{"id":12427,"date":"2023-11-20T14:25:16","date_gmt":"2023-11-20T20:25:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/?p=12427"},"modified":"2023-11-20T15:11:38","modified_gmt":"2023-11-20T21:11:38","slug":"precious-opal-and-owen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/precious-opal-and-owen\/","title":{"rendered":"Precious Opal and Owen"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A1\"
Mona Lisa Shutters Photography & Venue<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Parents rarely feel prepared for twins. They feel even less prepared when the twins are born four months early.<\/p>\n

Ashley and DJ were ecstatic when they found out she was pregnant. They were even more ecstatic when they found out she was having twins. But their excitement quickly turned into anxiety and fear, as she started having complications and was told to expect pre-term labor.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was only 23 weeks pregnant, and they said I needed to reduce stress on my body,\u201d Ashley said. \u201cTwo weeks later\u2026I started having contractions.\u201d<\/p>\n

The hospital near their hometown does not have the necessary support for babies born before 34 weeks, so she was flown by helicopter to Mayo Clinic in Rochester. It was the beginning of a 100-night journey for their family.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was told it would be pre-term labor, but we didn\u2019t fully realize how early it would be,\u201d said Ashley. \u201cDoctors hoped we would make it to 30 weeks, but we knew it was unlikely.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur babies were coming a lot earlier than we were expecting.\u201d\"A5\"<\/p>\n

Ashley was placed on a magnesium drip and given steroid shots to help the babies\u2019 brain development and lung growth. There was no progress for a few days\u2014they simply monitored the babies\u2019 hearts and Ashley\u2019s vitals. But at 25 weeks and four days, she needed an emergency Cesarean-section. Opal and Owen were born, both weighing less than two pounds.<\/p>\n

They would need to stay in the neonatal intensive care unit for a while, and in the hospital until their due date (at least). Both were on oxygen, feeding tubes, lines for nutritional assistance, and bilirubin monitoring. But both were in stable condition and improving.<\/p>\n

Ashley spent three nights in the hospital, and her and DJ stayed in Rochester for a couple weeks before he returned home for work. When he did, they decided to find a better option for Ashley; they decided to ask about the Ronald McDonald House.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was shocked; I was blown away,\u201d Ashley said. \u201cThere is so much more to the House. It was more than I could have ever imagined\u2026especially after such a difficult delivery.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A3\"\u201cOur initial visit to the House gave me so much confidence,\u201d said DJ. \u201cThe House is so safe and secure and close to the hospital. It made me feel better about our situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the next three months, Opal and Owen overcame challenge after challenge. Both were on oxygen most of the time they were in the hospital\u2014Opal is still on oxygen. Both suffered from hemorrhaging (brain bleeds), which required frequent ultrasounds. Both had retinopathy of prematurity, an eye disease characterized by abnormal blood vessels\u2014Owen\u2019s eyes improved, but Opal needed corrective surgery.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have made progress, but we don\u2019t know the long-term effects of the brain bleeds,\u201d said Ashley. \u201cIt could result in mobility or cognitive complications, but nothing is certain.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A4\"
Mona Lisa Shutters Photography & Venue<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While Opal and Owen were growing in the hospital, Ashley was recovering at the Ronald McDonald House. After 12-hour days with her babies, she would return to a home-cooked meal, a House activity, and a community of support. Staff, volunteers, and other parents would check in with Ashley and ask about Opal and Owen; \u201cit reminded me of the positives,\u201d said Ashley.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy experience changed my perspective,\u201d Ashley said. \u201cUntil you experience the House firsthand, you don\u2019t know what it means to families.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are not only giving families a roof over their heads\u2014you are giving parents access to their kids. I wouldn\u2019t have been able to spend as much time with Opal and Owen without the generous support of the people who donate to the House.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd time is something you can\u2019t put a price on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Opal and Owen are growing bigger and stronger every day, but they will have monthly check-ups for the foreseeable future. They will be lifelong Mayo Clinic patients\u2026and Ronald McDonald House guests for as long as they need.<\/p>\n

\"A2\"<\/p>\n

Help families like Opal and Owen’s!
\nDONATE TODAY<\/a><\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Parents rarely feel prepared for twins. They feel even less prepared when the twins are born four months early. Ashley and DJ were ecstatic when they found out she was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12420,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,9],"tags":[75,33,76,74,73,70],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12427"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12427"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12427\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12437,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12427\/revisions\/12437"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rmhcmidwestmwi.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}