My Story...

It's time to share my story. Part of God's story in my life. I want to share my story with you. I pray that it will reach into your heart and awaken your soul. I pray that as a result of my story, YOU will remember your first love.

It was supposed to be a nice 4-day weekend with my husband. Then I was supposed to return home while he stayed and completed his rotation. I was supposed to go back to work on Tuesday and finish the semester with my wonderful gifted students.

Supposed to...

"Life doesn't always turn out like you hoped." I had heard that phrase many times before in my short 28 years of life. However, I never really knew what it meant until last October.



On October 11, 2010, I was 22 weeks pregnant with twin girls. My husband and I were enjoying the long weekend together; we went to eat with friends, relaxed in his apartment, and just truly enjoyed being with each other.

It was my first pregnancy, after trying for over two years and it had progressed very smoothly so far. I was growing steadily and I was just starting to really enjoy being pregnant. I was feeling the girls move and kick very often, sometimes constantly for an hour at a time! We hadn't decided on names yet, but we had a few in mind. The nursery was getting prepared and we were getting excited.

That weekend, I noticed some slight bleeding and felt a slight pressure from the babies. It didn't concern me or my husband too much, so we went about our plans with friends as usual. However, Monday morning starting at 2 a.m., things started to change. I had some cramping that woke me up and was somewhat painful. I decided to wait and see if it would go away. I had heard about Braxton-Hicks contractions and cramping, so I thought maybe it was nothing of concern. When the cramping continued regularly through the early morning hours, I woke up my husband and expressed worry. We agreed that I should go to the ER and get checked out, still thinking that it was nothing major.

At the ER, I was immediately placed in a wheelchair and taken to the Labor & Delivery floor, where they prepped me for an exam. That's when my world turned upside down.

I was 5 cm dilated and very effaced. Those cramps were contractions and I was going into pre-term labor. My girls, at just 22 weeks in the womb, were in jeopardy of being born.

My thoughts were a jumble of concerns, and I struggled to focus on what was happening. The nurse explained that I would be transferred to another hospital where there were expert doctors and a NICU.

I was scared. But fear is not of the Lord, and he calmed me by bringing to mind the song "It is Well." I meditated on that song for the next few critical hours. Through the ambulance ride to the other hospital, through the slew of doctors and nurses and explanations about what would happen, through the medications that were supposed to stop my contractions.

I knew my God was with me through all of it. He was there when the contractions didn't stop. He was there when we decided to deliver "Baby A" because she was coming, ready or not. He was there when we named her Joanna Katherine. He was there when she was born and for every one of the 40 minutes that she was alive. He was there to call her home. God was there. And it was well with my soul.

To be continued...

1 John 4:15
"If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God."