Saturday, July 7, 2012

For This Child, We Have Prayed: Baker's Birth Story

My husband, Brian, and I had been praying for a baby; trusting in God to provide us with a baby to love after a devastating miscarriage and several months of trying unsuccessfully to get pregnant. I will never forget that Wednesday morning in September. After my alarm went off, I went immediately to the restroom to take a pregnancy test, got back in bed, and prayed over the results with Brian. After two very long minutes, he went to the restroom to read the results; his face aglow as he proclaimed news of a baby on the way! Oh what joy! We held each other and cried, overwhelmed at the faithfulness of our Father to answer our prayers.

Over the next few weeks, we shared our incredible news with excited family and friends. Everyone celebrated the arrival of Baby Bell with us!

In December, I received a call from my doctor with the results of our quad screen. Usually I talk to his nurse; however, this time it was him on the phone. He prefaced the results with an uncharacteristically muted tone. He skipped the usual small talk and got straight to business. He began, "Often these results are not accurate; in fact, many times they offer a false positive. With that being said, your child has a 1 in 6 chance of being born with Down Syndrome." I have no idea what he said next. The words resounded in my head. My whole being was consumed with this news. My husband was not home, so I sat in my dark, quiet home, and cried. Cried for the unknown. Cried for my hopes and dreams for my baby. Cried for my little boy or little girl and the cruelty of the world towards people with special needs. Cried, and pleaded with God. Cried out in prayer, because that was all I could do.

We were referred to a specialist for a Comprehensive Level II ultrasound to check for the physical markers for Down Syndrome. Our eyes were glued to the monitor as the specialist checked for a fold in the neck, absence of nasal bone, length of femur, echogenic intracardiac focus (bright spot on the heart), among others. In the midst of those findings, we learned that Baby Bell is a Baby BOY Bell!! I have never seen my husband smile so proudly, as the doctor highlighted the very obvious male anatomy. "That's my boy! That's my boy!" exclaimed the delighted daddy to be. Of the major markers, our son had one present: an echogenic intracardiac focus. (This, we learned is present in children born with and without Down Syndrome - not a very reliable marker). None of the others were found as they scanned our little boy's perfect body  and watched him wriggle and squirm and suck his thumb for his mama and daddy to see. Oh how our hearts were filled with joy at the realization of our baby's gender, perfection of his little body, and decreased chance of our son being born with Down Syndrome.








With those results, we threw out the possible diagnosis, and chose instead to focus on the upcoming arrival of our baby boy. We had a blast pondering the best name to suit our little blessing. We decided upon William Baker - William after Brian's father, and Baker after mine. Our son would be named after two men we love dearly, who have so positively influenced our lives. We sent puzzles with his name to family and friends living out of town, inviting them to put the pieces together to figure out his oh-so-perfect name








The rest of the pregnancy was filled with joy as we were showered with love and gifts to prepare for our little one's arrival. We had frequent ultrasounds to monitor the spot on his heart, which suited us just fine! We loved watching our Baker Bell flourish into a beautiful baby on the monitor in the room we became so comfortable in.


Then, to our surprise, on Friday morning, May 11, contractions began. Not the Braxton Hicks I had come to live with. Real, live contractions! Like the ones I saw in the movies. I denied the onset of labor, as I was only 36 weeks and 4 days. It wasn't time! I hadn't nested! I had left my desk at work in shambles! None of that mattered; God had planned for us to meet our baby boy on May 11.

It was a long day, it was a good day; second to saying "I Do" to my husband, it was the best day! Labor progressed slowly, but at 11:30 that night, the doctor uttered the words we'd been anticipating, "Let's have us a baby!" We called our family back in to pray together. We prayed for Dr. C., who we have grown to love and regard as part of our family. (A little side note: Dr. C. wasn't even on call that Friday night; but had taken such an interest in our sweet baby, he proclaimed only weeks earlier that he would deliver him, no matter what, and he did). We prayed for the nurses and for the health and safety of both our baby and me as we were approaching the final moments of pregnancy. We said our goodbyes, and gave hugs and kisses for the last time before becoming a family of three.







Our family walked out at 11:40, I started pushing at 11:45, and William Baker Bell arrived at 11:46. And what a sweet arrival it was! Love at first sight! My heart grew so full as we locked eyes and he was placed on my chest. Oh, he was beautiful, and he was ours. After some time as a family of three, the nurses took him away to meet the anxious grandparents, aunts, and uncles eagerly awaiting his arrival, and then to the nursery for some obligatory tests.







The next few hours were a blur. Nurses coming in and out to check my vital signs. Hushed whispers of suspicions of Down Syndrome. Family hovering, too excited to leave. Us exhausted, a long day of labor behind us.

They kept Baker in the nursery for so long, too long. He finally made his way back to us at four o'clock in the morning to say a brief goodbye before being taken to the NICU. When we saw him the next morning, he was just as beautiful as I remembered; his tiny body covered in cords, tubes protruding from his nose and mouth. My heart ached to hold my baby boy. I celebrated my first Mother's Day sitting by his side, stroking his sweet angel hands; unable to hold him or see his eyes because of the Bili lights for severe jaundice. On that day, our suspicions were confirmed. We received the results of Baker's chromosome analysis, showing that he had been born with Down Syndrome.









We shared the news of our little one's diagnosis and comforted them with these words:

"We celebrate his health, as many babies born with Down Syndrome are born with serious health complications. Praise be to God that our baby's heart and other major organs function beautifully.

While the results of this test were somewhat of a surprise to us, they don't surprise our Heavenly Father. Just as He knows the number of hairs on our baby's head, he knows the number of chromosomes in his body. He knows our baby boy, and He knows us. This is part of His perfect plan for our lives. Psalms 139:13-4 says, "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Baker is wonderfully made by our Father, who does not make mistakes. Brian and I were chosen, specially, to be Baker's  mommy and daddy, and for that, we say, "Rejoice!" What an incredible honor for us to be chosen to love and care for this sweet baby boy.

Please don't be sad for us, as we are not saddened by this at all. This is the child for whom we have prayed so diligently. 1 Samuel 1:27-8, "I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life, he will be given over to the Lord." He needs not be labeled by a disability, rather, the only label he needs is, "ours." We love our baby boy more than we could have ever imagined. He is strong. He is beautiful. He is loved.

I cannot wait for you to meet our little Baker Bell! He has stolen many a nurse's heart all over this hospital. They all sneak into the NICU on their break for a glimpse of our little angel baby. I warn you, it's love at first sight! Unspeakable joy! His little expressions keep us snapping our camera and claiming, "That one's my favorite," only to have a new favorite in the next minute."'

Maybe I was lacking the boldness I am now striving for. Maybe the joyous feelings of Baker's birth far overshadowed any diagnosis. Maybe saying it out loud would make it real. Whatever the reasons, I could not bring myself to utter the words. I did not tell people in person or over the phone; rather I resorted to sharing this news through writing, using the mask of email. And I am so glad I did! The responses that flooded in from family and dear friends were strength in my weakness. Each person offered encouragement, allowing God to use them in a mighty way. Spoken words can be forgotten. Conversations fade. Even carefully chosen words become a distant memory. But the written word, at least these written words, cannot be erased. Those letters, Bible verses, and personal testimonies are so precious to me, forever etched into my being. I will always cherish the power of the words shared with us on that unforgettable day.

After nine long days in the NICU, we brought our little home! We are human, and I will admit to moments of weakness, but the strength our God has given us overcomes. We are thankful for our gift, our precious blessing in the form of a bitty boy named Baker. We are more smitten today than we were yesterday or the day before. He is our love, our dream come true!


22 comments:

  1. Mmmuuuwwwaahhh. I love this!

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    1. So, so, so thankful for your friendship, Leah! You are fabulous!

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  2. Yay! This is the BEST! I teared up reading your beautifully written words again. Baker is one blessed baby boy! Can't wait for the next post!

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  3. Jennifer,
    I am SO happy that you are blogging! You are such an encouragement. Thank you for being such a great friend. We need to see y'all soon and can't wait to meet Baker! He is absolutely precious in those pictures! We are so happy for y'all!

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    1. Oh Brandy, you are so sweet! You've gotta come meet him soon! We miss you!

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  4. I loved reading this story! You will inspire! What a testimony to the world, a world that would rather eradicate those who are seen as weaker, than to allow them to be used by the Lord to transform us. You should know my dear friend Tesney. They adopted a beautiful boy named Kiril from Russia who has down syndrome. She is very passionate about advocating for them. I am going to share your blog with her. We can not wait to meet Baker. He is beautiful and what an honor for you guys to get to be his parents, you are right and that story just touched my heart! Thanks for being transparent and real.

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  5. What an awesome birth story. All I can say is 'CONGRATULATIONS!' You are one of the lucky few blessed to have an angel with skin living in your home. Jess referred me to your blog. I can't wait to follow Baker's progress. He can do ANYTHING. :)

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    1. Thank you, Tesney! I love the way you describe Baker, "an angel with skin," such a fitting description of our little love!

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  6. I love you!!! You have NO idea what an influence you've had in my life. You are such an encouragement to so many with this testimony.

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    1. You are a ray of sunshine! Thank you for your continued support and encouragement.

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  7. What a beautiful, beautiful story Jennifer. He is such a precious angel! I'm so glad you're blogging...I can't wait to follow along. :)

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    1. Thank you for getting me set up to blog! I have gotten so many comments praising the layout and design...sending them your way!

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  8. You have always been so great with words and this is no different! I have loved reading this and loved being a part of this journey with you. Can't wait to read more and watch little Baker grow up to be a great man just like his Daddy! You two are the best parents anyone could ask for and Baker is so lucky! I love all of you dearly!

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    1. Thank you, Anna Kathyn. Our family is blessed to have you along for the ride! The Bells love you!

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  9. You should have started blogging a long time ago! Wow! I follow most of the bloggers that you mentioned and I'm glad that they have inspired you to blog! Reading your blog made my heart fill with JOY! I love you and your amazing family! I love your strength and your everlasting Faith! Baker is a lucky boy!!!! I cannot wait to meet your precious baby! Love you!!! Love you!!!

    PS: If you ever need help planning or decorating a Kelle Hampton style birthday party...I am your girl!!! Man, can that lady throw a party! Ha! Love!

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    1. Thank you, AL! Kelle can certainly throw down! May need your help orchestrating a fabulous shindig for our little man!

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  10. TEARS are streaming down my face as I read your heartfelt words. Jennifer, I have always admired your strength and faith. I believe that our God chose you and Brian especially for Baker, and I cannot wait to see all that He has in store for you. I love you all, and I am so thrilled to read all of your stories!

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  11. I know you do not know me, but my name is Angie Edge and my husband is the new church planter at New Journey in New Hope. This is the most beautifully written birth story! Praise the Lord for your sweet Baker! You really understand that children are a true blessing and that God has placed this precious child in the loving care of your home. What an awesome gift you were given that you will be able to love and cherish sweet Baker. God bless you and your sweet family! You will be in my prayers as you grow with Baker!

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  12. I cried while reading your story. My 4th child was just born with DS. We didn't find out until after birth. He had the one soft marker in the heart, which my 2 year old also had, and no other markers. The doctors all assured us that the chances of him having DS were extremely low, so we were very surprised after delivery! It was difficult at the time, but he is so amazing!

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  13. Thank you for this beautiful testimony of love.

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