Munson Healthcare Helps Bear Lake Couple and Their Twin Babies Thrive

To describe the past 18 months as busy and emotional for Kristy and John Fortine would be an understatement.

“It’s been a big year,” said John, 37, as he cradled in his arms his 10-weekold son Bode. Kristy, 28, seated next to her husband, held Bode’s twin brother Lucas.

For the Bear Lake, Mich. couple, this particularly momentous time began with their 2016 wedding, followed by a Hawaiian honeymoon. Then they discovered they were expecting, and when Kristy was 12 weeks along in her pregnancy, they received the unexpected and exciting news that they were going to have two babies.

“We had joked about it – wouldn’t it be cool if we had twins? Oh, but it won’t happen,” John said about going into that appointment. “Then she was doing the ultrasound, looking around, and she got this look on her face.”

“My doctor got all quiet,” Kristy said, “and I thought, oh, gosh. I was freaking out, something is wrong. But then she said, no, I think there are two.”

“I’m just glad we didn’t joke about triplets,” John said, smiling. “We were both really excited.”

Around this time, the couple also got great news relating to their jobs: Kristy received a promotion to manager of the Wesco convenience store in Cadillac, while John had the chance to take on a new position, also with Wesco.

A challenging road ahead

Life was full and moving forward for the Fortines. But as the weeks and months passed, Kristy couldn’t shake certain pregnancy-related challenges, including morning sickness that lasted five long months and a host of food aversions. “I couldn’t eat chicken, I couldn’t eat bacon or salads. It was awful. And by the time I could eat, there wasn’t enough room and I was so uncomfortable. I couldn’t eat very much then either.” Her overall pregnancy weight gain was just 12 pounds as a result.

Then came a hospitalization in Grand Rapids because of preeclampsia, a serious pregnancy condition marked by high blood pressure. Kristy, who was 32 weeks into her pregnancy at that time, spent eight days on bed rest at the hospital, and remained on bed rest at home for a dozen more. At the 34-week mark, doctors informed the couple that a C-section would be performed at 35 weeks. Their babies were born five weeks early.

“Lucas was transverse [laying side-ways in the womb], and Bode was head down,” Kristy said of her boys, who, as dizygotic twins, each had their own placenta.

On Sept. 13, Kristy delivered Lucas, 5 lbs., 11 ounces, and Bode, 5 lbs, 6 ounces at Munson Healthcare Manistee Hospital. Stephanie Fitzgerald, DO, and Ronald Joanette, MD, performed the C-section, with Bode born at 8:43 a.m. and his brother arriving a minute later.

“When they took Bode out, he was having respiratory problems, though he came out of it pretty quickly,” Kristy said. Meanwhile, Lucas initially was fine, but began showing signs of respiratory problems.

Advanced neonatal care in Traverse City

While Kristy and John were able to be with Bode, Lucas needed to go to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Munson Medical Center, nearly 60 miles away. “Eight hours after he was born, he was gone, taken away,” John said.

Kristy’s parents followed Lucas to Traverse City and stayed in the NICU with their grandson. Kristy’s mom, Minda Sievert, RN, is an operating room charge nurse at Munson Healthcare Manistee Hospital.

Two days later, Kristy, John, and Bode arrived at Munson Medical Center, staying at Munson Manor with Kristy’s mom so they could be close to Lucas.

“That place is awesome,” John said.

“I don’t know what we would have done without them,” Kristy added.

“I would have had to drive over an hour one way to see my kid every day, and I would have had to transport a newborn every day. So having that there is just amazing. You could go back there to sleep, there was food in the kitchen, they even have a laundry room,” Kristy said.

Lucas stayed in the NICU for 17 days. After five days, he was breathing better. But then he needed to learn how to eat. “We felt like we were going to be there forever,” Kristy said. “I spent dawn to dusk in the NICU.”

The experience of having their child in the NICU was traumatic, Kristy and John said, but having an “awesome” support staff made all the difference.

“Everyone there was just great,” John said. “And there were some who were extra special.”

The nurses and doctors offered special attention to Bode as well, even though he wasn’t a patient.

“Eventually, they gave me a bassinet for Bode, so he had a spot to sleep instead of in somebody’s arms. We could change his diaper somewhere other than in our laps. They even made a little name tag for him that said, ‘the older littler brother,’” Kristy said.

Home sweet home

This holiday season, Kristy and John Fortine are feeling especially grateful for their sweet babies and full life. Their beloved Labrador named Ruger is also part of their cherished family.

Lucas and Bode are now thriving, weighing 10 lbs., 8 ounces and 12 lbs., respectively, in early December.

They’re also thankful for the compassion and care received during Kristy’s pregnancy and following the birth of their sons, both in Manistee and in Traverse City. As Kristy shared, “Everyone was so genuine and very accommodating.”

Munson Medical Center plans to build a new Family Birth and Children’s Center as part of a larger multi-year expansion and improvement project. Please call 231-935-6482 to learn how you can help.