During a Caesarean section delivery, besides surgical staff, there is typically only one person allowed to accompany the pregnant woman into the operating room.
However, the arrival of a special set of twins last week in an Arizona hospital was anything but typical.
Kendra Sirignano and Aaron Simpson, who are married and the parents of these twins, were in the room? but in a reversal of roles, Kendra held the hand of her mother, Crystal Sirignano, who lay on the surgical table and was giving birth to her own grandchildren.
‘It was the most amazing thing ever,? says Kendra, who struggled for years with infertility and accepted last year an offer from her mother to use frozen embryos from Kendra and Aaron and be a surrogate for them. ‘I was beyond excited, and nervous for my mom. Look at what she’s going through for us. When I saw her, she was calm and she smiled through the whole surgery.?
Kendra, a 1996 Goodrich High School graduate, and Aaron tried for years to have a baby, and adopted daughter Claire, now 15, three years ago. But after several unsuccessful fertility treatments, including three failed attempts at in-vitro fertilization that drained their life savings and also left them emotionally drained, they despaired of ever having biological children.
Crystal Sirignano then offered to be a surrogate. Concerned about her age, 52, her daughter and son-in-law at first refused; however, doctors found Crystal, owner of Total Body Fitness in Grand Blanc and a personal trainer, to be in excellent physical condition. Kendra, 30, and Aaron, 32, accepted her offer and watched as their dream of having babies came true.
The C-section was scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. on June 18. In the waiting room was Claire, joined by D.J. Sirignano (Crystal’s husband and Kendra’s father, as well as owner of John’s Steakhouse in Goodrich), Aaron’s parents, and Crystal’s parents and sister.
Aaron stood ready with video camera in hand as Kendra sat next to her mother, standing only once.
‘I got up and saw the scalpel and asked, ‘Are you cutting?? and they said, ‘Yeah,? and I said, ‘Oh, boy, I better sit,?? she laughs.
Moments later, they heard the first cry, as Domenico (Nico) Jason Simpson was born at 11:56 a.m., weighing 6 pounds, 11 ounces and measuring 20 inches long. A minute later, at 11:57 a.m., his sister, Mia Crystal Simpson arrived, weighing 5 pounds, 4 ounces and 19 inches long.
‘They’re both perfect, we’re so blessed,? said Crystal last week. ‘They went right from me into their mom and dad’s arms.?
Crystal recalls that when Nico was born, his mother was literally jumping up and down. The nurses cleaned him up and handed him to her as Aaron videotaped their daughter’s birth.
‘Everyone in there was sobbing,? Crystal said. ‘They brought them over to me and we were all crying… It’s such a relief for me, a big load off my back. I did it and they’re healthy. It’s a miracle. To see my daughter so happy was so wonderful. Everything turned out the way it was supposed to. It’s the best feeling I ever had in my life.?
Kendra calls the day her twins were born the happiest day of her life, but notes that every day since has been the happiest day.
Kendra and Aaron stayed at the hospital until the twins were discharged to come home to Tempe.
‘Till we brought them home, it was like a dream,? Kendra said. ‘I realized when I brought them home, they’re mine… I just stare at them while they sleep. If they hiccup or sneeze or even cry, I just laugh, I’m so happy.?