Hello all,

.How are you all going? All is good here. I had my scan last tuesday
and have been meaning to come on here ever since but just haven't been
able to find the time. Anyway, my scan went well. Every thing is
looking great and i'm pleased to announce that its another boy! Yes
another penis in the house, what on earth am i going to do lol.
Seriously, i am over the moon. Its a healthy little baby, what more
could i ask. So yeah, 20 wks down and 20 to go!

Lea, i think the facebook idea is great. I will go on there right now
and find the group. Hope this quick post of mine finds you all well.
For those of you who are on facebook if you want to add me search for
Liz Smith and my profile pic is one of my fat belly. Take care every
one.......

Liz xoxoxoxox

Hi,
I think the facebook idea is a good one.  I've never used it but I'm
sure its easy to figure out.

Had my ultrasound done a couple of weeks ago and all is good.  The
bleeding has also stopped so hopefully everything is back to normal.

Troy had his 2nd birthday last friday.  He had an excellent day and
loved all of his pressies but not as much as the boxes they came in.

Also, hello to the 2 new members.

Take care all
Jenny

--- In as_ap@..., "pettinabeves" <pettinabeves@...>
wrote:
>
> Tried to find the group but couldnt. What exactly did you call it
as
> it didnt come up under Anencephaly Support~Australian Parents
>
> --- In as_ap@..., Lea Coleman <leannec72@> wrote:
> >
> > Ahh the workings of Facebook are still a bit of a mystery to me
> it's more something that you just need to log into and work out
from
> experience
> >  don't you agree Pettina?
> > Well, I shall get to working out how on earth to create a group
> and do so...wish me luck.
> > I'm calling the group Anencephaly Support ~ Australian Parents,
> more soon.
> >  
> > Lea xxxxxx
> > Mum to Sage, Nara, angel baby ~Ben~ and rainbow baby Arden
> > Give sorrow words; the grief that does not speak whispers the
o'er-
> fraught heart and bids it break.  ~William Shakespeare
> >  
> >
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message ----
> > From: pettinabeves <pettinabeves@>
> > To: as_ap@...
> > Sent: Friday, 15 August, 2008 8:03:56 PM
> > Subject: [as_ap] Re: Facebook
> >
> > That sounds good. Ive only just become a face book member but im
> > starting to work it all out. A bit slow on all this internet
> > technology.
> >
> > --- In as_ap@..., Tammie Robertson <abbey_april@>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > Yeah im interested although I dont know how to use face book
lol
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message ----
> > > From: Lea <leannec72@>
> > > To: as_ap@...
> > > Sent: Friday, 15 August, 2008 3:19:59 PM
> > > Subject: [as_ap] Facebook
> > >
> > >
> > > Would anyone on here be interested in joining an AS~AP
facebook
> > group
> > > if I created one? I would have it as a locked one for members
of
> > here
> > > only, just as an extra way of staying in touch.
> > >
> > > Please feel free to add me if you haven't already guys
> > >
> > > Lea Coleman is my name.
> > >
> > > :-)
> > >
> > > 
> > >
> > >
> > >      Win a MacBook Air or iPod touch with Yahoo!7.
> > http://au.docs.yahoo..com/homepageset
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------
> >
> > Yahoo!7 Groups Links
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >       Win a MacBook Air or iPod touch with Yahoo!7.
> http://au.docs.yahoo.com/homepageset
> >
>

Tried to find the group but couldnt. What exactly did you call it as
it didnt come up under Anencephaly Support~Australian Parents

--- In as_ap@..., Lea Coleman <leannec72@...> wrote:
>
> Ahh the workings of Facebook are still a bit of a mystery to me
it's more something that you just need to log into and work out from
experience
>  don't you agree Pettina?
> Well, I shall get to working out how on earth to create a group
and do so...wish me luck.
> I'm calling the group Anencephaly Support ~ Australian Parents,
more soon.
>  
> Lea xxxxxx
> Mum to Sage, Nara, angel baby ~Ben~ and rainbow baby Arden
> Give sorrow words; the grief that does not speak whispers the o'er-
fraught heart and bids it break.  ~William Shakespeare
>  
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: pettinabeves <pettinabeves@...>
> To: as_ap@...
> Sent: Friday, 15 August, 2008 8:03:56 PM
> Subject: [as_ap] Re: Facebook
>
> That sounds good. Ive only just become a face book member but im
> starting to work it all out. A bit slow on all this internet
> technology.
>
> --- In as_ap@..., Tammie Robertson <abbey_april@>
> wrote:
> >
> > Yeah im interested although I dont know how to use face book lol
> >
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message ----
> > From: Lea <leannec72@>
> > To: as_ap@...
> > Sent: Friday, 15 August, 2008 3:19:59 PM
> > Subject: [as_ap] Facebook
> >
> >
> > Would anyone on here be interested in joining an AS~AP facebook
> group
> > if I created one? I would have it as a locked one for members of
> here
> > only, just as an extra way of staying in touch.
> >
> > Please feel free to add me if you haven't already guys
> >
> > Lea Coleman is my name.
> >
> > :-)
> >
> > 
> >
> >
> >      Win a MacBook Air or iPod touch with Yahoo!7.
> http://au.docs.yahoo..com/homepageset
> >
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> Yahoo!7 Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>       Win a MacBook Air or iPod touch with Yahoo!7.
http://au.docs.yahoo.com/homepageset
>

Well I have created a facebook group http://www.facebook.com/group.php?
gid=21320059870&ref=mf

A nice place to hang out and talk about things off topic....and to
stay in touch that bit easier....we'll keep it social so nobody misses
out on the important topic driven chat we have here.

Hope to see you all there soon....but please don't forget to keep
coming back here, this special message board will remain our focus to
those who aren't into Facebook.

That sounds good. Ive only just become a face book member but im
starting to work it all out. A bit slow on all this internet
technology.

--- In as_ap@..., Tammie Robertson <abbey_april@...>
wrote:
>
> Yeah im interested although I dont know how to use face book lol
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Lea <leannec72@...>
> To: as_ap@...
> Sent: Friday, 15 August, 2008 3:19:59 PM
> Subject: [as_ap] Facebook
>
>
> Would anyone on here be interested in joining an AS~AP facebook
group
> if I created one? I would have it as a locked one for members of
here
> only, just as an extra way of staying in touch.
>
> Please feel free to add me if you haven't already guys
>
> Lea Coleman is my name.
>
> :-)
>
>
>
>
>       Win a MacBook Air or iPod touch with Yahoo!7.
http://au.docs.yahoo..com/homepageset
>

Would anyone on here be interested in joining an AS~AP facebook group
if I created one?  I would have it as a locked one for members of here
only, just as an extra way of staying in touch.

Please feel free to add me if you haven't already guys

Lea Coleman is my name.

:-)

I want to ask everyone I know to remember a friend of mine and her
family in their thoughts and prayers.

This is a lady I met on a forum and she's a truly good person, she
has endured many pregnancy and infant losses (about 6, the most
recent this year a stillborn son).

Sadly, her husband was recently rushed to hospital after passing
out, it turns out he has cancer of the liver and it's terminal, they
are giving him some chemo to buy him a little time.

Her children range in age from about 17 to 1 year old twins......I
can only imagine the fear and sadness that is consuming her right
now.  She's told her kids that daddy has cancer, but she's got no
idea how to explain that he isn't going to live.

I lay awake last night thinking of this family, I have prayed for
them since he was rushed to hospital but the news that the cancer is
terminal has knocked me off my block.

Please, keep this beautiful woman, her kids and her husband in your
prayers if you are that way inclined, or your positive thoughts.  I
am praying for a miracle for a family I know deserve one.

Lea xxxxxx

Thanks for replying to the roll call guys, it was by no means a way
to find out who to delete off our list, chatting on here isn't
compulsory for remaining in our group.

We all know that there are just some times when it's nice to retreat
into our own thoughts, and others when we simply must share our
feelings.  I have those times myself.

The idea of this group is that there's always somewhere to turn when
things are tough, or when things are a joy and you need to share.

There's nothing wrong with only popping in to read once in a
while...but I encourage everyone to let us know how they're
travelling from time to time so we don't worry about you ((HUGS)).

One thing I have found in my time grieving for Ben,which began
during my pregnancy as I'm sure you all did yourselves, is how good
I felt when I saw that people had experienced the same or similar
things to me and survived it.

I quite seriously thought my heart would stop due to the pain I was
feeling at the news of Ben's Anen....that I couldn't possibly
survive the hurt I was expected to endure when he left us.

To find Leigh and know that not only did she survive losing her
precious twin son Tyson, and know that her surviving twin Reilly was
doing great...well money couldn't buy that kind of relief for me.  I
truly hope that you all find similar inspiration in each other here.

Sending you all big hugs, I hope all of our pregnant mummies are
travelling ok, I know what an emotional rollercoaster having a
rainbow baby is, so lean on us.

For many of you I understand how painful seeing others around you
pregnant is right now, and I send you extra hugs in the hope that it
helps you deal with those emotions.

Lots of love

Lea xxxxxxx

Hey every one,
I'm still around, just been real busy so please don't kick me out of
this group just yet. How are you all going???? Not much to report
here. I'm 18wks now and every thing seems to be going great so far.
Bubs has starked kicking and seems to be very active of a night time.
Its only another 11 sleeps until i find out what bubba is. I reckon
another little man but Neil is thinking a girl so we'll see who's
right in just over a weeks. Sorry its only short but i had better go.
The dish washer is calling me to stack it and the vacume is desperate
to have a run around lol. Take care every one and i'll be talking to
you again soon.
Liz xoxoxoxoxoxox

--- In as_ap@..., "Lea" <leannec72@...> wrote:
>
> Hi everybody, I just wanted to put a roll call of our members out
> and see how is around and who isn't.
>
> Please, drop in and say hi, even if you don't feel like talking
just
> to let us know you're here and doing ok (or otherwise).
>
> I have been a very busy girl of late, sorry for neglecting our
group
> and you beautiful members, I care for you all so much and think of
> each of you often.
>
> I've also been thinking of getting a calendar of important dates
for
> our families together, how do you all feel about this?
>
> Don't forget to mention to people you meet about our group, you
> never know who may need us.
>
> Sending each one of you big hugs, please, holler if you need me
> privately or on our board, I'm around!
>
> Lea xxxxxx
>

Im still here. Never seem to go far. Isabella has her 2nd birthday
in 2 weeks. She is just growing up way too fast.

Have a midwives appointment on Tuesday and cant wait to hear that
heart beat.

Jenny sorry to hear of your troubles. I hope they can figure it all
out for you.

A calendar sounds great.

--- In as_ap@..., "Jenny" <jenzi83@...> wrote:
>
> Hi All,
> Still around, have just been rather busy.  Troy is coming up on
his
> 2nd birthday next week.  I have also been bleeding ever since I
gave
> birth to Isabell, which has gotten worse, so have had a few dramas
> in that department.  I am going for an ultrasound next week to see
> what is going on.  I am all for the calendar Lea, great idea.
Hope
> that everyone is well and that all the pregnant mums are feeling
> well.
> Take care everyone
> Jenny
>
>
> --- In as_ap@..., "Lea" <leannec72@> wrote:
> >
> > Hi everybody, I just wanted to put a roll call of our members
out
> > and see how is around and who isn't.
> >
> > Please, drop in and say hi, even if you don't feel like talking
> just
> > to let us know you're here and doing ok (or otherwise).
> >
> > I have been a very busy girl of late, sorry for neglecting our
> group
> > and you beautiful members, I care for you all so much and think
of
> > each of you often.
> >
> > I've also been thinking of getting a calendar of important dates
> for
> > our families together, how do you all feel about this?
> >
> > Don't forget to mention to people you meet about our group, you
> > never know who may need us.
> >
> > Sending each one of you big hugs, please, holler if you need me
> > privately or on our board, I'm around!
> >
> > Lea xxxxxx
> >
>

Hi All,
Still around, have just been rather busy.  Troy is coming up on his
2nd birthday next week.  I have also been bleeding ever since I gave
birth to Isabell, which has gotten worse, so have had a few dramas
in that department.  I am going for an ultrasound next week to see
what is going on.  I am all for the calendar Lea, great idea.  Hope
that everyone is well and that all the pregnant mums are feeling
well.
Take care everyone
Jenny


--- In as_ap@..., "Lea" <leannec72@...> wrote:
>
> Hi everybody, I just wanted to put a roll call of our members out
> and see how is around and who isn't.
>
> Please, drop in and say hi, even if you don't feel like talking
just
> to let us know you're here and doing ok (or otherwise).
>
> I have been a very busy girl of late, sorry for neglecting our
group
> and you beautiful members, I care for you all so much and think of
> each of you often.
>
> I've also been thinking of getting a calendar of important dates
for
> our families together, how do you all feel about this?
>
> Don't forget to mention to people you meet about our group, you
> never know who may need us.
>
> Sending each one of you big hugs, please, holler if you need me
> privately or on our board, I'm around!
>
> Lea xxxxxx
>

Hi everybody, I just wanted to put a roll call of our members out
and see how is around and who isn't.

Please, drop in and say hi, even if you don't feel like talking just
to let us know you're here and doing ok (or otherwise).

I have been a very busy girl of late, sorry for neglecting our group
and you beautiful members, I care for you all so much and think of
each of you often.

I've also been thinking of getting a calendar of important dates for
our families together, how do you all feel about this?

Don't forget to mention to people you meet about our group, you
never know who may need us.

Sending each one of you big hugs, please, holler if you need me
privately or on our board, I'm around!

Lea xxxxxx

The Dragonfly
=============

Once, in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads,
there lived a little water beetle in a community of water
beetles. They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond
with few disturbances and interruptions.

Once in a while, sadness would come to the community when one of
their fellow beetles would climb the stem of a lily pad and
would never be seen again. They knew when this happened; their
friend was dead, gone forever.

Then, one day, one little water beetle felt an irresistible urge
to climb up that stem. However, he was determined that he would
not leave forever. He would come back and tell his friends what
he had found at the top.

When he reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the
surface of the lily pad, he was so tired, and the sun felt so
warm, that he decided he must take a nap. As he slept, his body
changed and when he woke up, he had turned into a beautiful
blue-tailed dragonfly with broad wings and a slender body
designed for flying.

So, fly he did! And, as he soared he saw the beauty of a whole
new world and a far superior way of life to what he had never
known existed.

Then he remembered his beetle friends and how they were thinking
by now he was dead. He wanted to go back to tell them, and
explain to them that he was now more alive than he had ever been
before. His life had been fulfilled rather than ended.

But, his new body would not go down into the water. He could
not get back to tell his friends the good news. Then he
understood that their time would come, when they, too, would
know what he now knew. So, he raised his wings and flew off
into his joyous new life!


~Author Unknown~

Vanessa

Im sorry that the week has been soo difficult for you and your
hubby. How did Annabelle go with it all?

I remember that John and i always had different reactions as well
though when Mercy was born its like there was no defect, just our
sweet baby.
Also her head looked nowhere near as bad as the ultrasounds made it
look.
I think however during our pregnancy it was more John who held
strong but after she was here he struggled hugely whilst i held
together without any worries.

It amazes me that we swap paths constantly on this emotional
rollercoaster so that anyone time we are held by the other.

It sounds to me like you are doing an amazing job walking this
together.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Pettina

--- In as_ap@..., Chris & Vanessa Murphy
<chrisandvanessamurphy@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Pettina,
> Thanks for asking - it has been a difficult week. The scan was OK -
  Matthew is growing OK, but at the moment is breech, and my amniotic
fluid levels are fine. The interesting part was that my reaction
this time and that of my husband were very different. I knew that we
would grieve differently, and I guess that's what is happening. When
we had the 19 week scan, I found it quite distressing to see the
baby's head and be hit with the reality of his appearance. Chris on
the other hand was quite interested and didn't mind so much. The
next scan we had we couldn't actually see the head because he was
rammed down in my pelvis - so we have a photo on our fridge of
Matthew's chin, mouth and nose and nothing else! Chris loves this
photo and so do I. This scan we got what I thought were some really
cute pictures of his whole face, but they do show the point where
his head ends, and this Chris found hard to see this time. He much
prefers the photo we have on the
>  fridge, which is fair enough. He's been feeling quite down about
the whole thing this last few weeks and is prone to depression
anyway. It is so hard to see him go through this. Today I came home
early from work, cause I just felt teary all day and paralysed - I
couldn't concentrate to get anything done, and I have plenty to do
and only 4 weeks left before my leave.
> Thankfully a mate of Chris' rang this afternoon and they've gone
out for dinner tonight -  I hope that they can talk about things,
because I know he is craving a friend to talk to.
> Vanessa
>  
>
> --- On Mon, 14/7/08, pettinabeves <pettinabeves@...> wrote:
>
> From: pettinabeves <pettinabeves@...>
> Subject: [as_ap] Re: Welcome Vanessa
> To: as_ap@...
> Received: Monday, 14 July, 2008, 5:32 PM
>
>
>
>
>
>
> vANESSA
> how did your scan go???
>
> --- In as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au, "pettinabeves"
<pettinabeves@ ...>
> wrote:
> >
> > Vanessa
> >
> > I will be praying for you and your family tomorrow as you see
your
> > little man again.
> > Would love to meet up whenever you are ready. Im sure the girls
> > would enjoy a play as well. My personal email adress is
> > pettles8@
> >
> > --- In as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au, Chris & Vanessa Murphy
> > <chrisandvanessamur phy@> wrote:
> > >
> > > HI Pettina & Lea,
> > > Thank you for your lovely messages to me - they meant a lot.
> > > I have found it very important lately to search out stories of
> > other women who have been through anencephaly & understand the
> > variety of experiences women have.
> > > We have another ultrasound to "see" Matthew tomorrow. I'm
really
> > looking forward to it and hope that he is in a good position to
> see
> > him. We are taking Anabelle with us this time too.
> > > Pettina, I would like to meet you if you are comfortable with
> > that. So, perhaps we could email further about that if you like.
> > > Thanks,
> > > Vanessa
> > >
> > >
> > > --- On Tue, 1/7/08, pettinabeves <pettinabeves@ > wrote:
> > >
> > > From: pettinabeves <pettinabeves@ >
> > > Subject: [as_ap] Re: Welcome Vanessa
> > > To: as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au
> > > Received: Tuesday, 1 July, 2008, 4:43 PM
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Vanessa
> > >
> > > Wow.. Our stories sound so similiar. I ilive on the central
> Coast
> > > and at 6 weeks was told I had most likely miscarried our
> precious
> > > Mercy Grace but 2 weeks later there her heart beat was. After
3
> > > weeks they checked to make sure the bleed was clearing and i
> found
> > > out that my daughter had anencephaly. I was 11.5 weeks at the
> > time.
> > > With a 6 month old at home.
> > > My husband and i are also christians tho we kept the news to
> > ourself
> > > as it was late Friday and we had to have a level 2 scan on the
> > > Monday. The anencephaly was confirmed and we were told that we
> HAD
> > > to abort. Luckily we had the weekend as my husband and i were
> > unsure
> > > of this decision. When then went home to think it through and
> were
> > > given a week so the EASY termination option could still be
done.
> > Wow
> > > are some doctors horrid.
> > > We decided that we would be best keeping her as long as we
> > possibly
> > > could.
> > > At the 19 week scan we discovered we were having another
little
> > > girl. Mercy Grace.
> > > At 38 weeks 4 days i had a selective induction. Luckily one
lot
> of
> > > gel was all i needed to put me in full labour.
> > > On Monday 24th September 2007 our beautiful Mercy Grace was
born
> > > alive and weighing a whole 4 pounds 5 ounces.
> > > We were even further blessed when our beautiful daughter
carried
> > on
> > > living for another 5 weeks 4 days 18.5 hours.
> > > Isabella was 13 months when Mercy Grace was born. so a bit
> younger
> > > than what you are experiencing so was never really explained
to
> > her
> > > that Mercy was sick tho she knew i was pregnant and would
> > frequently
> > > feed her the bottle thru my belly button.
> > > To this day she kisses Mercys photos and cuddles her bear
tight.
> > > They formed a lovely bond.
> > >
> > > You appear to live so close so if you would like to catch up
> > please
> > > let me know though dont feel any pressure.
> > >
> > > Pettina
> > >
> > > --- In as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au, Chris & Vanessa Murphy
> > > <chrisandvanessamur phy@> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Hi everyone,
> > > >  
> > > > It has been very interesting to read of your experiences at
> the
> > > moment, especially those going through a subsequent pregnancy
> and
> > > all the anxiety that this brings. I’m not yet
at that
> > point, but
> > > it is good to know there are people out there who understand
> what
> > > I’m going through now and will go through in
the future.
> > > >  
> > > > I wanted to share a bit more about myself with you all. I am
> > > currently 29 weeks pregnant with a baby boy, Matthew who is
> > > anencephalic. We found out at the 12 week scan, and of course
> were
> > > shocked and upset about the diagnosis. I had been taking
folate
> > and
> > > there was no family history or anything like that for us to
even
> > > suspect that there may be a problem. In fact during the
> > ultrasound,
> > > I told the sonographer how all I really wanted to see was that
> the
> > > heart was beating, and what a relief to see that. She
completed
> > the
> > > scan before sending the radiographer in, who told us they had
> > > detected an abnormality and we would have to go and see our GP
> > about
> > > it. What a terrible 30 or 40 minutes of waiting to find out
what
> > was
> > > wrong! It makes me feel teary and a bit sick just recalling
the
> > fear
> > > that I felt at that moment.
> > > >  
> > > > Anyway, our GP was lovely and took all the time we needed,
> even
> > > though it was after 5pm and she had a waiting room full of
> people
> > > yet to see. We found the decision to continue the pregnancy an
> > easy
> > > one, and my husband (Chris) and I were both in agreement on
this
> > > one, thankfully. We are both Christians, and felt that it was
> not
> > > our decision as to how long our baby should live, and we were
> > > prepared to go through with the pregnancy as long as it would
> > > happen. This baby, which we found out at 19 weeks is a boy
(now
> > > called Matthew) is a precious member of our family, no matter
> how
> > > short his life is, and we thank God for giving us Matthew to
> look
> > > after for this time.
> > > >  
> > > > We have had a lot of support from our friends (mostly from
our
> > > church â€Å"family�) and our own
families too, although
> > they are
> > > facing their own grief through this, I guess, and some of them
> > > don’t live close by, which has made
communication
> > difficult. One
> > > of our biggest challenges has been talking to our 2 year old
> > > daughter Anabelle (almost 2 years 5 months) about Matthew and
> > trying
> > > to give her little bits of information about him so her
> > expectations
> > > will not be too far off when it comes to the birth/afterwards.
> She
> > > is very clued up about the fact that Mummy is having a baby,
and
> > has
> > > been from very early on (before the scan), so there has been
no
> > > hiding the fact. She says things now like â€Å"Belle
love
> > Matthew�,
> > > â€Å"Matthew’s nice�
and she kisses my belly and
> > says hello to
> > > him. I would be interested to hear of any of your experiences
> with
> > > older siblings and how you explained things to them and
> especially
> > > anyone who may have had 2-3 year old
> > > > children at the time.
> > > >  
> > > > Today we had an appointment with the head paediatrician at
> > > Maitland hospital, which is where we will be having Matthew.
He
> > was
> > > really nice and answered all our questions, although we may
not
> > see
> > > him again â€" it is hard to predict what we/Matthew
might
> need,
> > but
> > > at least we know they are there if we want to call on them.
> > > >  
> > > > I’ll leave this email at that â€"
I look forward to
> > being able
> > > to â€Å"type up� my feelings again
and share them with
> > you - this
> > > has been good for me.
> > > >  
> > > > Thanks for your support,
> > > > Love Vanessa
> > > >
> > > > --- On Tue, 27/5/08, Lea <leannec72@ ..> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > From: Lea <leannec72@ ..>
> > > > Subject: [as_ap] Welcome Vanessa
> > > > To: as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au
> > > > Received: Tuesday, 27 May, 2008, 11:32 PM
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Vanessa, welcome to AS~AP
> > > >
> > > > I am so sad to read that you are needing the support of our
> > group
> > > > during your pregnancy, I dearly hope that you will find that
> we
> > > are
> > > > able to give you good counsel as you wade through the ups
and
> > > downs
> > > > of your emotions at this time.
> > > >
> > > > My name is Lea, I'm co-founder of the group. I gave birth to
> my
> > > twin
> > > > son ~Ben~ and his sister Nara on 8 June 2006 at 34 weeks
> > > gestation,
> > > > ~Ben~ survived for 1 hour and 21 minutes and he passed away
> > > > peacefully in his daddy's arms.
> > > >
> > > > We live in far northern NSW along with our eldest daughter
> Sage,
> > > Nara
> > > > our surviving twin and our rainbow baby Arden.
> > > >
> > > > Please feel free to write and tell us all about
> yourself...feel
> > > free
> > > > to ask as many questions and talk as much as you need to
about
> > > your
> > > > feelings, that's what we're here for.
> > > >
> > > > If you feel you might like to talk to me on the phone,
please
> > send
> > > me
> > > > an email and I'll give you a buzz or vice versa.
> > > >
> > > > Lea xxxxxx
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email
> > > address.
> > > > www.yahoo7.com. au/mail
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Start at the new Yahoo!7 for a better online experience.
> > www.yahoo7.com. au
> > >
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>       Start at the new Yahoo!7 for a better online experience.
www.yahoo7.com.au
>

vANESSA
how did your scan go???

--- In as_ap@..., "pettinabeves" <pettinabeves@...>
wrote:
>
> Vanessa
>
> I will be praying for you and your family tomorrow as you see your
> little man again.
> Would love to meet up whenever you are ready. Im sure the girls
> would enjoy a play as well. My personal email adress is
> pettles8@...
>
> --- In as_ap@..., Chris & Vanessa Murphy
> <chrisandvanessamurphy@> wrote:
> >
> > HI Pettina & Lea,
> > Thank you for your lovely messages to me - they meant a lot.
> > I have found it very important lately to search out stories of
> other women who have been through anencephaly & understand the
> variety of experiences women have.
> > We have another ultrasound to "see" Matthew tomorrow. I'm really
> looking forward to it and hope that he is in a good position to
see
> him. We are taking Anabelle with us this time too.
> > Pettina, I would like to meet you if you are comfortable with
> that. So, perhaps we could email further about that if you like.
> > Thanks,
> > Vanessa
> >
> >
> > --- On Tue, 1/7/08, pettinabeves <pettinabeves@> wrote:
> >
> > From: pettinabeves <pettinabeves@>
> > Subject: [as_ap] Re: Welcome Vanessa
> > To: as_ap@...
> > Received: Tuesday, 1 July, 2008, 4:43 PM
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Vanessa
> >
> > Wow.. Our stories sound so similiar. I ilive on the central
Coast
> > and at 6 weeks was told I had most likely miscarried our
precious
> > Mercy Grace but 2 weeks later there her heart beat was. After 3
> > weeks they checked to make sure the bleed was clearing and i
found
> > out that my daughter had anencephaly. I was 11.5 weeks at the
> time.
> > With a 6 month old at home.
> > My husband and i are also christians tho we kept the news to
> ourself
> > as it was late Friday and we had to have a level 2 scan on the
> > Monday. The anencephaly was confirmed and we were told that we
HAD
> > to abort. Luckily we had the weekend as my husband and i were
> unsure
> > of this decision. When then went home to think it through and
were
> > given a week so the EASY termination option could still be done.
> Wow
> > are some doctors horrid.
> > We decided that we would be best keeping her as long as we
> possibly
> > could.
> > At the 19 week scan we discovered we were having another little
> > girl. Mercy Grace.
> > At 38 weeks 4 days i had a selective induction. Luckily one lot
of
> > gel was all i needed to put me in full labour.
> > On Monday 24th September 2007 our beautiful Mercy Grace was born
> > alive and weighing a whole 4 pounds 5 ounces.
> > We were even further blessed when our beautiful daughter carried
> on
> > living for another 5 weeks 4 days 18.5 hours.
> > Isabella was 13 months when Mercy Grace was born. so a bit
younger
> > than what you are experiencing so was never really explained to
> her
> > that Mercy was sick tho she knew i was pregnant and would
> frequently
> > feed her the bottle thru my belly button.
> > To this day she kisses Mercys photos and cuddles her bear tight.
> > They formed a lovely bond.
> >
> > You appear to live so close so if you would like to catch up
> please
> > let me know though dont feel any pressure.
> >
> > Pettina
> >
> > --- In as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au, Chris & Vanessa Murphy
> > <chrisandvanessamur phy@> wrote:
> > >
> > > Hi everyone,
> > >  
> > > It has been very interesting to read of your experiences at
the
> > moment, especially those going through a subsequent pregnancy
and
> > all the anxiety that this brings. I’m not yet at that
> point, but
> > it is good to know there are people out there who understand
what
> > I’m going through now and will go through in the future.
> > >  
> > > I wanted to share a bit more about myself with you all. I am
> > currently 29 weeks pregnant with a baby boy, Matthew who is
> > anencephalic. We found out at the 12 week scan, and of course
were
> > shocked and upset about the diagnosis. I had been taking folate
> and
> > there was no family history or anything like that for us to even
> > suspect that there may be a problem. In fact during the
> ultrasound,
> > I told the sonographer how all I really wanted to see was that
the
> > heart was beating, and what a relief to see that. She completed
> the
> > scan before sending the radiographer in, who told us they had
> > detected an abnormality and we would have to go and see our GP
> about
> > it. What a terrible 30 or 40 minutes of waiting to find out what
> was
> > wrong! It makes me feel teary and a bit sick just recalling the
> fear
> > that I felt at that moment.
> > >  
> > > Anyway, our GP was lovely and took all the time we needed,
even
> > though it was after 5pm and she had a waiting room full of
people
> > yet to see. We found the decision to continue the pregnancy an
> easy
> > one, and my husband (Chris) and I were both in agreement on this
> > one, thankfully. We are both Christians, and felt that it was
not
> > our decision as to how long our baby should live, and we were
> > prepared to go through with the pregnancy as long as it would
> > happen. This baby, which we found out at 19 weeks is a boy (now
> > called Matthew) is a precious member of our family, no matter
how
> > short his life is, and we thank God for giving us Matthew to
look
> > after for this time.
> > >  
> > > We have had a lot of support from our friends (mostly from our
> > church �"family�) and our own families too, although
> they are
> > facing their own grief through this, I guess, and some of them
> > don’t live close by, which has made communication
> difficult. One
> > of our biggest challenges has been talking to our 2 year old
> > daughter Anabelle (almost 2 years 5 months) about Matthew and
> trying
> > to give her little bits of information about him so her
> expectations
> > will not be too far off when it comes to the birth/afterwards.
She
> > is very clued up about the fact that Mummy is having a baby, and
> has
> > been from very early on (before the scan), so there has been no
> > hiding the fact. She says things now like �"Belle love
> Matthew�,
> > �"Matthew’s nice� and she kisses my belly and
> says hello to
> > him. I would be interested to hear of any of your experiences
with
> > older siblings and how you explained things to them and
especially
> > anyone who may have had 2-3 year old
> > > children at the time.
> > >  
> > > Today we had an appointment with the head paediatrician at
> > Maitland hospital, which is where we will be having Matthew. He
> was
> > really nice and answered all our questions, although we may not
> see
> > him again â€" it is hard to predict what we/Matthew might
need,
> but
> > at least we know they are there if we want to call on them.
> > >  
> > > I’ll leave this email at that â€" I look forward to
> being able
> > to �"type up� my feelings again and share them with
> you - this
> > has been good for me.
> > >  
> > > Thanks for your support,
> > > Love Vanessa
> > >
> > > --- On Tue, 27/5/08, Lea <leannec72@ ..> wrote:
> > >
> > > From: Lea <leannec72@ ..>
> > > Subject: [as_ap] Welcome Vanessa
> > > To: as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au
> > > Received: Tuesday, 27 May, 2008, 11:32 PM
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Vanessa, welcome to AS~AP
> > >
> > > I am so sad to read that you are needing the support of our
> group
> > > during your pregnancy, I dearly hope that you will find that
we
> > are
> > > able to give you good counsel as you wade through the ups and
> > downs
> > > of your emotions at this time.
> > >
> > > My name is Lea, I'm co-founder of the group. I gave birth to
my
> > twin
> > > son ~Ben~ and his sister Nara on 8 June 2006 at 34 weeks
> > gestation,
> > > ~Ben~ survived for 1 hour and 21 minutes and he passed away
> > > peacefully in his daddy's arms.
> > >
> > > We live in far northern NSW along with our eldest daughter
Sage,
> > Nara
> > > our surviving twin and our rainbow baby Arden.
> > >
> > > Please feel free to write and tell us all about
yourself...feel
> > free
> > > to ask as many questions and talk as much as you need to about
> > your
> > > feelings, that's what we're here for.
> > >
> > > If you feel you might like to talk to me on the phone, please
> send
> > me
> > > an email and I'll give you a buzz or vice versa.
> > >
> > > Lea xxxxxx
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email
> > address.
> > > www.yahoo7.com. au/mail
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >       Start at the new Yahoo!7 for a better online experience.
> www.yahoo7.com.au
> >
>

Vanessa

I will be praying for you and your family tomorrow as you see your
little man again.
Would love to meet up whenever you are ready. Im sure the girls
would enjoy a play as well. My personal email adress is
pettles8@...

--- In as_ap@..., Chris & Vanessa Murphy
<chrisandvanessamurphy@...> wrote:
>
> HI Pettina & Lea,
> Thank you for your lovely messages to me - they meant a lot.
> I have found it very important lately to search out stories of
other women who have been through anencephaly & understand the
variety of experiences women have.
> We have another ultrasound to "see" Matthew tomorrow. I'm really
looking forward to it and hope that he is in a good position to see
him. We are taking Anabelle with us this time too.
> Pettina, I would like to meet you if you are comfortable with
that. So, perhaps we could email further about that if you like.
> Thanks,
> Vanessa
>
>
> --- On Tue, 1/7/08, pettinabeves <pettinabeves@...> wrote:
>
> From: pettinabeves <pettinabeves@...>
> Subject: [as_ap] Re: Welcome Vanessa
> To: as_ap@...
> Received: Tuesday, 1 July, 2008, 4:43 PM
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Vanessa
>
> Wow.. Our stories sound so similiar. I ilive on the central Coast
> and at 6 weeks was told I had most likely miscarried our precious
> Mercy Grace but 2 weeks later there her heart beat was. After 3
> weeks they checked to make sure the bleed was clearing and i found
> out that my daughter had anencephaly. I was 11.5 weeks at the
time.
> With a 6 month old at home.
> My husband and i are also christians tho we kept the news to
ourself
> as it was late Friday and we had to have a level 2 scan on the
> Monday. The anencephaly was confirmed and we were told that we HAD
> to abort. Luckily we had the weekend as my husband and i were
unsure
> of this decision. When then went home to think it through and were
> given a week so the EASY termination option could still be done.
Wow
> are some doctors horrid.
> We decided that we would be best keeping her as long as we
possibly
> could.
> At the 19 week scan we discovered we were having another little
> girl. Mercy Grace.
> At 38 weeks 4 days i had a selective induction. Luckily one lot of
> gel was all i needed to put me in full labour.
> On Monday 24th September 2007 our beautiful Mercy Grace was born
> alive and weighing a whole 4 pounds 5 ounces.
> We were even further blessed when our beautiful daughter carried
on
> living for another 5 weeks 4 days 18.5 hours.
> Isabella was 13 months when Mercy Grace was born. so a bit younger
> than what you are experiencing so was never really explained to
her
> that Mercy was sick tho she knew i was pregnant and would
frequently
> feed her the bottle thru my belly button.
> To this day she kisses Mercys photos and cuddles her bear tight.
> They formed a lovely bond.
>
> You appear to live so close so if you would like to catch up
please
> let me know though dont feel any pressure.
>
> Pettina
>
> --- In as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au, Chris & Vanessa Murphy
> <chrisandvanessamur phy@> wrote:
> >
> > Hi everyone,
> >  
> > It has been very interesting to read of your experiences at the
> moment, especially those going through a subsequent pregnancy and
> all the anxiety that this brings. I’m not yet at that
point, but
> it is good to know there are people out there who understand what
> I’m going through now and will go through in the future.
> >  
> > I wanted to share a bit more about myself with you all. I am
> currently 29 weeks pregnant with a baby boy, Matthew who is
> anencephalic. We found out at the 12 week scan, and of course were
> shocked and upset about the diagnosis. I had been taking folate
and
> there was no family history or anything like that for us to even
> suspect that there may be a problem. In fact during the
ultrasound,
> I told the sonographer how all I really wanted to see was that the
> heart was beating, and what a relief to see that. She completed
the
> scan before sending the radiographer in, who told us they had
> detected an abnormality and we would have to go and see our GP
about
> it. What a terrible 30 or 40 minutes of waiting to find out what
was
> wrong! It makes me feel teary and a bit sick just recalling the
fear
> that I felt at that moment.
> >  
> > Anyway, our GP was lovely and took all the time we needed, even
> though it was after 5pm and she had a waiting room full of people
> yet to see. We found the decision to continue the pregnancy an
easy
> one, and my husband (Chris) and I were both in agreement on this
> one, thankfully. We are both Christians, and felt that it was not
> our decision as to how long our baby should live, and we were
> prepared to go through with the pregnancy as long as it would
> happen. This baby, which we found out at 19 weeks is a boy (now
> called Matthew) is a precious member of our family, no matter how
> short his life is, and we thank God for giving us Matthew to look
> after for this time.
> >  
> > We have had a lot of support from our friends (mostly from our
> church �"family�) and our own families too, although
they are
> facing their own grief through this, I guess, and some of them
> don’t live close by, which has made communication
difficult. One
> of our biggest challenges has been talking to our 2 year old
> daughter Anabelle (almost 2 years 5 months) about Matthew and
trying
> to give her little bits of information about him so her
expectations
> will not be too far off when it comes to the birth/afterwards. She
> is very clued up about the fact that Mummy is having a baby, and
has
> been from very early on (before the scan), so there has been no
> hiding the fact. She says things now like �"Belle love
Matthew�,
> �"Matthew’s nice� and she kisses my belly and
says hello to
> him. I would be interested to hear of any of your experiences with
> older siblings and how you explained things to them and especially
> anyone who may have had 2-3 year old
> > children at the time.
> >  
> > Today we had an appointment with the head paediatrician at
> Maitland hospital, which is where we will be having Matthew. He
was
> really nice and answered all our questions, although we may not
see
> him again â€" it is hard to predict what we/Matthew might need,
but
> at least we know they are there if we want to call on them.
> >  
> > I’ll leave this email at that â€" I look forward to
being able
> to �"type up� my feelings again and share them with
you - this
> has been good for me.
> >  
> > Thanks for your support,
> > Love Vanessa
> >
> > --- On Tue, 27/5/08, Lea <leannec72@ ..> wrote:
> >
> > From: Lea <leannec72@ ..>
> > Subject: [as_ap] Welcome Vanessa
> > To: as_ap@yahoogroups. com.au
> > Received: Tuesday, 27 May, 2008, 11:32 PM
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Vanessa, welcome to AS~AP
> >
> > I am so sad to read that you are needing the support of our
group
> > during your pregnancy, I dearly hope that you will find that we
> are
> > able to give you good counsel as you wade through the ups and
> downs
> > of your emotions at this time.
> >
> > My name is Lea, I'm co-founder of the group. I gave birth to my
> twin
> > son ~Ben~ and his sister Nara on 8 June 2006 at 34 weeks
> gestation,
> > ~Ben~ survived for 1 hour and 21 minutes and he passed away
> > peacefully in his daddy's arms.
> >
> > We live in far northern NSW along with our eldest daughter Sage,
> Nara
> > our surviving twin and our rainbow baby Arden.
> >
> > Please feel free to write and tell us all about yourself...feel
> free
> > to ask as many questions and talk as much as you need to about
> your
> > feelings, that's what we're here for.
> >
> > If you feel you might like to talk to me on the phone, please
send
> me
> > an email and I'll give you a buzz or vice versa.
> >
> > Lea xxxxxx
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email
> address.
> > www.yahoo7.com. au/mail
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>       Start at the new Yahoo!7 for a better online experience.
www.yahoo7.com.au
>

Liz, I'm glad your scan went well, congrats darl, I'm really feeling
relieved and thrilled for you.

As for your information about the smelter, my goodness 4 people in
one workplace does seem unusual and to be paid out, yes it sounds
highly suspect doesn't it.

I think that perhaps if you gave us a lot more information we could
all start doing some research....the anencephaly network might be a
good place to ask about this too, I wonder if we could start
reaching out overseas to ask about similar instances that people
know of.  Fascinating, terrifying stuff.

Don't you hate how rare this condition is meant to be, yet here we
all are......not bloody rare enough is it!

--- In as_ap@..., "Elizabeth" <epsmith@...> wrote:
>
> hey every one,
> Hope you are all doing well. i went to my GP today and got all my
> results back from the scan and bloods and every thing is fine, i
have a
> 1 in 22,478 chance that this baby has downs syndrome so i think
thats
> pretty good odds.
>
> I'm in a bit of a funny state of mind at the moment. Over the
weekend i
> was on cloud 9 knowing that every thing is alright with this bub
so far
> and now today i feel guilty as hell that i'm feeling happy. Here i
am
> still grieving the loss of 2 babies in the past 8 months and yet
over
> the moon that this pregnancy seems to be going so well. I don't
know,
> just a few mixed emotions i guess. Pregnancy hormones not helping
> either.
>
> Well, as the tital says i have found out some thing that i think
is
> rather interesting. Where i live we have alot of big refinaries.
There
> is one place called QAL. Apparently about 5years after they
started up
> (which was a while ago) they payed out 4 families that had given
birth
> to children with no sculls (anencephaly) and told the people to
move
> away and never speak of it again. Well, by the sounds of it some
one
> has spoken about it and its now going around where my husband
works
> (Boyne Smelta). The people that this happened to obviously blammed
the
> enviroment that they were working in ect and the company must have
had
> some reason to believe that this was the cause other wise they
wouldn't
> have payed them out. i want to try to find out more but i don't
know
> where to start looking. i will see if neil can find any thing else
out
> from work and then go from there. I just thought that it was
strange
> that some thing that is so rare happened to 4 families all working
at
> the same place and they all got a pay out because of it.
>
> My kids are being feral so i had better go sort them out and i'll
try
> to get back on soon to reply to Lea's and Vanessa's posts. If i
don't
> get back on tonight please don't hold it against me, it just means
that
> i have passed out from exhaustion. take care every one, talk soon.
>
> love liz xoxoxoxoxoxoxox
>

hey every one,
Hope you are all doing well. i went to my GP today and got all my
results back from the scan and bloods and every thing is fine, i have a
1 in 22,478 chance that this baby has downs syndrome so i think thats
pretty good odds.

I'm in a bit of a funny state of mind at the moment. Over the weekend i
was on cloud 9 knowing that every thing is alright with this bub so far
and now today i feel guilty as hell that i'm feeling happy. Here i am
still grieving the loss of 2 babies in the past 8 months and yet over
the moon that this pregnancy seems to be going so well. I don't know,
just a few mixed emotions i guess. Pregnancy hormones not helping
either.

Well, as the tital says i have found out some thing that i think is
rather interesting. Where i live we have alot of big refinaries. There
is one place called QAL. Apparently about 5years after they started up
(which was a while ago) they payed out 4 families that had given birth
to children with no sculls (anencephaly) and told the people to move
away and never speak of it again. Well, by the sounds of it some one
has spoken about it and its now going around where my husband works
(Boyne Smelta). The people that this happened to obviously blammed the
enviroment that they were working in ect and the company must have had
some reason to believe that this was the cause other wise they wouldn't
have payed them out. i want to try to find out more but i don't know
where to start looking. i will see if neil can find any thing else out
from work and then go from there. I just thought that it was strange
that some thing that is so rare happened to 4 families all working at
the same place and they all got a pay out because of it.

My kids are being feral so i had better go sort them out and i'll try
to get back on soon to reply to Lea's and Vanessa's posts. If i don't
get back on tonight please don't hold it against me, it just means that
i have passed out from exhaustion. take care every one, talk soon.

love liz xoxoxoxoxoxoxox