My husband Adam and I were married in June of 2021. After a year of marriage, we decided we were ready to start growing our family. We were thrilled to find out that we were pregnant in July of that year! I had a strong feeling that we were going to have twins and sure enough, as the pregnancy progressed, we found out that my feelings were spot on! We were due to bring two little babies into the world in March. However, our excitement turned to heartbreak when we discovered that I had a blighted ovum at our ten week appointment and the pregnancy would not end like we had dreamed. We were devastated, but leaned on the support from each other to get through our disappointment. Months later, we were ready to try again.
In October, we were overjoyed to discover that we were pregnant again! We were nervous about something going wrong again, but soon enough moved beyond the stages we had experienced in our first pregnancy and were feeling the anticipation of welcoming our little bundle of joy into the world in July. This time around, we got to experience so many of the things we had been looking forward to like announcing our pregnancy, having a gender reveal party, and preparing a nursery.
Our excitement turned to anxiety when we received our genetic testing results and it showed markers for several potential problems. Further testing had us hopeful as some of the scariest outcomes were ruled out, but the possibility of serious problems remained for our little boy. Yes, a boy! Adam and I had a feeling our baby was a boy. Our in-depth ultrasound revealed that our baby was not developing at the expected rate, which is a sign of health problems. Unfortunately, we did not have the answers to why our baby boy had severe growth restriction (IUGR). The outcome was not promising for us to have a happy ending, but we tried to stay as positive and hopeful as possible.
Due to some of our complications, we were having more frequent check-ups. Adam was interviewing potential candidates for a job, so I went to our 24 week appointment by myself. My doctor discovered that I had dangerously high blood pressure and admitted me into the hospital. Adam rushed over to be with me after sharing the concerning news. When we were unable to get my blood pressure to drop, I was taken by ambulance to Mercy Hospital in Des Moines for fear of early on-set preeclampsia. We were relieved for our son when they put the heart monitor on and his heartbeat was strong and the ultrasound showed him moving. The following morning, our doctor let us know that we would need to be induced based on the circumstances, as attempting to follow a normal pregnancy timetable would be dangerous for both our son and myself. I was put on magnesium to try to manage my condition, which made me very sick. We knew the odds were against us, but remained optimistic that we could beat the steep odds.
Our optimism was shattered on our third day in the hospital. I wasn’t making much progress towards being able to deliver and we were discussing potential options to pursue. Knowing that our son was likely to be joining us soon, we confirmed his name: Jayce Thomas Vorrie. That night, the nurses came to check on Jayce through an ultrasound. We were devastated to see there was no heartbeat. Jayce had passed away. I couldn’t believe it, he was there on the ultrasound the other day moving around and now he was gone. My husband and I took some time to process and share that moment together. The nurses were very caring and helped me to calm down, because it was making my blood pressure sky rocket. The only cure to my pre-eclampsia was to deliver Jayce.
I delivered Jayce the next day on March 30th 2023 at 2:25pm. We took family photos and spent time with Jayce for 3 days, as I was still in recovery from my pre-eclampsia. We were fortunate to have Jayce in our room in the cuddle cot, so we could hold him anytime. The nurses gathered footprints and mementos for us to take home, since we could not take our baby Jayce with us.
Jayce was truly a gift from God, even though he couldn’t stay with us on earth. Jayce inspired us to advocate and help others struggling with infant and pregnancy loss. We are even more drawn to community service after our loss. Adam and I have peace in knowing Jayce has eternal life in heaven with God. Like we said in the hospital before discharge, “It is not goodbye, it is see you later, Jayce!” A Hui Hou!
We vacationed to Hawaii for Jayce’s first birthday the following year. In Hawaiian, A hui hou translates to “until we meet again.” We were happy to learn this phrase on our trip, as we will meet Jayce again at the pearly white gates.
IN HONOR AND CELEBRATION OF JAYCE, DONATIONS CAN BE MADE HERE. ON BEHALF OF THE VORRIE FAMILY, THANK YOU FOR YOUR GIFT.
