The amazing Mindy Koechling with Noah (5.5), Emily (2.5) and Henry (6 mo). Mindy and her husband struggled with infertility a few years after getting married. They tried Clomid first but it didn't work perhaps due to endometriosis or a blocked tube. The following year they started in vitro fertirilization (IVF). The first attempt didn't take, the second attempt she didn't respond well and only had one viable embryo but Noah was conceived! Her world was changed and she knew she wanted more children. She had a couple of attempts left that would be covered by insurance but she didn't have any embryos frozen so they had to start again but her third cycle didn't go well. She had three embryos to transfer in her fourth and final cycle and initially, two took and she carried both for about six weeks but never saw a second heartbeat other than Emily's. After Emily was born, Mindy struggled with feeling like she had to be done since she didn't have any insurance covered cycles left and couldn't pay for it on her own. To her surprise, the impossible happened and she conceived her freebie baby, Henry! All three of Mindy's pregnancies were relatively healthy. She was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at 1 1/2 years old. She went into full remission with Noah but it progressively got a bit worse with each subsequent pregnancy. She was induced with Noah at 41 weeks and he was ultimately delivered via cesarean due to turning breech during labor. Though she'd hoped to try for VBACs, her next two births were scheduled cesarean births, Emily at 40 weeks and Henry at 39 weeks. Mindy also has a genetic blood condition called Hereditary Spherocytosis which can cause severe jaundice in newborns, anemia and issues with the spleen. Her form is mild but all three of the children needed some time in the hospital under bililights, and Noah even required a blood transfusion at one month of age. Mindy exclusively pumped for Noah for 6 months and provided milk to him for 10 months. She nursed Emily until she was a year old before discovering a lip tie, and nursed for about 8 more months after getting it corrected. Henry has nursed like a champ since day one and is still nursing strong today.
Hereditary Spherocytosis