Resuscitated! Chelsea Christine, 1991, miracle baby.  Let me share a bit of her traumatic beginning.  Because I was almost 2 weeks overdue, my doctor recommended that I get a stress test.

During the testing, her heart rate plummeted during contractions and eventually stayed down even between the contractions, so I was prepped for an emergency C-section.  I was completely unconscious in less than a minute.

Revive her!

She was delivered but had to be resuscitated.  We were told that she had aspirated meconium because of the traumatic birth.  She spent 3 days in the NICU.

The nurses kind of “made fun” of her (in a good way) because she weighed 7 and 1/2 pounds and was so healthy compared to the other babies.

I can’t what?!

Those 3 days were agonizing.  I wasn’t allowed to nurse her because the doctor didn’t feel she was ready to have any food introduced into her system. We couldn’t even hold her for a day and a half! The only thing she got for 1-2 days was sugar water.

Big mistake.  She is now a candy lover.  But thankfully, she recovered quickly and we took home a perfectly healthy, beautiful baby.

Happily married

Chelsea is now 25 years old and has been married to Jacob Carlson for 1.5 happy years.

This is an exciting and (stressful) time for them because they are about to acquire a mortgage.  Their new house should be finished this spring.

She earned a biology degree and works at Midwest Labs.

Chelsea is a true middle child; the life of the party!  She was SO strong-willed growing up.  Still is some but has mellowed out.

I bet you can relate if you have one of these.

Resuscitated and healthy!

Chelsea and I

Garden hose?

By the way, afterward, we found out what had happened during labor and delivery.  The umbilical cord had a band around it.

This band kinked during the contractions and cut off her oxygen! Kind of like when a hose gets kinked up and stops the water flow.

Not one survived

Our doctor had never seen one in all his years of delivering babies.  He researched it and found that all babies with this kind of band on their cords perished during delivery because they couldn’t get oxygen!

Having that stress test probably saved her life.

We had a miracle baby!  My sister, Tricia, got Chelsea a colorful little plaque that said, “God danced the day you were born.”  So true.  It hung in her room all her growing-up years. ♥

Beautiful NICU baby

Our first view of Chelsea

Chelsea is a character.  She’s clever and quick and is rarely without a comeback.  We have a notebook called “The Funny Book” that I wrote in when the kids were little.  I recorded what I thought were funny (and some sweet) things that they said.

Here are a few of Chelsea’s best.  (Also check out Lacey and Calie‘s funnies!)

I was feeding Calie (7  1/2 months) her breakfast. Chelsea had her purse and said she was “going to the store to buy Calie teeth so she can chew.”  Chelsea was 2  1/2.

Chelsea had her finger in her mouth and she said, “I have dots inside me.”  She had felt her taste buds. She was almost 3.

I was changing clothes and had put on a dickie (remember those?!)  Chelsea was watching me and said, “That shirt is too little.”  Age 2  3/4

Some growing up scenes 

Stubborn kiddo

We saw this face all too often.  She probably wanted candy!  😛

This chubby baby had to be resuscitated

Luke was trying to put his arms around Chelsea.

He didn’t know where to put his hands.

She didn’t know what was going on.

Kid in dog bed

She didn’t feel well and took a nap with Annie.

Daddy-daughter dance

Daddy-daughter dance at Westside Church

She helped her Uncle Rick flip a house.

Notice that she got the handle on the wrong side of the cabinet door!

Graduation from Concordia High School, Omaha, NE

High school graduation, with Calie

Backyard hammock

Just hangin’ with Lace and Annie

Castle Unicorn, Pacific Junction, IA

Chelsea and Jacob had a beautiful wedding at Castle Unicorn

Bursting with personality

I love this kid. We’ve had our issues in the past, but have grown closer through them.  

There is never a dull moment when Chels is around!  

She is smart, funny, and beautiful.

You’d never guess that she had a traumatic beginning.

I thank God that our baby was resuscitated. She is a fun miracle!  ♥  

Can’t wait to see what her and Jacob’s future holds… besides oodles of candy.  😉

Blessings and blooms,

Pam

Author: Pam

Glad you’re here!