Jax Koenig

Jax Edward Koenig made an early appearance on Tuesday, November 22 at 11:37! At just 28 weeks he weighed in at 2 lbs 3 oz and measured 14 inches long!


So here is the story... Mom had been having terrible headaches and upper abdominal pain throughout the weekend. Thinking this was normal with her changing body, Stefanie convinced Jonny to wait until Monday to call the doctor. When they called in, the nurse wasn't too worried about the symptoms as they are quite normal with a pregnant mom. However they decided to move their appointment that was originally scheduled for Wednesday, up to that morning.


Jonny and Stefanie weren't in the office more than 5 minutes when Doctor O'Connor came in to tell them they were being admitted to OB. Stefanie's urine had a protein count of 4 which is the highest it can get - indicating severe Preeclampsia! When we got over to OB and hooked up to the machines, Stefanie's vitals were not looking good and blood pressure was up as high as 198/111.


It was then they decided to transfer to Mercy in Des Moines. Incase they ended up delivering, the baby would be sent there anyway and mom would be stuck in Fort Dodge.


After a long night of poking and prodding Doctor Conklin came in to do some game planning on Tuesday morning. She decided it was no longer healthy for baby or mom to continue the pregnancy. We wanted to try to deliver naturally, so Jonny went to update the family and we were ready to start the pills to induce labor. She said this would allow us to monitor every 4 hours and see how things were progressing. It could go quickly, or take until tomorrow when the result may still be c-section.


Dr Conklin brought in the ultrasound to make sure he was still head down for delivery. At this point, she noticed the baby wasn't getting a steady blood flow through the umbilical cord. Everything else that was pushing us into labor aside, this was enough to send us into emergency c-section.


Jonny went out to call the rest of the family and get dressed and preped for the brith of his little guy! Mom and dad were both very nervous of what was to come. Within 15 minutes, Stefanie was in the operating room getting her epidural!


Although only a 15 minute procedure, it seemed like an eternity to both mom and dad. Stefanie was very nauseous from the meds and struggling to breath even with Jonny's every effort to clam her down. Regardless, they made it through and have the most perfect baby boy!


Stefanie was released from the hospital on Friday, but Jax will be here at Mercy in Des Moines until his due date in February. Mom and dad will be here with him, and welcoming any guest that would like to meet Jax in the next few months.


Jonny and Stefanie will try to journal daily to keep everyone updated on his progress! Keep the prayers coming! He continues to get stronger each day!!