Kathie & Austin Simpson

Our lives changed forever on March 19, 2006 when my water broke, 9 weeks early. After a picture-perfect pregnancy, I experienced PPROM (Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes). After arriving at the hospital, I was given the first of two steroid shots to speed up the development of our baby's lungs and I was started on magnesium and other medications to try and stop/control my labor. 24 hours later, I received the second dose of steroids and was told to hold on and hold out as long as I could. Our doctors said they'd like to get me until at least 36 weeks before making a decision on whether to deliver. I was at 31 weeks.

There was absolutely no explanation for my pre-term labor. You can imagine the anxiety, fear and panic Austin and I felt at the thought of me delivering our baby early. Would our baby have trouble breathing? Would our baby have medical issues or disabilities? Would our baby survive? How and why did this happen? On March 27, 2006, a week after arriving at the hospital, our daughter, Shea was born at 4 lbs. 7 oz., 8 weeks early. There was a team from the NICU waiting in the delivery room to take her. I remember crying and asking if she was ok as they prepared to rush her to the NICU. I got a brief glimpse as they held her up to my face and then she was gone.

Shea was breathing well on her own from the start. I firmly believe the shots I received saved her from respiratory distress. To see your baby in an incubator with tubes, wires and monitors is completely heart-wrenching. There are no words to describe the feeling of leaving the hospital without your baby. Shea spent about a month in the NICU learning to eat and growing. The best day ever is the day you hear that it's time for them to go home.

Today Shea is a healthy and happy 18 (almost) year old. You would never know the challenges she faced coming into this world. We walk each year for March of Dimes in her honor and in honor of the premature babies of family and friends. We walk so March of Dimes can help identify causes of premature birth...so there are no mysteries. Please consider making a donation in support of this great cause.