet another step filled with many mixed emotions. It
is so hard knowing that Peyton is supposed to be here with us,
and it is still difficult to comprehend that he never will be.
But I find comfort in knowing that Mya will have the most
amazing big brother in the world...a true guardian angel.
September 23rd (24 weeks, 4 days)
We had an appointment with Dr. Placek today. I have gained 7
pounds in the last 4 weeks for a grand total of 127 1/2! We are
growing v-e-r-y much! The baby's movements have become much
stronger and more frequent lately. I love watching my
belly bounce around when she is awake. Her heart rate was
149bpm today. Daddy could hear it loud and clear over the
doppler as he was walking down the hall to the exam room! My
fundal height measured 24cm. My blood pressure remains low, but
I am really starting to be bothered by varicose veins in my
legs now. =( Dr. Placek recommends that I buy supportive hose
to prevent any further problems or pain associated with them. I
had my glucose test, and the level was 143 which is a bit too
high (it is best to be below 135). So I will go in for a 3 hour
glucose test next week. I also had my hemoglobin level checked.
It was 11.4 which is good. Dr. Placek said that we would
probably schedule a planned induction so that all of the
necessary doctors are available as needed (her, Dr. Martin, our
pediatrician). As of right now, the chosen date in January 3,
unless little Mya decides to come see us even earlier!
(And--no--we don't want to try for the Millennium baby!!)
All in all, everything is going very well. I feel really
good and feel so blessed to be carrying another little
miracle.
November 2 (30 weeks)
We are finally back on-line now with a *new* computer, and a
lot has happened in the last 5 weeks!
I went in for my 3-hour glucose test on October 1st.
Everything came out fine. I passed this test, but I had to
drink lots of icky orange stuff and get poked with 5 needles to
find that out!
We had another *beautiful* level II ultrasound on September
28th. Dr. Kenney wanted to do a follow-up ultrasound after all,
so we got an unexpected peak at our little girl...a very
pleasant surprise! Everything continues to look very good. She
is growing very nicely and weighed in at 1lb, 13oz! Our baby
had her legs crossed, but Dr. Kenney said that she *still*
looks like a little girl. =) We caught her in a great big
yawn....it was soooo cute, and we even captured it on
videotape. In-utero life must be pretty boring! Seeing her
again was very reassuring for us.
We had an appointment with Dr. Placek on October 21st (28
weeks, 3 days). Mike came with me. Baby Mya's heartrate was
138, and my fundal height measured 28cm. I gained another
3 1/2 pounds which means a total weight gain of just over 20
pounds. It feels so good to really have an appetite
again. Now I see Dr. Placek every 3 weeks....yet another sign
that we are getting closer. Now we just wait and pray, wait and
pray.......
On October 27th we met with the doctor who will be Mya's
pediatrician. He is a very respectable person, and showed much
compassion about our experience with Peyton. He told us that he
would be there right after the baby is born to check her
out...something that will help to ease our minds a bit in those
first few hours of her life.
Last weekend my parents came to help us decorate the
nursery. We painted and put up a border. It is so very, very
cute and cheery in her room, and will become even moreso when
she gets here!
November 12, 1999 (31 weeks, 3 days)
We had another appointment with Dr. Placek yesterday. Baby
Mya is in the head-down position again after--what seemed to
me--spending 2 weeks lying transverse. Her heart rate was 138
bpm. I have gained 3 pounds in the last 3 weeks for a total of
24 pounds...putting me at 134. My fundal height was measuring
only 27 1/2cm today, which seems kind of strange since
I feel like I have grown so much these past 3 weeks.
So we will be having an ultrasound on Monday, November 15th to
see that everything is going okay.
Her movements have become so much stronger, and
I can now feel little feet poking out by my ribs...I
*love* that feeling! She has been getting the hiccups more
often in the past 2 weeks, which are also so fun to feel. She
is a very active baby, and I am very thankful for that.
She is quite particular about what positions she likes me to be
in...sometimes I think she is a bit bossy! (only kidding, of
course!)
We completed everything we needed for pre-admission to the
hospital on Wednesday and got a tour of the labor/delivery
floor...so we are all ready to go once little Mya decides to
arrive! I was filled with mixed emotions being back at the
hospital where we were told of the devastating news about
Peyton's diagnosis, but I think it will be okay. Dr.
Placek will be on vacation between Christmas and New Year's
except for December 29th...so that is that day I have chosen to
have this little baby. (hey, it worked last time!)
November 15, 1999 (31 weeks, 6 days)
We had the most wonderful ultrasound today! It was soooo
good to see our little girl again. We discovered that she is
growing just fine after all. She is measuring 31 weeks, 2 days,
so there is no concern about her being too small. She weighs in
at 3 pounds, 14 ounces. We could see her so well....I can
hardly believe how big she has gotten since our last ultrasound
seven weeks ago. Of course she slept throughout the entire
thing...which is quite ironic since she is generally a
very active baby. The tech wanted to wake her up
by using a buzzer/vibrator, but I wouldn't let her put it
by Mya's head...only by her little bottom (because I think it's
mean and it scared Peyton so much when she zapped him with that
thing!) The zapper made her move around a little bit, but she
still didn't wake up (all that cheering at the Husker game on
Saturday must've worn her out!). She kept her hands up by her
face the entire time, and she blinked her eyes only a few
times. She has chubby little cheeks and lots of fuzzy hair on
her head already! We saw that she had a full tummy and a full
bladder...which means she is getting good practice swallowing.
Yesterday she had the hiccups *3* times, so
I know she has been practicing! She has
plenty of amniotic fluid around her, so I guess she can
drink up as much as she needs to. :) This ultrasound tech also
confirmed that Mya is still a little girl....it is a bit
more obvious now that she is bigger. Since we have had 2
doctors and 3 ultrasound techs telling us that our baby is a
girl, I feel pretty confident in buying lots of pink
stuff! :)
Now we probably won't see our baby Mya again until she is
born....a day we look so very forward to. She just needs to get
more mature lungs and a bit fatter so she is ready for life in
the outside world. I am predicting that she is going to weigh
7lb, 2oz at birth...assuming she is born close to the New
Year.
November 30, 1999 (34 weeks)
We had an appointment with Dr. Placek on November 22 (33
weeks, 1 day). The baby's heartbeat was 132bpm. My weight was
136, which means a total weight gain thus far of 26 pounds.
This time my fundal height measured 33 cm, so we grew *a lot*
in the last 2 weeks...now I am right on track with my
measurement. Everything else looked good, too. Mike comes to
all my appointments, which I am so thankful for.
Baby Mya continues to be in the head-down position, even
though there have been many times that I was positive she was
trying to flip around in there! She really moves side-to-side
quite often....almost daily, it seems. Now, it takes her a bit
longer to turn her body since she's getting a bit more crowded
everyday! I hardly even have time to worry about her because
she is constantly reassuring me with all of her movement. She
showed off for Grandpa and Grandma many times this weekend with
all of her kicking and punching. My mom said that I was a
very active baby in her tummy, too. I sure wish
I could have a little camera in there to see exactly what
she is doing to make such a ruckus! Only 5 more weeks until
January 3rd....boy, do I hope the time continues to fly by
like it has. With Peyton's first birthday and Christmas fast
approaching, I have a lot of other things that are keeping
my mind busy these days so I am sure it will.
December 9, 1999 (35 weeks, 2 days)
We had an appointment with Dr. Placek today. Another boring
appointment, but~boy~do I love those boring ones! I have
gained 2 more pounds and my fundal height measured 36cm. Baby's
heart rate was 141 at today's visit. I will go back to the
doctor in 10 days and then every week until baby Mya is born! I
only have 7 more days of work left before I am officially
on maternity leave! =)
This weekend we are going to meet our new little nephew,
Jaden, who was born on December 7th. He was almost 3 weeks
early, weighed 7lb 6oz, and measured 21 1/2" long. I tell baby
Mya that she should come out a bit early so she can meet her
new cousin.
We decorated for Christmas and put up our tree last weekend.
This time of year obviously brings back many mixed emotions of
joy and sadness of our precious Peyton. Last year, we packed
away all of our Christmas decorations with the greatest feeling
of sadness imaginable, so~this year~we are not packing anything
up until we have our baby girl home with us to keep.
December 23rd (37 weeks, 3 days)
I had my first internal exam on Monday, December 20th. I was
2cm dilated and 50% effaced, which tells us that my body is
really starting to get ready! Plus, my fundal height dropped by
3cm, so baby Mya is getting ready for the big event, too. I
only gained 1/2 pound. Her hear rate was 139bpm. I am so very,
very anxious and excited for her to come. I am officially on
Christmas break/maternity leave now until April 3rd. We would
sure love to spend Christmas with our new baby, but I have
learned that the greatest things in life are out of our
control. Peyton died one year ago today. It is such a
mixture of emotions for us right now, but we are looking
forward to our new baby arriving with so much hope and faith. I
know Peyton is with us now more than ever.
December 27th (37 weeks, 6 days)
My mom came with me to today's doctor appointmnet. Since Dr.
Placek is on vacation, I met Dr. Tomjack. I am still
2cm dialated but am 80-85% effaced. Baby's heart rate was
141bpm and my weight has stayed the same. My fundal heighth
measured 36cm today. I have been having lots of
contractions the past few day. My mom and I have been
going for walks trying to get things moving! Some of the
contractions have even been regular--coming every 5-6 minutes,
but then they stop. It is so hard to wait and wait for our
little girl to arrive...I just ant to hold her. I am
starting to get discouraged and feel as though she is
never going to be here. I am still holding out for
December 29th...the only day Dr. Placek is on-call until
January 3rd.
My parents came down to our house for Christmas. My mom
decided to stay here becuse we are hoping that the baby is here
this week.
Decmebr 29th (38 weeks, 1 day)
Dr. Placek had told me to call the office today to make
arrangements for the induction on Monday January 3rd, if I had
not had the baby by now. I was really hoping that I
wouldn't have to wait that long, but now it looks like
I may just have to. I called the nurse and told her
the reason I was calling. She told me that she'd talk to
Dr. Placek and call me back. When she called back she said tht
Dr. Placek is not on-call Monday, so we would not be able to
induce until Tuesday. This news was soooo frustrating for
me....we had been talking about January 3rd since September!
Now I have to wait one more day to meet my littel girl.
But I guess one more day is not that much in the whole grand
scheme of things.
December 31st (38 weeks, 4 days)
Well, we didn't have to wait until Jauary 4th afterall!
My water broke at 11:50pm just as Mike was pouring champagne
(and sparkling grape juice for me, of course!) As we drove to
the hospital, beautiful fireworks filled the sky in celebration
of the new Millennium....is was so amazing. We imagined that
the world was celebrating the soon-to-be birth of our baby
girl.
January 1st, 2000
Mya Joceyn was born at 3:07am. She weighed 6lb, 15oz and
was our city's Millennium Baby! It was an unforgetable, surreal
birth. With the help of a wonderful midwife I had met just
minutes before Mya was born and staff of nurses, Mya was
born with no complications. It is absolutley indescribeable how
it felt to hold that precious gift in my arms.
Mya had a busy first day of life...including a press
conference, a presentaton of many wonderful gifts, and an
echocardiogram to ensure her heart was indeed healthy. The
entire city was celebrating with us after all! Mya was on the
front page of the newspaper and on three different TV station
news shows. Each person who came to know "Millenium Mya" also
came to know her brother Peyton...that's the only was anyone
could possibly begin to understand just how much of a blessing
this baby was to us.
Libby was born on July 26, 2001. This pregnancy was
very similar to my others.....although we were a bit less
worrisome than before. We found out she was a girl at 18 weeks.
We chose not to have the fetal echo done this time but I was
again followed by the perinatalogist.
Libby's birth was another beautiful, amazing experience! She
also arrived before the doctor could make it to the hospital.
She wieghed 6lb, 10oz and resembled Peyton quite a bit...which
was so comforting. We also chose not to have an echo done on
her heart after birth.
Luke was born on April 8, 2005. Another smooth pregancy resulting in a heart-healthy blessing. :)
We certainly feel so blessed to have a wonderful family. We thank God for sharing these
little miracles with us.
Libby and Mya
Easter 2002
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