Mothers Of Multiples
Nicole Kaul vividly recalls the moment when she and her husband,
Dean, found out they were expecting not one, not two, but three
babies.
The Tyndall couple had a routine doctor’s appointment when Nicole
was eight to nine weeks pregnant. As they looked at the ultrasound
monitor, Nicole thought she saw more than one gestational sac and
received confirmation when the doctor took a look and verified that
there were indeed multiple babies.
“The doctor said, ‘Yeah, there are some babies in there,’” said Kaul.
“We (my husband and I) just looked at each other and kind of laughed.
We were in awe.”
Casidy Potts of Fordyce, Neb., had a similar reaction when she and
her husband, Kurt, discovered they were expecting twins.
“We found out we were expecting twins when I was five weeks
along,” said Potts. “Before my first ultrasound, my husband jokingly
said, ‘I bet we’re having twins.’ I was a little confused when looking at
my ultrasound until the tech started labeling ‘Baby A’ and ‘Baby B.’ We
busted out laughing and couldn’t have been more excited.”
Both Potts and Kaul share a family history of twins. They were able
to draw on the experiences of family (Potts also has friends with twins)
as they prepared to expand their own families. Their time to prepare,
however, was cut short when Potts and Kaul welcomed their children
much sooner than expected.
Kaul went on modified bad rest – “more of a chair rest” – in the
weeks leading up to her sons’ birth at 32 weeks.
“I started going into preterm labor,” said Kaul. “We tried drugs to
stop the contractions, but the contractions weren’t stopping. I just had
that feeling something was going on.”
When the contractions couldn’t be stopped, Kaul was flown to
Sioux Falls and, just 1½ hours after arriving, she and Dean welcomed
Memphis (3 pounds, 11 ounces), Wesley (4 pounds, 1 ounce) and Trey
(4 pounds, 6 ounces) into the world.
While Memphis and Trey were breathing on their own, Wesley
needed to be intubated. He would later have surgery at 10 days old
to close a blood vessel – the ductus arteriosus – that normally closes
soon after birth but didn’t in Wesley’s case. Surgery was successful and
restored normal blood flow to Wesley’s heart.
It wasn’t until 52 days after the boys’ arrival that the entire family
was able to be at home together. Memphis was discharged at 32 days,
with Trey following at 45 days and Wesley a week later at 52 days.
Potts’ introduction to motherhood began even earlier when her
12vHERVOICEvJANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
twin boys were born at 28 weeks.
“I planned on working part-time after 27 weeks to avoid bed rest,”
said Potts. “Unfortunately, after being flown to Sioux Falls, I delivered
the boys at 28 weeks.”
Potts’ boys – Bennett and Liam – weighed 2 pounds 5 ounces and
3 pounds 1 ounce at birth. Both were immediately put on ventilators.
They spent their first 80 days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
(NICU) learning to breathe on their own and eat.
“The NICU experience was the hardest think I have ever gone
through and I don’t wish that experience on anyone,” said Potts. “I
stayed at the hospital with the boys for their entire stay. My husband
drove back and forth three
times a week. Thankfully,
my children are fighters
and are completely
healthy.”
Once home, both
families relied on support
from family and friends,
especially in the early
days.
“There is no way we
could have gotten through
the NICU experience
or some stages such as
teething without the
help and guidance of my
parents,” said Potts. “I
honestly believe I have the
greatest family support
system. Our friends are
pretty amazing as well.”
Kaul agrees that the
support of family helped
them survive those first
days, weeks and months.
“We did have tons of
help,” Kaul said. “Both of
our families are from the
Tyndall/Tabor area. My
husband’s mother would
Bennett and Liam Potts
Olivia, Memphis, Wesley and Trey Kaul