We were feeling overwhelmed but excited to add two more precious boys to our family back in 2013. Our excitement turned to fear when preterm labor started just after 24 weeks gestation. Magnesium sulfate held things off for a few days, and ultimately Asher and Jude made their way into the world at 24 weeks and 6 days, weighing less than two pounds each. The boys battled obstacles in the Woman’s Hospital NICU for five long months before they were able to come home. The March of Dimes developed surfactant therapy was life changing for our fragile micro preemies. We are forever grateful to their research and family support services for being an integral part of bringing the boys home healthy.
Amy Parker's Story
Our twins, Jack and George, were born at 28 weeks after a completely healthy pregnancy with no complications. Their early arrival was both shocking and terrifying, and the next 125 days would change all of our lives forever. Although both boys were born with relatively few complications, all of that changed when they contracted a life-threatening, methicillin-resistant staph infection. Jack’s condition was particularly grave. His lungs collapsed over and over, and we were told to say goodbye more times than I care to remember. At his worst, he was on life support with six chest tubes inserted into his fragile lungs and medically paralyzed in the hopes of buying him time to heal. It was, without question, the scariest time in our family’s life and one from which we may never truly recover. We are incredibly fortunate, however, to know both the tragedy of prematurity and the miracles that can spring from its devastation. Both of our twins, neither of whom were ever supposed to leave the hospital alive, are now healthy toddlers. Jack has had two brain surgeries since he left the NICU and countless appointments with specialists and physical and speech therapists. We were told he might never talk or learn to walk, but he is defying the odds and walked into preschool this September on his own two feet. Jack and George are our heroes, and we are extraordinarily blessed to have the honor of being their parents and watching them grow up together.
