Houston natives Laura and Ryan had just moved to Anaheim Hills after working and living in Germany for two years when they decided to start a family. Two months later, Laura became pregnant with triplets and was immediately referred to renowned perinatologist John Elliott, MD. Approximately 22 weeks into Laura's pregnancy, Ryan was diagnosed with cancer. At 27 weeks, Laura was admitted into The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Medical Center for pregnancy-induced hypertension.
She remained on bed rest for four weeks before giving birth at 31 weeks due to one of the babies developing reverse cord blood flow. During her hospital stay, she passed the time away learning how to knit with volunteer Rosie. She fondly remembers sipping on cucumber water brought to her room daily and enjoying freshly baked cookies every afternoon.
The triplets were born on September 27, 2011: Alaina (2 pounds), Jaxson (2 pounds, 15 ounces) and Jameson (3 pounds, 4 ounces), and were cared for in the neonatal intensive care unit. Two weeks after their birth, Ryan underwent surgery and today he is cancer free. Being new to the area, Laura and Ryan had no immediate family nearby. In her words, "everyone at Saddleback became our family and we are forever grateful."