From the beginning

Nathan was due to arrive on January 14, 2008. My pregnancy, which was my second, was going really well. I didn't feel exhausted, I craved healthy food like salads and milk, and since I was carrying weight from my first pregnancy was happy to hear I wasn't gaining to much. My check-ups were great and I couldn't wait till my ultrasound to see what I was having. My husband (Matt) and my daughter (Audrey) came with me to find out. Now Matt and I were sure that we were having another girl. We waited for the tech to finish all the important stuff and were thrilled when she said it was a BOY!! One girl, one boy-PERFECT. Matt took Audrey to the bathroom and I leaned over to the tech and asked "Are you absolutely positive it's a boy? We're not going to be surprised when a girl is born are we?" She said "I wouldn't tell you if I wasn't positive. I've been doing this for 14 years." Now I had to ask because I thought I was only going to have girls, but I secretly knew it was a boy since all I wanted was a blue bedroom. The tech printed up ultrasound pictures and gave them to us. Once in the car, I looked at those images and at the time thought she didn't take as nice pictures as when I was pregnant with Audrey. Now as I look back, I believe those really were the first signs of dwarfism.

Everything progressed well until my 36th week. Although I measured fine in the belly, I had only gained 9lbs. throughout the pregnancy and the doctor ordered another ultrasound to get the baby's weight. The tech performed the ultrasound and then I was asked to wait for the doctor. Of course, I thought they were going to tell me his weight or that I was going to have the baby early or something. What came next was like a scene in a movie. You know where they zoom in on someone mouth as they are talking and it's slowed down and real deep. I don't remember much of what was said. The doctor started with the long bones were measuring short and then it seemed to go into statistical formulas and numbers. I remember sitting there and thinking after I heard the word short, "Does this mean he's a dwarf?" The doctor never said that nor did she seem to know what to say about the situation. Of course, I didn't either, everything fell on deaf ears and I knew that they had to do another ultrasound. I took Audrey by the hand (she was with me through it all) and left the office and got in the car. I probably shouldn't have been driving but I didn't want Audrey to think something was wrong. I cried the whole 20 minutes it took to get home.

I immediately ran to my computer and started my research. I had to ask the question, What does it mean if a baby's bone are measuring short? My conclusion was what had popped into my head as soon as the doctor said "short bones"-dwarfism. I must of spent hours on the computer hitting one link after another, reading the medical jargon and wondering what his life was going to be. I understood quite a bit since I have a medical background, which may have been a downfall. Now I had to take all I found out and inform Matt what the doctor said and what the meant down the road. He took the day off so we could see the specialist for my second ultrasound. I was hoping that Nate was not in a good spot on the first ultrasound and the second would confirm everything was okay. But the results came back the same as the first. Although they got that information right, Nate was not the 9lbs they said he was going to be. I was scheduled for a c-section after actively arguing that I needed to have him now.

My c-section was scheduled for 9 A.M. on Jan. 4, 2008. I pushed for Dec. 31, 2007 but they wouldn't do it. I guess you have to be 38 1/2 weeks. Nathan Edward Wolf was born at 9:04 A.M on Jan. 4, 2008. He weighed 7lbs 9oz and was 20 1/2 inches long. He passed his app gar's with 9's and was healthy and beautiful. His was examined by several doctors and taken to the NICU to await x-rays. I was taken to a room to recover and waited for my son. I thought an hour or two but it really took 5 hours for me to see him again. The nurse rolled him into the room, I finally got to hold him. I stared at his face and I held his hand and I knew that Nathan had achondroplasia dwarfism. I didn't need a doctor to tell me or the x-rays to show it or even an explanation why it happened. All I needed was to know the best way to care for my son. What needed to be done medically to insure his life?