MARCH FOR BABIES: A MOTHER OF A MOVEMENT™
Sioux City
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Long Lines Family Rec Center
401 Gordon Dr. , Sioux City, IA 51101
Date: Saturday, April 25, 2015 9:30 AM
401 Gordon Dr. , Sioux City, IA 51101
Date: Saturday, April 25, 2015 9:30 AM
Our ambassador
The Mansfield Family
The Mansfield Family
After a long journey of trying to conceive, we were so excited to find out that we were pregnant. After an early ultrasound, it was discovered that I was not only pregnant but there were two bundles of joy in our future. I felt great and had no problems until a routine ultrasound at 23 weeks where it was discovered that I was going into labor and needed to go on bed rest to hopefully slow the process. I returned for a check-up the next week to find that my contractions had increased and my labor had progressed. With my pregnancy only being at 24 weeks, we were sent to Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha. This was a scary time. I knew that they were far too little and premature to be born this early. Once I reached the hospital, I was given medications to stop the labor and steroid shots to assist the babies in their development. The medications worked and we were overjoyed that I was still pregnant. Unfortunately, we were not in the clear. I was kept on hospitalized bed rest for the next 4 weeks. At 28 weeks and after again trying several medications, the labor could not be stopped any longer. I was taken in for an emergency c-section on August 28, 2008 and Keating and Makenna were born. They weighed only 2 lbs., 1 oz and 1 lb., 15 oz.
I woke to find that 4 hours had passed and the babies were finally stabilized. It was 5 days before we were able to hold Makenna outside of her incubator, and it was 9 days before we held Keating. Their journey of growing into healthy children would be a long one. During their 84 days in the NICU, they struggled with breathing, jaundice, a brain bleed, heart murmurs, feeding and weight gain problems. After coming home, we met with a therapist every month for about 20 months to make sure the girls were progressing in their development and to address any issues that came up. They have strived through all of these struggles and are now 6 years old and very healthy, happy little girls.
Through research from the March of Dimes, we were able to have another child full term. During this pregnancy, I received progesterone shots weekly starting at 20 weeks gestation. Our son, Nolan was born full term and healthy.
We are honored to be the Ambassador Family for this year’s Sioux City March for Babies. We hope that the continued support of the March of Dimes will help all babies to be born full term and to go home healthy.
Jenny, Shawn, Keating, Makenna and Nolan Mansfield
NATIONAL PARTNERS
