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As they anxiously awaited the results of an 18-week ultrasound, Bonnie and Adam knew something wasn’t right. “We have a 4-year-old, Michael, and I never remembered having to wait after an ultrasound,” says Bonnie. “The longer we waited, the more I started panicking.” Sure enough, their suspicions were confirmed. The technician told the new parents that their baby, Aiden, would most likely have a cleft lip and cleft palate. …
Expert insight on cleft lip and palate
Learning that your baby has a cleft lip or palate can be upsetting, but these birth defects are quite common. They occur early in pregnancy when tissue from each side of the head grows together to form the face. If these tissues don’t completely join, the result is a cleft, or gap, on one or both sides of the upper lip. A cleft palate occurs when the tissue that forms the roof of the mouth doesn’t fully come together, leaving an opening between the mouth and nose. …
Kailyn’s smiles, Kailyn’s strength
On April 1, 2012, my husband Kevin and I found out we were expecting our second baby. We were very surprised as our daughter Kendall was just seven months old at the time. At the same time, we were very excited we would have two kids so close in age.
At our 20-week ultrasound, we had another surprise — this baby had a cleft lip.
We were pretty upset when we left the ultrasound. We couldn’t stop asking, “Why us? What did we do wrong?” …