Jessica's birth story was not the norm. She was born at 34 weeks, and I felt AWFUL durning the whole pregnancy. I was a high risk pregnancy because I had Amanda (Jessica's older sister) at 33 weeks with an emergency c-section and also developed preeclampsia pretty bad around 33 weeks. We also detected along the way that Jessica had a 2 vessel cord. From my understanding (at the time), a 2 vessel cord wasn't anything to get overly worried about. Mommy & baby would be monitored frequently with more intense ultrasounds. Looking back, I am pretty sure I was in denial about something actually being wrong with Jessica, because I already had a special needs child. I certainly was not going to have another one, right??
Like I said, my pregnancy was horrible. The only saving grace was that for some miraculous reason, my best friend and co-worker got pregnant at the very same time. We even had the same due date; May 15th. If you are reading this today, then you are figuring out that Jessica never made it to the due date!
The other tidbit of information is that my husband and I were not married when I was pregnant. We had been dating for almost a year, so Jessica was quite a surprise. It sent us into a tailspin trying to figure out what our relationship really was, and where it was going. My husband was really good with Amanda, so I knew that he would make a good Dad. I wasn't really worried about that. The thing with my husband is he just doesn't make decisions. He would avoid everything if he could. After months of conversation, we decided to get married after Jessica was born. We had a quick little ceremony at the local Justice of the Peace. We had 2 witnesses, Amanda and Jessica. Needless to say, I am the awful woman that stole their son and his wedding experience from his family. But we can save in law relationships for another day!
As I am writing this, I realize I am getting off track. But it is getting me to remember little things that were happening in 2002/2003. I remember getting a call from an old fiancee, who was calling to apologize at how he had treated me in the past. It was a very nice call because I still thought about him a lot (and occasionally still do). We both checked in with each other, and for some reason I felt really proud to tell him I was pregnant. I wanted him to know that as much as he had hurt me, that I was able to move on and be happy. If I am remembering correctly, he was broken up with his girlfriend at the time of the call - but I can't speak to what his true motives were making that call.
Ok, enough with the talking about old flames! This is Jessica's 10th birthday!!
Jessica was born at 34 1/2 weeks, and weighed in at 3lbs 14oz. The doctors immediately did ultrasounds on her kidneys to determine if there were any residual effects from the 2 vessel cord. I was so relieved to find out that she was fine! She remained in the NICU for a little under 2 weeks, and then we were allowed to bring her home. I remember being happy and nervous at the same time.
Those first few months seemed really easy. Jessica was a good baby. She loved the swing, and was really happy. We ended up moving to the home we live in now, and as she got older I started to notice that she was missing some milestones. We had Early Intervention in when she was 6 weeks old, so we at least had a team around us to get her to where she needed to be. When she was around 2 years old I started to have suspicions that Jessica had autism. She wouldn't sleep. She would never ask me for something to eat and drink. If she wanted juice, she would go to the fridge and get the juice and bring it to me. She was very independent in ways that she shouldn't have been. She even had the classic honeymoon period where her speech was really emerging, but then it sadly went away.
As I look at Jessica over the past 10 years, I have to say that the age she is right now is my favorite (minus the puberty). She tells silly jokes, is a talented artist, is starting to understand feelings and how to express them. We have found out that she is a really good speller. She still loves her stuffed animals, but has moved on to the awesomeness that is Pokemon. I have never met a girl like Jessica. A girl that shines so bright, but can also be so isolated. I wouldn't trade her for anyone or anything. I love her, and absolutely cannot believe that the little preemie has turned into my grown up, decade old Jessica.
Happy Birthday Jessica!!
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