The Miracle of Will
Tuesday, July 26, 2011 Posted by Felicia
40 weeks and 6 days had passed to the most amazing journey, or so I thought! Austin and I had prayed for this child for months and didn't expect the road to be tread in the way it was. We lost a child on the way and when we were blessed with the opportunity of being pregnant the second time, we took that journey and decided that we were ready to be lead by our Savior every moment of every day no matter what. We never dreamed it would go the way it did, and we are to this day thankful for every moment that we were and are given.
The pregnancy was perfect, I enjoyed every moment and did everything I could to get out and be active and provide the best enviroment for our little one during the time in my belly. We did not find out what we were having and enjoyed the element of surprise. At 36 weeks our doctor noticed an enlarged portion of the brain in the ultrasound. We were referred to a high risk OB to find out that the brain was fine but that I had a mutation of a gene related to MTHFR which meant that I had not processed ANY Folic Acid during the entire pregnancy. We knew then that we already had a miracle on our hands.
At 41 weeks, I delivered a big little guy named Will at 8:28 pm on March 18, 2010. He entered with ease and blessed us with his presence from the moment I set my gaze upon him. He was healthy, large, long, and the result of a very normal delivery with a little help from Pitocin. While in the hospital, we were in awe of him, he was so cute and had such a great countenance, he was the child we prayed for daily. Two days later we left the hospital, ready to face the new role as parents, excited and terrified all the same.
Three hours after walking into our house, Will began shaking from head to toe, so much so that at times he could not eat. This came and went over the next few hours while we attempted to reach our doctor. After talking to the doctor and describing the symptoms, we were told to go to the ER immediately, that what we described sounded like seizures. With tears streaming down my face, I sat in the back of the car with him, watching him seize, I stroked his face and repeatedly whispered to him "It will be okay buddy, it will be okay."
We arrived at University Hospital's ER and were later transferred two blocks to the Medical College of Georgia's Children's Medical Center PICU where it was determined, Will had a bleed in the left lateral ventricle of his brain. We were told it did not look good, they may not be able to stop the bleed. For hours, I sat and stared at my tiny child laying in the Bili tank with tubes and wires coming out of every limb of his body. I could not hold him, I could not feed him, I could only touch him through the holes in the tank. In the beginning I didn't want to touch him, I was removed, terrified that if I got attached, it would be harder to say goodbye. By God's grace and my mom's persistence and encourage words, I put my hand in the tank and talked to Will, sang to him, and sang to myself that we were being led all the way by a loving Savior that gives us "grace for every trial." As days went by we continued to pray for our little miracle. Thankfully, we were not resting on the hope of the doctors, we were resting in the arms of our Savior who stopped the bleed. Three days later, we were able to take Will home and administer his phenobarbital each night at home. Will was a fighter from day one, and he is our little miracle, a healthy baby boy with absolutely no damage, functioning normally and living life with a smile on his face. On his third day of life we wondered if he would live to see the fourth, today he is living and breathing proof that miracles still happen!
"All the way my Savior Leads me, whom have I to ask beside, how can I doubt his tender mercy, who through life has been my guide!"
Our little big miracle of life: littlebigmiracleoflife.blogspot.com
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Austin and Taylor Bell are blessed to be parents of Will (16 months) and thankful that he shares the house with our two dogs and loves them! Austin and I have been married for 7 and 1/2 years and met at Covenant College during our Freshman year. Austin is a golf professional and I am a school psychologist in the public school system. Will entered our world in March of 2010 and we couldn't be happier. We have enjoyed the last 16 months of pure joy and a new understanding of love!
Visit Taylor's personal blog: Miracle of Life.
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July 26, 2011 10:02 AM
I'm so glad that Will was able to overcome all that stuff. Whenever something is happening in or around the brain it scares me. Will got through it!
July 26, 2011 10:09 AM
Wow, what an amazing story and testimony of the amazing love of our Heavenly Father!
July 26, 2011 11:50 AM
That is an amazing story! How scary for you all. Will is absolutely adorable!