Miracles Happen

Babies are miracles! Plain and simple. But my babies are not only miracles but an act of God. I have endometriosis. I was diagnosed when I was 18 but knew by 16 that is what I had. To be diagnosed with endometriosis you have to have surgery. It can't be detected through ultra sound or just by symptoms. It is very, very painful also causes women not to be able to have kids. I grew up in a rather large family (13 children all from the same mom and dad) so at age 18 when the reality of this devistating condition was setting in I choose not to believe that I would never have children. I had considered adoption and what an amazing gift these young girls give to not only their baby but to the adoptive parents. In the back of my mind I knew I would have at least one baby.

Jess and I started dating a few months after I was diagnosed. He was still in his Senior year and I had just graduated the year before. Jess and I knew after several months that we were supposed to be married for eternity. Jess still had a two year mission a head of him and I encouraged him to go. Shortly after he left on his mission (about a month) my endometriosis got worse and my doctor wanted to see me. I went into his office and he said to me that I needed to get married right away and try for children but there were no gaurentees that I would ever be able to have kids. My endometriosis was very severe and getting worse. I couldn't help but laugh and he said I'm not kidding. I told him I just sent a missionary off and he's the one that I'm supposed to marry. He has two more years. This doctor was LDS himself and he said all I can do is help you with pain management and we'll leave the rest up to God. 18 months later I was back in his office for a pre-surgery consultation and to have him sign my papers so I could go on a mission my self. He asked about this missionary and I said "oh, he said he'd wait for me." And he said when does he get home. I said six months. He just grinned and signed the papers. After my surgery it was confirmed just how bad my endometriosis had become, but they lasered it all out I was free to go on my mission. While at the MTC, 3 days before my plane was to leave for Florida I had a severe "endo attack". The MTC doctors wanted me to go home get on this medicine for 3 months and as long as it was working they would send me straight back to Florida. This was 2 months before Jess got home. I didn't want to come home. I told the doctors "No my doctor already signed off that I could come out." So they sent me to see the MTC Mission President and his wife. I will never forget this couple and how amazing they are. The Mission President told me Heavenly Father was testing you. Just like with Abraham and Issac. He just wanted to know that you were willing to do anything he asked of you. You have served your mission well and it's now time for you to go home and begin a new mission. He gave me a blessing that said I would be able to get marrie and have children in the Lord's time.

Little did I know that the Lord's time was sooner than my timing. Jess came home two months later and the week I was to give my Stake President a decision as to wether or not I was going back on my mission Jess asked me to marry him. 8 weeks later we were married and 8 weeks after that we found out we were expecting a baby. Talk about the Lord's timing. My doctor couldn't believe it and made me take several pregnancy tests... all which came out positive. Miracles Happen. With Emma I had surgery again and months later after I thought surgery had failed found out we were pregnant again. Both Jackson and Emma had tramatic entries into this world. After each child was born my doctor would pull up a chair and tell me just how special each baby was and how they should not have survived birth. Emma was most amazing because she had a knot tied in her chord so tight the doctor worked on untying it for the longest time and couldn't. It was also wrapped around her neck 3 times. He told me he'd only seen a knot two other times and the babies were both born still born and the knots were easy to untie. Our next baby Ammon only needed a body and was born too early to live longer than his brief 7 minutes. Then Easton came along...and I want to say what miracle didn't happen with him. Now we are 9 weeks and 2 days pregnant with our last baby that we never thought would be possible yet here we sit and look at the ultrasound pictures and I have heard her heart beating twice now. And all I can say is Miracles Happen!
--J