"Children of My Own"

My husband and I met in college and were married after we graduated. After we had been married for about three years, we decided it was time to have a baby. After one and a half years of trying, we could not understand why nothing was happening. I had counted my cycle, tried ovulation predictor tests, and taken my temperature regularly. It was a stressful time, but it helped me to get on-line and go to bulletin boards where other people shared their stories. I felt less alone when I read about others who were in my same situation. It also helped to read about successes, which gave me hope. We finally decided to go to the doctor and found out that my husband had a low sperm count. Just to make sure we had all the information, I was tested too, but nothing was found.

To work with the low sperm count, the doctor prescribed Clomid for me, which I received through IVPCARE. We also tried an IUI (intrauterine insemination), but we were told that the chances were very low that the procedure would work the first time. Hearing that information was depressing since my husband and I were so ready for me to become pregnant, but we figured we had to start somewhere.

I guess we beat the odds! Exactly two weeks after the IUI I thought I felt a little funny, so I took an at-home pregnancy test. It came out positive. I was so surprised, and I wanted to make sure that I really saw the positive line…I took five more tests of various brands! My husband and I told our parents, and we were all excited and amazed. Even after five tests that claimed to be 99 percent accurate, I didn't truly feel relieved until I took a blood test and the doctor personally told me I was pregnant.

After taking the blood test, I was asked to come back the next day. The doctor must have seen that my HCG level was elevated. A week later, I had an ultrasound. At first, the sonographer told us she saw four, then said, "Just kidding." We were relieved and thrilled when she pointed out the two small heartbeats on the ultrasound screen.

Although I had morning sickness for more than six months, I had a relatively smooth pregnancy and continued working until the end. For the first few months, I took progesterone suppositories to build up the lining of my cervix and help prevent miscarriage. It was helpful that the medication was delivered to me wherever I was, whether at work or at home. I experienced the same valuable service with the delivery of my prenatal vitamins.

When I was 35 weeks into the pregnancy, I developed pre-eclampsia. I had experienced high blood pressure for several weeks, but I was having symptoms I never mentioned to anyone. Since I was never pregnant before and was not sure what was normal, I didn't mention when I was seeing spots or feeling light-headed. When my blood pressure was at a seriously high level, I was admitted to the hospital and given medications. The next day, I was induced. My labor and delivery lasted 16 and one half hours. The babies came out six minutes apart. Briget weighed four pounds, five ounces and Kelsey was four pounds, four ounces.

The girls are now 10 months old, and my days have been busy! For four months they were both colicky and had reflux, but those days are behind us and we are all settled in much better now. Briget and Kelsey sit up, crawl, and love all toys that make lots of noise. Everywhere I take them, we get a lot of attention. At times, going grocery shopping has taken me three hours! We have our hands full now, but someday my husband and I plan on trying for more children. For now, it's still too soon to think about!