Page 66 of Catching Dreams

“That’s me,” she said with a huge grin. After she hugged me, she walked over and gave Olivia a hug like they were old friends. “Where is this wall of names? I have to see this.”

As Tyler’s mom checked out our baby name list, his dad gave him a big hug and then came over to give me a hug as well. “I’m glad we made it in time,” he said.

“Oh, I like the name Milo!” Tyler’s mom said. “And Lucy is just precious!”

After talking for a few more minutes, the on-call doctor came into the room. He was of average height and on the thinner side with glasses. He had a kind smile, and even though I had wanted a female doctor, I wanted healthier babies more at this point.

“Hi, I’m Dr. Nicholas Busch. Let’s see what is going on and which one of these twins is causing all the problems.”

“Nick was my dad’s name, too,” I said in lieu of a greeting.

“How serendipitous,” Dr. Busch said with a smile. “If you want to call me Dr. Nick, I am fine with that.”

He walked over to the monitors and began jotting things down on his tablet before adjusting the two belts around my waist. He whispered, so only I could hear him, “Is it okay to speak freely in front of all these guests? If not, I can ask them to leave. You can make me the bad guy.”

“Yes,” I said without any hesitation but appreciated his offer. “They can stay.”

“I think a Cesarean section would be the best bet at this point. You’ve been in active labor for several hours and are close to 7 centimeters dilated, but I don’t think it’s worth waiting to see how long until you’re fully dilated.”

“Then, let’s do what you think is safest,” I said. “Do you agree, Ty?”

“What are the risks if we wait and don’t do the surgery?” Tyler asked.

“That is a very good question. Babies who experience fetal distress are at greater risk of complications after birth. Prolonged lack of oxygen during pregnancy and birth can lead to serious complications that may include brain injury, cerebral palsy, and even stillbirth.”

“Okay. Let’s do the C-section,” my husband said and sat on the side of my bed that Olivia wasn’t on. He took my hand in his in a sign of solidarity.

“I agree,” I said.

“Let’s get these babies delivered,” Dr. Busch said. “Olivia, I thought your shift ended already?”

“It did, Dr. Busch. Are you okay if I come in the room and assist with Molly’s needs? I will be in the background, I promise. I can assist with breastfeeding or any questions she has.”

“If Mrs. Stone is okay with it, then I am fine. It’s your own time.”

“I am more than okay with it,” I said.

“I have two daughters,” I said as I looked down at the sleeping baby in my arms. She was wrapped securely in a yellow blanket, and her hospital hat had a big bow on it.

“They are perfect!” Olivia said with tears in her eyes. “Some babies born at 36 weeks would need neonatal intensive care, but Dr. Busch and the pediatrician on call said your girls are healthy enough to stay with you!”

“Our girls! I love the sound of that,” Tyler said as he held our other little girl in his arms. He was looking down with so much love and emotion in his eyes. I knew exactly how he felt.

I couldn’t believe I was a mom and Ty was a dad. I loved them so much already.

“I think I’m going to leave you guys as a family of four,” Olivia said. “I’m exhausted. I can’t believe it’s after 1:30 in the morning.”

“Wait a minute?” I asked. “Does that mean the babies were born on October seventeenth?”

“Yeah, it does,” Tyler said with a chuckle. “Did you not notice the time? Hazel here was born at 12:17, and your baby to be named was born at 12:22 on October 17th.”

“October 17th is perfect! And yes, I guess we’ll have to give her a name,” I said and put my free arm around Olivia as she hugged me. I asked for a different nurse to get a picture of my family of four and our favorite nurse together. Tyler suggested we get a picture of her with both babies, and I loved that idea.

“I’m off the rest of today, but when I come in for my shift tomorrow, I’m going to find your room number and find out what you named her! Bye, Hazel. Bye, Baby TBN!”

“You better!” I said. “Thank you for everything!”

“Yeah, thank you. You went above and beyond!” Tyler added while he took the babies out of her arms and gave them to me. He gave Livie a hug, too.

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