Six Mouthfuls of Feet!

Back last fall I wrote about my long time friend Laura H was expecting twin boys in March, a month to the day before I was expecting Ian. Earlier in the week I got to meet her beautiful babies and experience for the shortest time what a little of her life has been since their arrival on President's Day (fitting given mom is a US History teacher.) Our downstairs literally looked like a Babies R Us had exploded with 3 babies!!! I made lunch (including the infamous Crack Pie) and we caught up while all holding babies before they headed on to UNC.

As I detailed back in October, Laura H has been a close friend since we moved to NC. While our relationship is now mostly texting and emails more than seeing each other outside of the times we are at the beach. She has been such a resource not only for outstanding teaching, but personally as we both have faced out own issues with infertility.

When we made the IVF decision she was my first call for support. When I heard the possibility of back labor, Laura was my cheerleader to work through what she has done laboring her older son Eli with a natural birth and back labor.

Last summer we would have been likely doing our IVF cycles in the same timeframe before mine was bumped to July. For some strange reason we were at the beach the time she found out she was pregnant with her 3rd cycle much like her 1st cycle so there was much celebration in person. In July I was hurriedly getting on the train in Harvard Square to fly home with my 24 eggs when she texted me that the RE used the words "twins" in response to her growing morning sickness. We had figured between the two of us, someone was hitting the lottery. But, I had the odds given for her final IVF they had harvested only 5 eggs, only 2 making it to implementation stage.

For the next 3 months most Tuesdays Laura will be traveling to UNC in preparation for surgery on her son Leo's cleft. I asked her permission to share her story and picture of our babies as their arrival is a blessing in triplicate.

At 22 weeks of an already difficult twin pregnancy she found out that Baby B had a severe facial cleft and suspected hole in the soft pallet of his mouth. Worse, there were other indicators that this was a chromosomal issue indicative of other long term afflictions. Both Laura and her husband spent much of Thanksgiving week waiting
out genetic testing and were relieved to find out that it was a best case scenario with the cleft alone. In early January they traveled to UNC to meet the team that would perform the testing, design the special feeding appliances, and care for their family and son through a variety of testing and surgeries.

Her sons were born after 3 weeks of hospitalization for preterm labor. Both were healthy thanks to her ability to get them to 36 weeks, 1 day. By the end we were talking/texting every few days and each and every time I felt guilty to be carrying my singleton, healthy pregnancy. I felt and still kind feel like for as much as she has been through and put her body through, God owed her an easy go. I'm sure there is some great design and knowing Laura she has not stopped to question why?

But in her normal indomitable way, she has proved she is among the few that can handle stress that many (myself included) would likely fold under. She is the epitome of supermom and to see her in action with her boys is to watch grace under fire. She is every bit of something to envy not for her stress but for the ability to stay positive and see possibility in all that she does. I am so very proud of her, wish I could carry her burden for her to give her respite, and can call her my old friend.

As she travels these next months between Wilmington and Chapel Hill I have opened my home to watch Max so she can go alone to the appointments many of which involve appliance fittings, serve as place to feed and regroup, and as always send her home with something for her freezer. This is so small and inconsequential and a very small glimpse of her life.

I know she would do the same for me and has been such a support through so much in the decade of our friendship. My good thoughts and prayers are with her and her family as they process through the next steps with 3 beautiful boys by her side.