Be Inspired: 4 Moms and their Miracle Babies

Manilyn Reynes, 41
Singer and actress
Mom to Kyle, 17, Kirk, 11, and Kael, 2 years old
Married to Aljon Jimenez, 44, entrepreneur
 
“Ang tagal naming naghintay na magka-baby ulit — eight years! In 2010, I had a miscarriage on my fourth month of pregnancy. My husband Aljon and I talked about the miscarriage as part of the healing process. Little by little, Aljon opened my mind. He said, ‘It’s not the end. I know it’s hard for you — it’s hard for me, too — pero bibigyan pa rin tayo ulit ng anak.’ My older sons also accepted that the baby wasn’t for us and that he is already up there, watching over us.     

“Two years after the miscarriage, I got pregnant again. But on my sixth month of pregnancy, I was diagnosed with placenta previa; my placenta was too low and too near the cervix kaya nagkaroon ng bleeding. It happened on my birthday. The bleeding wasn’t a sign of premature delivery, but there was a chance I’d lose the baby. I had to stay in the hospital for three days for fetal monitoring. We were so scared. The doctor told Aljon, ‘I cannot make Manilyn go to work.’

“I was put on bed rest for about two months. I had to do everything in bed. I couldn’t even sit up. I’m really thankful to my husband for taking very good care of me. Inalagaan din ako nina Kyle and Kirk whenever Aljon was away.

“Thankfully, I never bled again. The doctors said that everything would be okay as long as we followed their orders, but we still prayed hard every day for the baby we’d been waiting for for so long. Eventually, I felt better during my eight month, kaya lang, napaaga naman ’yung labor ko. When Kael was born, he had a blood infection because of the fever I had the night before my C-section.  He had to undergo a lot of tests, and we had to stay in the hospital for his two-week antibiotic treatment.

“A few days after I gave birth, I was diagnosed with dengue. Buti na lang walang mas malalang nangyari kay Kael. But that time, whenever my older sons would visit me at the hospital, iniisip ko na it might be the last time we would see each other — ang hirap.

“Nahirapan  akong malampasan ang lahat ng iyon, pero dahil sa suporta ng pamilya ko, naibsan ang sakit. I’m blessed with a very supportive and loving family. Wala na akong mahihiling pang iba. Now, I’m very happy to see my three children growing up to be good and kindhearted people. When they were still in my womb, I would tell them: ‘Be good. Wag mang-aapak ng iba.’ It is so wonderful to see how my kids have turned out. Hindi naman sa nagbubuhat ako ng bangko, but I feel like I’ve done a great job [raising the kids] together with my husband.”