A New Beginning

Hello my name is Sandy Schaeuble, and I would like to share with you the story of my baby. She is due October 15, 2010. My husband and I were very excited when he came home from his deployment in Iraq. We found out I was pregnant about a month after he came home. We were very surprised and felt very blessed to find out I became pregnant so fast. We have one daughter, Kadence, who is 6. She can't wait to be a big sister!
I will never forget the day we found out our baby has full trisomy 13. Thursday June 17, 2010 was a very anticipated day with an important doctor appointment...after two ultrasounds and an amnio test with a specialist. I knew the test results could not be very good since the doctor wanted to talk to us in person and didn't want to give us the results over the phone. When I found out the news I think I was in shock and denial of how could this really be happening to my baby. I went through so many emotions in the next few days because the doctor gave me two different options. The first option was to terminate my pregnancy and the second is to carry the baby until nature takes it's course. I have decided to carry my little angel until God won't let me any longer. I have had an appointment with the Nicu's neonatologists, and they confirmed with my doctor and the specialist about the baby's diagnosis. I was informed the my baby's life expectancy is maybe 1 week. Trisomy babies have multiple birth defects, and our baby has a cleft lip and palate. She still has a strong heartbeat, so the doctors have told me I will most likely have a live birth. 80% of trimsomy babies don't make it to full term, and of the 20% who make it to birth...85% of those babies will live the first month. Trisomy babies are 1 in 10,000 births. It happens when the egg and sperm meet and the cell doesn't fuse together to make a complete cell, and there is an extra chromosome.
I keep thinking is it something I did or that I could've prevented, but the doctors reassured me this does not happen everyday, and there was nothing I could've done to prevent it. After many sleepless nights I have come to peace with my decision to carry my baby to full term. I am nervous for weeks to come, but I have such a great support system with my husband, family, and friends. I would not be able to be as strong as I have been these past few weeks without my great family and friends. I look forward to sharing my journey with you. Although this may not be easy this may be one way I can celebrate my baby's life. I have met some great people who are in the same situation, and my thoughts and prayers go out to all of them. I have an ultrasound appointment coming up in the beginning of August. I will try to update the blog around that time.