A totally unexpected surprise

On April 7, 2011 my husband Joe & I, & our 2 kids, Brandon & Alyssa flew from Chattanooga, Tennessee to Salt Lake City, Utah to attend Joe's brother's wedding. I was 30 weeks, 5 days along. My OB/GYN said I was perfectly fine to travel. I had found out a about 7 weeks earlier that I had a low lying placenta, but there were no major concerns & baby was perfectly healthy & fine.

The wedding was wonderful, & the company spent with close family  & friends was just the same. We boarded our flight to head home on Tuesday, April 12th. I stood up to let the couple sitting next to me take their seats, & my water broke. Not just a trickle either, like someone had snuck the water hose into the back of my pants. I immeadiately told Joe my water broke & we had to get off this plane. 

By the time I got back to the gate the EMTs were waiting on me & rushed me to Intermountain Medical Center. The doctors hurried in & assessed my condition & confirmed my membranes had indeed ruptured. My contractions were every 5 minutes or so apart. Around 7 or so, my contractions started getting stronger & every 3 minutes apart. The doctors came in & told me it was time to get down to business-the contractions weren't stopping & the longer they waited the more at risk baby & I were at.

At 9:55 pm April 12, 2011, Brooklyn Cate entered this world weighing 4 pounds, 8 ounces & 17 inches long. She was breathing on her own right from the start, & let the nurses know what she thought of being evaluated. I could hear her crying in the NICU room next door to the OR. 

Once I was put back together so to speak, I went back to my room to recover for an hour or so, then I got to go to the NICU to see my little girl. She was on a CPAP machine to help keep her lungs clear, but otherwise she was stable & breathing on her own. At just a few hours old, the CPAP was removed & replaced with a standard nasal cannula. She was started on feedings around 24 hours of age, & seemed to tolerate them well. 

Nearly one week later, Brooklyn is doing well & holding her own. It's hard to believe a week has gone by. I am blessed, & in awe of this tiny miracle that God has gave us.