Cayla Eschenbach's story

The day I found out I was expecting, I was in tears. I wasn't ready to be a mommy. My husband had just left for Iraq. How was I going to handle pregnancy without him? And how was I going to tell him? Through Instant Message, of course!

Jump ahead nine months later, it was time to have a baby girl. The delivery seemed to go pretty smoothly. There was nothing too out of the ordinary.

Like many new moms, I was having trouble breastfeeding. Baby C kept losing weight and I was forced to supplement.

Three weeks later, I was admitted back into the hospital and separated from my baby girl. Turns out, I had placenta left inside of me (that explains the breastfeeding issue). After the D&C procedure, I returned back to my hospital room where my symptoms worsened. (I'll spare you the gory details.) I was diagnosed with an E.Coli infection.

After being hooked up to machines, attached to IVs, and having a nurse tend to my bathroom emergencies, I remember thinking, "things can't possibly get any worse”.

Well, I was so wrong! Two days later, my mom and mother-in-law came into my room with tears. That's when I found out the unexpected. My baby girl was admitted into the hospital with bacterial spinal meningitis from salmonella.

*Insert loud scream here.

Fast forward through all the fears, tears, pain, guilt and prayers . . . Baby C is my Sweet Tiny Blessing!

MANDI ESCHENBACH
APRIL 2011