Our Wonderful News!
My husband and I found out that we were pregnant on December 23, 2008. I took a home pregnancy test and it was positive! This was our first baby together and we were thrilled! I was so excited I told our close family and friends the good news on Christmas Day.
I was very nervous since this was my first baby and I was anxious for my 8 week appointment so I could see the baby on the ultrasound. It snowed the morning of my appointment and I thought for sure that my appointment would be cancelled. Thankfully, the nurse practitioner at my doctor’s office showed up for work and we were able to see the first images of our baby on the ultrasound monitor. We were thrilled!
The Nightmare Begins:
At 13 weeks I went in for the Nuchal Translucency screening. I thought this would just be a routine appointment, so I did not ask my husband to come with me. Our doctor took his time taking the measurements and then told me he was very concerned about my baby. The NT measurement was 8 mm, which is very high. He told me that it could be a number of different things, none of them good, and that he wanted to do amniocentesis right away. I was shocked. I called my husband to tell him the news and asked him to leave work to be with me for the amnio. He came to meet me right away. The amnio was done that very same afternoon. I was in a daze after leaving the doctor’s office. I could not believe this was happening to us.
We had to wait an agonizing 10 days before the Amnio results came back. Our doctor never had any hope that the results were going to be good, but we kept hoping for a miracle. Our doctor called us on a Friday afternoon to come in for the results. The Amnio results were positive for Full Trisomy 18. We were devastated. It was also confirmed that our precious little baby was a girl, which I knew in my heart from the very beginning.
Saying Goodbye:
We lost our baby girl on March 26, 2009. I was 17 weeks and 2 days pregnant. We decided to give her a name, since I had already decided on a name for her and it would always be her name. We named her Isabella Leilani Keane. I created a memory box for her. It has all of the ultrasound pictures that we got of her and also the sympathy cards and pictures of the flowers all of our friends and family sent us after hearing of our loss. It helps me to look through the box whenever I get sad. The support of our friends and family has been tremendous. Also my husband Tom has been my rock through everything. He gave me strength when I thought I had none.
Looking to the future:
I think March 26 will always be a hard day for us. We will always remember Isabella and the joy she brought us, even if it was only for a short time. Her due date would’ve been September 1, 2009 and I know that will also be a hard day to face. The pain lessens with every day, but I don’t think it will ever be totally gone.
Our Family Now:
We were blessed the following year with a healthy baby boy on March 18, 2010. His due date was supposed to be March 26, 2010, exactly a year after we lost Isabella. And on June 30, 2012 we were blessed with a healthy baby girl. Our family is now complete, but our Isabella will live on in our memories forever. One day, I will share Isabella’s story with her siblings.