An Abrupt Change in Direction...

After several ultrasounds, DNA karyotype testing, amniocentesis, and a fetal MRI we know more about our baby then we know about ourselves.  The bloodflow through every heart valve has been calculated and the measurements of every part of the brain carefully recorded.  It’s very remarkable how much you can know about a person that doesn’t even weigh a pound and is smaller than a head of lettuce.

We spent this past weekend in Beaver Creek for a final getaway before surgery. Stephanie applied for FMLA and has been working with her school to find a new teacher to take over her position.  Plane tickets to Nashville are purchased and I even ordered cable to keep Stephanie company while laid up at home.  If there is one lesson that we have learned through this entire experience it’s that we are not in charge, God is.  His plans are perfect, ours aren’t.  We don’t always understand his plans but we certainly must trust that they are perfect and he has so much more in store for us than we could imagine. 

It should have come as no surprise to us to receive the news today, No Surgery!?!?! Yes, the surgery is off.  Apparently Stephanie has grown the perfect storm in her uterus and the location of the placenta and umbilical cord make performing the surgery not safe for the baby or Stephanie.  All of the surgical team reviewed the MRI and felt that the surgery would be too risky to the life of the baby and this is after all an elective surgery. This is a final check performed right before the surgery and has created quite the shock for us to change directions when we were so prepared for surgery.  So, what does this mean for us and Baby T?

We will proceed forward essentially like a normal pregnancy with a few extra ultrasounds along the way.  Stephanie will deliver in Denver by C-Section at 38/39 weeks.  The baby will need immediate surgery to fix the lesion in the spine and will almost certainly need a shunt placed to drain the fluid from the brain.  We felt very confident that we were making the best decision pursuing the in-utero surgery but God clearly closed that door for us.

I was reminded today of the story of Abraham on the mountain with Isaac.  God sent Abraham up the mountain to sacrifice his son and after showing his willingness to follow God’s plan there was an abrupt change in direction.  We have felt that we are following God’s plan but obviously his plan doesn’t always follow the linear path that we envision.

We remain very excited for the Baby and continue to ask for your prayers.  Our baby still has a potentially serious birth defect and needs lots of prayer.  Please pray for guidance as we select the doctors to deliver and operate on the baby in Denver.  We continue to hope for the best possible outcome for this child and know that “he” is still a “wonderfully made” child. 

Thank you for the outpouring of support and love.  We will continue to keep everyone updated on the progress of the pregnancy but at this point things will be much less interesting until the baby is born later this year.

Blessings,

Kyle & Steph

Looks like we have a thumb sucker

What we thought was our last hike for a while (near Vail)