Christopher's Story ... December 31st

I remember waking up sometime in the hour of 1 am suddenly, thinking, “was that what I think it was?” Within about 30 seconds, I felt like I wet the bed!  I quickly got up and ran to the bathroom.  When I was able to, I got up and opened up the bathroom door with the light still on.  Kevin asked, “Is everything ok?”  I took a couple of steps out of the bathroom and said, “I think my water just broke.” He looked over to my side of the bed and said, “Yep, I think you are right!”

            I called my Dad to let him know we would need to bring Caroline by and he said he would come and pick her up.  The next hour comprised of me getting her ready to go with a bag, printing up the guesses to the Baby Henderson #2 contest (yes, I really did that in labor), Kevin hooking up the church trailer to his truck and arranging for someone to pick up (we go to a Portable church and half of the set up stuff is stored in our driveway), and me pacing the house trying to figure out what I needed to wear for an hour drive to the hospital with my water breaking (that was something I hadn’t prepped for).  When my Dad came and picked Caroline up at 2:30 in the morning, he gathered us around for a quiet moment and prayed the sweetest prayer for us. After finishing everything up and full of emotions we headed out the door.

            We started out a little before 3:00 am over to Pensacola. It was a beautiful night drive over with a bright full moon and mild temperature.  I remember about that time that I had an app on my phone to track the contractions.  So, I started with the first two – 8 minutes apart.  The next one came 7 minutes later, then next one 6 minutes later.  By the time we reached the hospital I had tracked 10 contractions (in 45 minutes) and the last ones were 2 minutes apart.  

            When we arrived, the front desk workers brought out a wheelchair and quickly wheeled me back while Kevin parked the car.  The intake nurse gave me a clip board and asked me to fill everything out.  When Kevin arrived, he so graciously took the clipboard from me and asked me questions. After getting situated and all of the questions answered from the intake nurse, she told us that there were three ladies who the doctor needed to check before us, then they would see IF my water had actually broken and IF I was in labor.  “IF MY WATER BROKE?”  ß  That’s what my face said.  Kevin was able to read me loud and clear and when she left Kevin said, “She’s just doing her job”  I was 100% sure, since each time I had a contraction, it felt like I was re-wetting my pants, every minute and a half at this point.  

            So, we waited around 30-45 minutes or so.  Kevin was an amazing coach during this time, knowing that laughter is not only my best medicine, but also keeps my sanity.  When the nurse left, the first thing he said was pointing out that the TV in the room was the same plasma screen TV Michael Scott had in the "Date Night" episode of The Office - which is my all time favorite.  Along with, playing The Office theme song with every non-medicated contraction, he found random things in my purse and sent texts with pictures to people of what he found at 5:00 am on a Sunday morning.  Finally, a younger intern came in and introduced herself, saying she was going to check my before the doctor came in.  “Yes, your water definitely broke,” she said, “and I can feel baby parts.”  So, she put my knees together and very calmly said, “Please, don’t push.”  

            The doctor came in and said they have already contacted my doctor and he is on his way.  Looking at Kevin he let him know that depending on what the doctor wants to do, we would then get him prepped and ready to go.  (If they were going to attempt a regular C-section, Kevin would be able to get prepped up to be in the operating room as well.  If it was an emergency C-section, like Caroline’s was, I would be put to sleep and Kevin could not be in the room.)  The doctor left the room and a nurse attempted to start an IV.  I don’t remember how long he was gone, probably less than 5 minutes, but when the doctor came back in the room, I was in the middle of a major contraction. All I remember was the doctor looking at the nurse saying, “Get her back to the OR now.”  So, with tears in my eyes I told Kevin I was sorry that he didn’t get to go back with me and he told me it was ok, we’ve been here before!

They raised up the bars on the side of the bed and I was happy to have something to hold onto during the contractions.  When they started wheeling me out the nurse at the head of my bed firmly said, “Put your hand down!” I was so confused and in so much pain I didn’t know what to think.  We get back to the chaotic operating room, where 10+ people were scrambling around.  One man came up and started asking me the basic questions again that I had just answered in the intake room.  Any prior surgeries, anesthesia before, etc.  Then he asked what my name was.  I told him and he yells out, “This isn’t her information, this is someone else, I don’t have her chart!”  All the while, the nurses are trying to hook up an IV and insert a catheter during constant contractions.  The same prior nurse who got after me for grabbing the bar on the bed was at the head of my bed the whole time coaching me that it wasn’t that much longer, keep breathing, and apologizing for the chaos.  I really wish I knew who she was so I could give her a hug. With Kevin not being able to be in the room that was exactly what I needed.  Soon, they gave me my happy air and I drifted off to sleep.

 Waking up, I could hear the nurse chatting away.  I started to listen and heard about one patient who they had prepped for surgery and was in the operating room laboring for an hour and a half while they had to operate on another patient first.  That other patient was me.  Our Henderson babies like to kick their way out …. So sorry! Kevin came in and told me all of the details about Christopher, his weight, his height, what time he was born and what time it was.  He told me that he was already out of me from his chest down when they went in and pulled him out.  He also said that they were going to be doing head to toe scans to check on everything they couldn’t check while he was in the womb.  We knew we were in good hands.  We realized that we had witnessed a miracle.  We realized God’s timing is perfect and, again, that He is oh, so good!

The similarities of Caroline and Christopher’s births are pretty amazing to us – both preterm, both breech, both emergency C-sections, both I was put to sleep, both born healthy – the only differences were that my water didn’t break for Caroline, the week they were born and their weight.  

If you have read Christopher's whole story, bless you, you are a trooper!  I write about the details now, so that when I am older and forget these things, I can be reminded of them and pass on the stories to Christopher and his future family.  I also write these things to show how amazing the story of this little boy is.  We were literally told that naturally conceiving a child was IMPOSSIBLE.  They actually used that word.  We accepted that reality, trusted in God's sovereignty and decided to walk in obedience in being content with what God has given us.  There are numerous ways God could have blessed us, but He chose to bless us with a child that we consider a miracle.  God allowed us to realize that, although the waiting period is hard, it is always worth every second of it.  

I can't help but take a moment to thank each and every one of our friends and family who have walked with us on this journey.  Whether it be through prayers, chats, encouraging words, a shoulder to cry on or just an ear to vent to, thank you!  Christopher's (and Caroline's too) Story has been quite the journey of faith for our family in learning to trust God for every step, knowing that He is in control and His timing is perfect.  We are thankful!

 5 take-aways about how God is in the details 

1.    Kevin’s brother joked about him being born in 2017.  Then a week before he was born, I told Kevin, well if he comes early it better not be on January 2^nd, it would be great if he came in 2017.

2.    Each new doctor I would meet I would ask their advice on if I should have a regular delivery or a C-section.  I would ALWAYS joke with them saying, “I really don’t mind if you put me to sleep again, that worked out really well the first time.”  Never thinking that would happen.

3.    I had thought to myself and told Kevin, that if for each of these progesterone shots I was receiving, I could get one day passed 31 weeks, we would be doing great. I received 18 shots and Christopher was born 18 days passed 31 weeks.

4.    The whole pregnancy I kept saying, if we can get this baby to at least 5lbs at birth we will be doing great.  He was 5lbs 2.5oz when he was born.  

5.     When scheduling the C-section, I was hoping for it to land on January 31^st, since Caroline was born on the 31^st it would be easy to remember.  Christopher came on December 31^st 

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Jeremiah 29:11

Christopher's Story .... 33 weeks

Christmas 2017 (Photo Credit: J&R Webber)

             On December 28, 2017, we went in for our weekly ultrasound to check on the CCAM.  I was 33 weeks and 1 day along.  We had Caroline with us since she was out of school and she enjoyed watching her little brother on the screen and the tech was helpful in telling her what she was seeing.  The tech said she was having a hard time getting a good shot and had me flip back and forth from one side to the other.  Christopher was breech so his lungs were located right under my belly button, which in the ultrasound world is the worst place for taking pictures, due to shadows.  She called in another tech and both of them worked together for a good shot.  45 minutes later they were done and we waited to hear from the doctor.  This doctor was a naturally upbeat kind of doctor who could deliver serious news with a hopeful smile.  Sometimes when he was extra upbeat, bad news would accompany it.  So, when he came in with a smile, I didn’t know what to expect.  He sat down and told us, “The mass is gone.”  He looked at Caroline and said, “Have you been praying for your little brother?   Well, God answered your prayers!”  He explained that both techs could not find a trace of the mass in Christopher’s lungs. Hesitant, we smiled and nodded, honestly not knowing exactly what to think. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, in case they just didn’t get a good picture and maybe it would show back up next week.  The nurse in the room could sense our hesitation and pulled us aside when the doctor left. She said, “One of those techs is the best MFM ultrasound tech in the region, if she is saying that she didn’t find anything, you can be confident it isn’t there.”  Again, we were shocked, thankful, still hesitant, but at the same time in awe.  “Is it really gone?” we wondered.

Always fun to be pregnant together - 
especially when the babies will be cousins!
(Photo Credit: J&R Webber)

            That Saturday, December 30^thwe went out for breakfast at The Coffee Shoppe.  I can vividly remember sitting down at a booth and ordering.  Caroline wanted to go watch the food being made at the counter, so Kevin went up and sat with her.  I can still remember looking down at my belly with a very active baby inside, just staring, wondering what he was doing, when we would meet him, and loving that I could distinctively see the kicks, head butts and punches that I was feeling on the inside.  I also remember thinking to myself, “I think this is the last day I will be wearing these maternity pants, they are feeling a little too tight.”  The rest of the day, I just remember being extra tired and Kevin and I both remember that Caroline was really accommodating to us, more so than normal.  Right before we went to bed that night, around 11 pm or so, I remember telling Kevin, “I guess we won’t be having a 2017 baby, no signs of labor yet.” 

All the grandkids on my side of the family plus 2 on the way! (Photo Credit: J&R Webber)

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer"

Romans 12:12

Christopher's Story .... the Pregnancy

Caroline's Baptism (Photo Credit: J&R Webber) 

     The first trimester was filled with the typical morning/all day sickness along with extreme fatigue. It was summer break for Caroline, and I was either in bed or on the couch, getting out for the occasional errand or checking on the various shops with the bottles.  Thankfully, kids have a great perspective on life and remember the good, because Caroline talks about how fun that summer was, including, but not limited to her making a major decision to follow Jesus, getting baptized and turning 7!  
            
I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes with Caroline, so the doctors wanted to check me early with Christopher.  After failing the first test, I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep down the drink for the second test, and I was determined to start the GD diet anyway.  I ended up convincing the doctor to go ahead and diagnose me with GD without the test. She agreed and I started charting my numbers.  They were all high, so I started on insulin at 16 weeks.  At the same time I also started on a progesterone shot once a week to help prevent pre-term labor that was administered up at the hospital.  Due to these two factors and past history, I was labeled ‘high risk’ and sent to a Maternal Fetal Medicine Doctor for more specialized care.

Caroline's 7th Birthday (Photo Credit: J&R Webber)

  

Half way through the pregnancy, we were ready for the long awaited Anatomy Ultrasound to find out if we were having a boy or girl. With Caroline’s pregnancy we decided to be surprised and didn’t find out.  Since this pregnancy was already a surprise, we decided to be a little prepared and find out for ourselves.  So, with great anticipation, we went in!  Everything was going well, lots of pictures and measurements.  

20 weeks

When she went in to find the gender, there was a large amount of umbilical cord surrounding the area, so there was no way to get a good picture.  She said, “If I had to guess, it would be a boy.”  IF YOU HAD TO GUESS …. I thought, just tell us you don’t know!   Of course, I couldn’t say that out loud, but I could scream it in my head.  All I could think of was, at least we weren’t planning a gender reveal.  A little disappointing, but totally fine.  Waiting seemed to be a common thread with this pregnancy, so we were happy that everything was going smoothly so far.

            When the doctor came in to talk to us about the ultrasound, the first thing he asked was if we found out what we were having.  We told him the tech couldn’t tell, so he said, “Let’s take another look.”  Although, we thought it was pretty cool that he was going to check for the gender again (which we eventually found out we were having boy), we soon realized that this was his segue to show us some not so great things that were found out with our little one.  Inside our baby’s lungs, a large mass was growing.  A Congenital Cystic Adenomatoid Malformation (CCAM) is a benign mass of abnormal lung tissue that replaces part of the lobe of a fetal lung.  This mass was suspected to continue to grow with the baby until 28 weeks and then it would either stop growing and maintain it’s size or get smaller or it would continue to grow and could lead to potentially fatal complications for the baby and mother.  There was no treatment for a CCAM other than monitoring the growth.  So, we started weekly ultrasounds with the MFM doctor to closely monitor the mass.  

So many ultrasounds, so thankful for technology!

I can remember, clear as day, leaving the ultrasound room and checking out of that appointment.  Everything was very solemn.  Since it was a High Risk Doctor's office, I am sure that they have patients receive news like ours and some much, much more serious very often, so the staff is prepared to handle the patients' reaction.  We stepped to the window to schedule our next appointment and there was no chatter from the nurses and techs at all as there usually was, only silence.  Most were turned around or facing their computer screens with a dead stare.  I noticed the occasional eye contact with a soft sweet 'are you ok?' type of smile.  I knew that they knew and I felt their concern for us and yet their care for us at the same time.  That was when it started to sink in a little more of the severity of what we were facing.  
We went home in shock, not knowing really what to think.  I really couldn’t let myself think of the worst case scenario, even though it was there, I didn’t need to go down that thought path.  I will say, I let myself go through all of the normal feelings for one day – the worry, the fear, the sadness of potential loss or potential health problems for the baby – then I gave it to God. 

Caroline asked her class at church to pray for her new baby brother

At that point, I realized this pregnancy, this child, this mass and anything else that would arise during this time was totally and completely out of our hands.  There was no medicine I could take or exercise I could do that would make this mass go away.  We are commanded not to worry, to take life one day at a time.  When we found out we were pregnant we only told a handful of people at the beginning.  Each of those family and friends were faithful to pray for us when we asked (and even when we didn’t ask I am sure).  My friend Lindsay gave us some advice that stayed with me everyday throughout the entire pregnancy (and I am sure for the rest of my life as well). She explained to me that God gives us the grace that we need for each day.  Not the grace that we will need for 9 months down the road, but what we need just for today.  He will provide that to us.  Those words that she said kept echoing and reminding me that God knew this little one would have this mass and He prepared us with the ultrasound techs and doctors who would find it, right when they needed to and to monitor it.  This gave me so much peace in knowing that, by taking one day at a time, He would sustain us through. 

31 weeks

            Because of my history of preterm labor (Caroline entered into the world at 31 weeks), gestational diabetes and now the health concerns of the baby, the doctors wanted me to deliver out at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Pensacola rather than at Eglin AFB Hospital.  They have a large and capable NICU that would be able to care for the potential complications that we might be facing.  So, I was assigned to a new doctor over in Pensacola who we met at 28 weeks.  Very laid back, helpful, and matter of fact, we discussed my history and at our first visit he told us, “You are basically a ticking time bomb.”  Yep, that’s exactly what you want to hear during a high-risk pregnancy.  He advised us to have a hospital bag ready to go and he had us schedule a C-section for 39 weeks.  I laughed, because I knew there was no way I was making it to February, but I agreed.  

           

            Each week we had an ultrasound, we were told things were progressing well, the growth was either growing minimally or staying the same size.  Since CCAMs are made up of abnormal tissue, it is unknown how the baby’s lungs will react when they take their first breath out of the womb.  Because of this and the fact that they will need to take the mass out as soon as possible, via surgery, we met with the Pediatric Surgeons along with touring the NICU over the next few weeks. 

"Do not be anxious anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 4:6-7

Christopher's Story ..... June 2017

June 2017

Memorial Day 2017 I noticed I was a few days late, but didn’t think anything of it because pregnancy wasn't an option, as we had been told.  A few days after that I thought, why not, just go ahead and buy the test ... again.  Like so many months over so many years.  So, I did. On June 1^st, I got up bright and early, because that’s what the box says, right?  I took the test – and it was positive.  Kevin and I were both in shock and total unbelief.  We went up to the hospital that morning to take another ‘official’ test and it came back negative.  They told us we would have to wait 10 days to make an appointment with our doctor to take another one.  

 Art Walk - Downtown FWB - Sweet Cozy Sunshine - 6.2.17 - The day after we found out about the pregnancy
The smile says it all!

Over that weekend, I had a vendor event where I completely lost my voice, as in not even a whisper could come out when I spoke.  On Monday, I dropped Caroline off at VBS and went straight to the hospital.  Came to the front desk and told the airman my story – positive home test, negative lab test, past history of high risk pregnancy and infertility.  She laughed at the fact that I had no voice and talked to the doctor – who ordered a blood test right there.  Got the call later that day that, the results were positive. To say we were speechless was an understatement – not just the fact that I had lost my voice, or the fact that it was positive (many home tests over the weekend re-confirmed that), but the fact that this was the same week, the year before that I had had a surgery determining that pregnancy was ‘impossible’ and also the answer to the wise words of Kevin. We had waited a year, and God had given us a clear answer – one that we never expected!

First Ultrasound

6.16.17 -  5 weeks 2 days

The next day I headed up to the OBGYN’s office to fill out initial paperwork and to talk to the nurse.  On the paperwork, I indicated the surgery I had had the year prior and what the results were.  She looked over the paperwork and said, “Well, this is more than likely an ectopic pregnancy.  Make sure you look for these signs and when you start having them, come up to the ER right away.”  Then, she booked an appointment with the doctor for 10 days later to have an ultrasound. Needless to say, for long 10 days ... we waited.

On June 16^th we went to the appointment.  The ultrasound started and we heard ‘yes, it is in there’ – we verified with him numerous times, that he meant that it was inside the uterus and not an ectopic pregnancy that the original nurse was sure of. Then, he and the assistant kept looking at the ultrasound looking concerned and making small comments to each other.  There was no heartbeat.  Our hearts started to sink.  He said it was OK because I was actually measuring 10 days behind what I originally thought, so at that point there would be no heartbeat.  Come back next week and we will check again.  So, again ... we waited.

Caroline meeting my Grandma  
November 2010

The next Tuesday, we received news that my Grandmother had passed away.  For those of you who don’t know, the day we found out we were pregnant with Caroline, my other Grandmother had passed away.  So, the timing of this passing and pregnancy was extremely unique and precious to us.  

Second Ultrasound

 6.22.17 - 6 weeks 1 day

Two days later, on Kevin’s birthday, all three of us went to the appointment.  We didn’t tell Caroline anything that was going on.  We had figured, if it was good news, it would be a fun way to tell her. If it was bad news, she wouldn’t know what was going on and we could explain it to her later.  We arranged with the assistant to bring me back and get me prepped for the ultrasound, then when they had started, to bring Kevin and Caroline back.  Here is the video of how that ultrasound went.  The camera was turned to Kevin and Caroline in the dark room, but if you turn the volume up, you can hear their exchange J

After the lights turned on, you can see the pure excitement on both of their faces <3

So, we had a baby in the womb, with a heartbeat and a due date of February 14, 2018.  
All three of us were totally and completely in love with this new little baby we had never met.

"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"

Psalm 139:13-14

Christopher's Story .... the Prequel

Christmas 2011

Christopher’s story begins in the summer of 2011.  Caroline had just turned one, and we were given the ‘all clear’ from the doctor’s to try for baby #2.  For about 5 years, with the exception of military birth control (i.e. TDYs, training, and deployments) that was what we did.  I started having some issues that doctors during the first 4 years told me were normal and finally one doctor took notice and took action. We were in our last few months of our time in Korea, he ordered tests and procedures and we found some answers.  He advised us to have these same procedures repeated when we moved back stateside to make sure he didn’t miss anything.

June 2016

Easter 2016

In June 2016, I went into surgery to have an HSG x-ray, hysteroscopy and laparoscopy, to see what was going on.  The results came back, with an answer:  Impossible for conception/pregnancy.  Endometriosis had taken over.  My tubes were completely blocked, clubbed and inoperable, my ovaries were covered so much so the doctor had never seen anything like it.  So, we had our answer, which we were thankful for, but the answer to bearing another child was no.  

We had considered the avenue of adoption during our first bout of infertility before Caroline, so we knew that was a viable option that we would both consider.  Kevin, being very patient and wise told me this after the results came in, “Let’s wait for one year, not thinking about expanding our family.  We don’t want to react to this news and make a knee jerk decision because that would not be fair to the child we adopt and it wouldn’t be healthy for us as a couple or for Caroline to do that.  After a year, God will make it clear whether we are supposed to be content with one child, foster or adopt.”

So, we waited.  Our prayer that, for so many years, had been to have a baby, transformed into asking God to help us learn to be content.  I started to really understand the meaning of each day being a gift and being thankful for the showers of blessings that we are each given daily.   Knowing what we know now about me, what doctors had discovered, we were beginning to realize how fortunate we were to have had one child naturally.  We were so thankful for that reality.

"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."

Philippians 4:12

It's been a while ....

So, I wanted to tell a story of what happened in our family over the past few years and realized that I have a blog for that!  Apparently, I have been holding true to the Blog Title and have definitely kept up with 'Being Busy at Home!'  Sorry for the close to 5 year delay on an update.  Over the next week or so, I will be writing a few posts to break up a longer story - because the little details are important to me and I can't leave them out!