By the time Eddie was 14 weeks pregnant she looked like she should have been 30. She felt enormous and her body was defiantly taking a beating. During a Sunday dinner she was helping Linda clear and she got winded. She leaned against the kitchen counter and took some deep breaths. Linda looked at her concerned.
"Are you okay?"
Eddie smiled. "I feel like I just ran a marathon."
"Yeah one baby makes your heart and lungs work harder, I can only imagine what it's like with three." She started loading the dishwasher. "Are you guys going to find out the genders?"
"Yeah. We have the ultrasound on Wednesday."
"I bet Jamie's excited."
"He's just hoping that at least one is a boy."
Linda laughed. "What do you want?"
"I honestly don't care as long as they all come out healthy."
"Yeah I remember saying that and I still wish Danny and I had tried for a girl."
Eddie laughed. Jamie walked in and smiled.
"You ready to go?"
She nodded and Linda smiled.
"So Jamie do you think all the babies are boys or just one?"
"I think we are going to have all boys but that would just be my luck."
"What do you mean?"
He threw her a look. "Just what the world needs is three more Reagan brothers."
Linda and Eddie both laughed.
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"Eddie?"
Eddie and Jamie walked through the door following Angela. She led them to the ultrasound room and smiled.
"How are you feeling?"
"Pregnant."
She nodded. "Dr. Ross will be in shortly. Until then I just need to get your vitals."
Eddie nodded. She listened to her heart and took her pulse. When Dr. Ross walked in Angela handed him the chart and he nodded.
"Okay so we are defiantly finding out the genders correct?"
"Yes."
He nodded. "Okay lay back and we'll take a look."
Eddie laid down and Angela pulled up her shirt revealing her bump. Jamie sat on a stool by Eddie's head and grabbed her hand. Dr. Ross smiled.
"Okay this is going to be cold."
He squirted some gel onto her stomach then moved a doppler around. He looked at the screen for a few minutes before smiling and turning the screen so they could see.
"Here is Baby A and Baby B. Then if we adjust a little...here is Baby C."
Eddie smiled. Before they had just looked like little blobs now they were little people. She saw them moving and it made her happy. Dr. Ross zoomed in on the first baby. He seemed to be looking closely at something between the babies.
"Okay the placenta looks good and they are not showing any signs of TTTS."
Eddie glanced at him. "That's a good thing right?"
He nodded. "Very good. Okay Baby A looks good...growing right on target...okay I am 99% sure that Baby A and Baby B are both girls."
Eddie was stunned. "Really?"
"Really."
She looked at Jamie and was shocked to see that he was grinning. Then Dr. Ross looked at the last baby. His smile dropped and he looked concerned. He whispered something to Angela and she left the room. Eddie looked at him.
"What's wrong?"
He looked at her and relaxed his expression. "Well you are having three girls."
Jamie couldn't process that because he to noticed the shift in Dr. Ross's expression. "Is the baby okay?"
He sighed and pointed. "For now yes but I want you to see Dr. McClain at St. Victor's."
Eddie started to panic. "What do you mean for now?"
"The baby is smaller then the other two which is pretty normal but there also seems to be a small hole in her heart."
Jamie spoke quickly. "Can Dr. McClain do something?"
"It may be something that closes on it's own."
Eddie had tears running down her face. "And if it doesn't?"
"Then it may require surgery right after she is born."
Angela stepped back in. "Dr. McClain has an opening tonight at 6pm."
Dr. Ross nodded. "I'll send him a copy of the ultrasound so he can look before he sees you."
Eddie and Jamie both felt helpless.
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"Pop?"
"Den!"
Jamie and Eddie walked into the den and found Frank, Henry and Erin sitting in there. Erin was flipping through old photo albums with Henry. She smiled.
"So what are they?"
Jamie threw her a look and her smile dropped. She saw how upset Eddie looked.
"What happened?"
Eddie sat down on the couch with Jamie then spoke quietly. "One of the babies...she has a hole in her heart. Dr. Ross wants us to see a specialist."
Erin and Henry both looked sympathetic. Frank was more optimistic.
"Let's hope for the best, prepare for the worst."
Jamie grabbed Eddie's hand and squeezed. Erin spoke quietly.
"If you guys want some company tonight I can come with you."
Jamie was about to refuse but Eddie spoke to her quietly.
"That would be great."
She nodded. Jamie thought it was best not to argue. When the time came and they were sitting in the hospital waiting room he was grateful that Erin was there. When they were called back to the exam room Eddie took some deep breaths. The equipment looked a lot more sophisticated. A doctor finally walked in with a middle aged nurse who reminded Eddie of Betty Crocker. But the doctor was younger and kind of handsome. He smiled.
"You must be Jamison and Edit?"
Eddie was nervous and kept a hand protectively on her stomach. "Eddie."
He nodded. "Eddie."
Jamie shook his hand. "Jamie and this is my sister Erin."
"I'm Dr. McClain. So I examined the ultrasound that Dr. Ross sent me and I see why he is airing on the side of caution. I want to do a 3D ultrasound to get a closer look at Baby C's heart."
They nodded. His nurse handed Eddie a hospital gown and showed her where she could change. Then Eddie was laying on another exam table feeling like she was going to throw up. Jamie held her hand and Erin stood by his side. Dr. McClain looked at her.
"Okay you're gonna feel some pressure."
When she did feel it Eddie squeezed Jamie's hand. He leaned over and kissed her forehead trying to sooth her but it did little for her at the moment. Dr. McClain didn't speak for a while he just typed away at the computer on the machine. Eventually he turned the screen towards them.
"Here are your babies."
Eddie almost gasped. It was like she was looking at a photo of her girls. She saw the first two and then Baby C. She felt so many mixed emotions. He turned off the machine then let Eddie change. Then they were led into his office. Once they were seated he spoke quietly.
"Okay so I did get a better look at Baby C's heart." He pulled the picture up on his large computer monitor. Then he pointed. "Here is heart defect. It is in the left vertical. However the good news is I am confident that the hole will close on it's own. We'll keep a close eye on it but it's very small. Worse case scenario she made need some extra time in the NICU when she is born."
Eddie gave a sigh of relief. Jamie spoke quickly.
"So she's okay?"
"For now it appears to not be giving her any trouble. As for her size she is only slightly smaller then the other two so it doesn't concern me yet."
Eddie grabbed Jamie's hand and for the first time all day she felt happy.
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