When I started writing this Substack, I thought I had plenty of time to share the full backstory of my twin pregnancy hospital stay. After making it through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years, doctors finally asked me to “pick a birthday” for the twins—sometime between 32 and 34 weeks.
For a few reasons, I picked January 22, 2025.
First, I’d be about 33 weeks, which was right in the middle of when doctors recommended that I deliver. Second, the high-risk doctor working that day was confident and experienced in breach deliveries, which I was adamant about trying if the situation allowed. And third, because 1/22/2025 sounded like the perfect birthday for Mono/Di twins—
Out of a single fertilized egg (1) came two embryos (22). The symbolism could only be topped off by the “5” in 2025, since the twins would now make 5 kids in our family.
Once we picked this date, I grew attached to it and thought it was meant to be that I’d make it this far. I only had a few more weeks to go.
But as the story goes, God had other plans.
Thatcher and Briggs Bolar were born January 9, 2024, around 4 am, weighing 4.1 lbs each.
Doctors had to deliver me fast due to an infection that developed. I will share more about the situation that led them to make this call in a later post. But to summarize, infections with a ruptured amniotic sac can turn deadly both for mom and baby very quickly—that risk was one of the main reasons I was sentenced to hospital prison in the first place.
Despite the infection, I’m recovering well and somehow managed to avoid a c-section, even with a breach delivery.
Briggs is doing about what you’d expect for a 31- (now, 32-) week baby, which all things considered is great news. Thatcher had a very hard first day at life and is still on a lot of support. He’s the baby who had the broken sac and his lungs were far less developed than we ever could’ve fathomed after making it to 31 weeks. They look more like the lungs of a 23-week baby or a “micro preemie,” I’m told.
Having already had a baby in the NICU, I was as prepared as you can be for giving birth to 31-week babies. But nothing—and no one—prepared me for the possibility that one of our twin’s lungs would be so underdeveloped, that we didn’t know if he would survive his first day.
I’ll have a lot more to share about the situation when I am more recovered, both physically and mentally. I first plan to finish the backstory of my Twin Pregnancy Hospital Stay, then go into more detail about my birth story and how the babies are now doing. (Navigating the NICU with three other young children at home is its own feat.) But the good news is, Thatcher is making huge improvements since his first day.
None of this is easy, and it’s tempting to question why our family keeps getting picked to face so much adversity. But then I remember how lucky we are to have any of our five babies in the first place.
While we didn’t necessarily name Thatcher after the great Margaret Thatcher, her namesake certainly didn’t hurt in our decision-making process. While sitting in the NICU just a few days after giving birth, my husband turned to me and read this quote from the Iron Lady:
“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”
In time, I have faith that this battle will be won—and it will be worth every sacrifice that our family has endured. Until then, we’ll keep fighting. As will our two brand new, precious baby boys.
With love from my bed back home,
Kelsey
P.S. - If you’re new to my story, catch up here:
Dispatch From a High-Risk Pregnancy Hospital Stay: 'I feel like I'm not his mom'
The Backstory of My Twin Pregnancy Hospital Stay [Pt. 1]: Finding Out We Were Pregnant with Twins
Unbelievable what you have been through with the boys and the 3at home! You are the Margaret thatcher of today! So very happy and proud. Love you, Juls
I'm here from Lisa's BRIGHT and am in awe of you and your family's strength and courage. I have two under three and cannot imagine the journey you're going through and keeping your face toward the light. My family wishes you love and prayers!