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When my husband and I found out we were expecting, a flood of emotions came along with the good news. We have had two miscarriages previously so along with being happy and excited about the news, we were also a little terrified. I began routine check-ups with my doctor right away and several blood tests to be sure everything was fine. I also had more ultrasounds than I can even count. The first ultrasound that we heard our baby's heartbeat was amazing. It brought a little reassurance to both of us.
Things were going well with the pregnancy until about the 10th week and that's when the complications began. I was put on bedrest from the beginning of September until the day our baby was born. I began having contractions and was in and out of the hospital several times for that. I would take medication to stop the contractions and then go back home. At one point I was taken to Carle Hospital by ambulance to see a high-risk doctor because the contractions didn't seem to stop with the medication. I was there for almost a week on bedrest and then came back home. Once I was home I made several trips to the hospital because of contractions. The medication seemed to stop them each time so then I would go back home.
Eventually the complications got worse and I began leaking amniotic fluid. I then got shipped back up to Carle. It was a Friday and I was only 23 weeks along in the pregnancy. On Saturday one of the neonatal doctors from the NICU came and talked to us. He told us that if we delivered before 24 weeks, our little girl only had a 5-10 percent chance of surviving. We were both terrified at this point. The days went by very slowly and as Tuesday came, problems began. The contractions began again and this time they weren't stopping. At about 9:30 p.m. the doctor had me brought back for a C-section. As I was laying there I was terrified. I didn't know what was going on with our little girl. I didn't know if she survived or if we had lost her. It seemed like an eternity had gone by when the nurse wheeled this tiny little incubator up to me and I saw our baby girl for the first time. She was so tiny and it was scary to see her hooked up to so many machines.
When my husband and I found out we were expecting, a flood of emotions came along with the good news. We have had two miscarriages previously so along with being happy and excited about the news, we were also a little terrified. I began routine check-ups with my doctor right away and several blood tests to be sure everything was fine. I also had more ultrasounds than I can even count. The first ultrasound that we heard our baby's heartbeat was amazing. It brought a little reassurance to both of us.
Things were going well with the pregnancy until about the 10th week and that's when the complications began. I was put on bedrest from the beginning of September until the day our baby was born. I began having contractions and was in and out of the hospital several times for that. I would take medication to stop the contractions and then go back home. At one point I was taken to Carle Hospital by ambulance to see a high-risk doctor because the contractions didn't seem to stop with the medication. I was there for almost a week on bedrest and then came back home. Once I was home I made several trips to the hospital because of contractions. The medication seemed to stop them each time so then I would go back home.
Eventually the complications got worse and I began leaking amniotic fluid. I then got shipped back up to Carle. It was a Friday and I was only 23 weeks along in the pregnancy. On Saturday one of the neonatal doctors from the NICU came and talked to us. He told us that if we delivered before 24 weeks, our little girl only had a 5-10 percent chance of surviving. We were both terrified at this point. The days went by very slowly and as Tuesday came, problems began. The contractions began again and this time they weren't stopping. At about 9:30 p.m. the doctor had me brought back for a C-section. As I was laying there I was terrified. I didn't know what was going on with our little girl. I didn't know if she survived or if we had lost her. It seemed like an eternity had gone by when the nurse wheeled this tiny little incubator up to me and I saw our baby girl for the first time. She was so tiny and it was scary to see her hooked up to so many machines.
We decided to name her Karli Hope. She was born on November 8 at 10:09 p.m. She weighed 1 pound, 5.6 ounces and was 11.4 inches long. She did really well for about 2 and a half weeks and then she began having some problems.
On November 29, Karli was airlifted to St. Louis Children's Hospital. On December 1 Karli had her 1st surgery, a heart ligation. She seemed to be recovering well from this surgery. On December 6 she had to have abdominal surgery. She is doing very well following her surgeries. On Christmas morning we got the best gift ever. They took Karli's breathing tube out and she's been doing wonderful without it. Karli is now 2 pounds, 1 ounce and is 13.5 inches long. We know there is one more abdominal surgery in the near future for Karli but she's a very strong little girl, and we know she will be just fine.
Our family and friends have been working hard to plan a benefit to help cover some of Karli's medical expenses. It will be held on January 21 at the T-Town KC Hall. Starting time is 1:00 p.m. with a soup supper starting at 3 p.m. There will be a DJ, 50/50 drawings every hour. Silent and live auctions, and much much more.
We would like to thank everyone for all their hard work in putting this benefit together. We would also like to thank everyone who has made donations for the benefit. We are so grateful for everyone's thoughts and prayers. They have gotten us through some very rough times. We hope to see you at the benefit.
Luke, Brittany, and Karli Goeckner
