We wanted to share some pictures of our two boys together (the last photographs taken of Gavin). These shots were taken by Aimee (Pure Expressions Photography), who was the Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep volunteer photographer (as mentioned in an earlier post).
Gavin will always be a special part of our family and he will always live in our hearts and many hearts everywhere, as his brief life touched hundreds and had such a powerful impact on family, friends, medical staff, and even strangers. Even though we will not be updating this twin blog any longer, please continue to check in with us at the new site (see post below & link to the left), and please continue to visit this site as well, as it will stay up for quite some time.
We never did find out exactly what happened to Gavin, and probably will never know for sure. We are expecting a conference with the Wake Med Dr's sometime in the near future for a final review of Gavin's file. However, we did have a long chat with Dr. Harden (Jen's OB-GYN), who has been in close contact with Wake Med during this whole ordeal. He suggested the possibility that Gavin may have been critically impacted by the TTTS, as opposed to a late stage infection as we had initially thought. Gavin was the donor twin (the smaller twin, who had compromised body growth before the corrective surgery), and may not have developed some internal connections correctly, even though he grew and appeared to progress nicely after the laser surgery (as evidenced by dozens of check ups and level II ultrasounds). The more we think about it, the more that this theory makes some sense. All of his virus/bacteria cultures were negative, he never responded to medication, and Colby was in perfect health. It makes the whole situation just a tad bit easier to accept (with emphasis on "tad"), since Gavin's compromised health may have been in the making since the TTTS first presented itself at mid pregnancy. If this were the case, it makes Colby's healthy arrival even more special than it already is (in addition to the life saving surgery they both underwent). Had Gavin passed away in utero, it most likely would have had grave consequences on Colby (the passing of a multiple in the womb can cause death or present major complications for the other baby). As hard and unfair as it was losing Gavin, it was a miracle that Gavin progressed while in the womb and was then born, giving Colby a chance for a normal life, and essentially becoming Colby's guardian angel even before his death. Again, this is a theory, but a solid one. In addition, Jennifer's dedicated bed rest and the simple fact that she was taking great care of herself and the twins during this complicated pregnancy most definitely played a crucial part in both of the boy's progression, and ultimatly in the birth of our miracle twins.
With love-
Steve
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