Andrew

Well, it will be ten years ago this coming November that I found out I was pregnant with my first child. Dave and I had been married six months and knew we wanted to start a family right away. We got pregnant immediately. The pregnancy was uneventful. I worked up until the day Andrew was born. Looking back that was stupid - I should have been taking it easy and not worried so much about my unimportant work load. Anyways, my water broke at at 3am - but no contractions. The doctor said to wait it out a bit and home and come into the office in the morning. I did, and was sent to the hospital - barely dilated and no contractions. My doctor induced my labor and some 30 hours later, 3 hours of pushing and fundal pressure (a medical student pressing on my belly to push the baby out per the doctors direction) Andrew David was born at 6lbs 12oz. He was given apgar scores of an 8 and a 9. Immediately the nurses noted Andrew was grunting (having trouble breathing). He was very beat up from such a long delivery. His eyes were swollen. The nurses kept him with me or in the regular nursery, and didn't tend to him and his labored breathing. Andrew had a funny cry and trouble breast feeding. I didn't know anything was wrong being a first time mom. I just was happy he was here. Andrew's second day of life, he turned blue right in front of the nurses and me. At this point he was rushed to the NICU - without us - curtains were closed - he was gone and within minutes nurses were calling us asking us questions and wanting permission to perform all sorts of tests - including a spinal tap. Dave and I went home that afternoon without our son. I never dreamed that I would have my baby and he wouldn't be coming home with us right away. That was the hardest thing. Andrew spent 14 days in the NICU - tests were run for everything. Dave and I would visit Andrew several times a day. I remember always being worried about where Andrew would be in the NICU when we would first arrive for our visits. Everything was out of our control for his care. Once again, being a first time Mom I trusted the care he was getting, but looking back I would have been way more on top of all of that. After all the tests - it was determined Andrew had bleeding throughout his brain, he was seizing many times a day. He could drink by bottle and actually looked to be one of the healthier babies in the NICU- being he was a big full term baby. We were told when we left the NICU (with many instructions for his care and directions to follow up with many specialty doctors) that Andrew "might have some balance troubles when he was older", "that we would look back at this time and laugh". Well, they were way wrong. Shame on them. Andrew had the classic signs of a brain damaged baby and looking back I believe they knew that. It is still unclear to this day as to why Andrew's brain bled.

The bad........ Over Andrew's first months at home were quite stressful. He cried constantly. He was so irritated all the time. Andrew did manage to smile, laugh and roll over on time, but that was it. Today, Andrew cannot sit, walk, talk or see very well. He has several seizures daily. There were many, many uneasy years - doctor visits around the country, tests, daily therapy, meetings and all sorts of worry and circumstances I wasn't even prepared for. There were years of hospital visits trying to figure out why Andrew was crying in pain, we were always worrying were we doing enough for him? Always thinking Andrew would reach that milestone to sit on his own. There was the unexplained vomiting periods several times a day. There were days when we would just feed him pizza because that's all he would eat. Andrew has been a guinea pig for at least 10 different seizures medicines, always bringing new worries and new seizure activity to his already turbulent life.

And now the good..... Andrew is now at a "stable" place. He is so handsome and always happy. He enjoys just sitting with you and enjoys the simple things. He has taught us to just relax and live life to the fullest everyday.

Within the last few years Andrew has started smiling again. One of my favorite memories is when our family was at the beach with our extended family all around. Our family was having lunch together at the table and Andrew started giggling and smiling for this first time in years. Dave and I had tears. We couldn't believe it. Our then 3 year old Amelia turned to me and said "Mom, Andrew's laughing!" Amelia and Ava then started laughing too. It was awesome! No one else in the room had any clue the simple joy that our family was experiencing at that one moment.

Andrew has been many places..... to Sanibel, FL so many times I've lost count, he's been to Yellowstone, Yosemite, Shennahdoah, Great Smokey Mountains, swimming with the Dolpins in the Florida Keys. He loves to swim, and ride horses, go for drives, walks and his favorite--to eat! Andrew needs our care 24/7, so his life is not like ours or our girls, but we try to make his life just as it would have been if he had not suffered his brain injury. Andrew goes to school M-F and enjoys it. He's around caring people that gear activities for kids like him. Andrew is nine now and growing more and more everyday. I couldn't imagine life without my living angel.