Mother shares heartbreaking photos of baby son born at just 19 weeks (WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT)
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| Perfectly formed: Alexis Fretz holds the tiny hand of her son Walter
A Pennsylvania mother who gave birth to her son at 19 weeks posted her story and photographs on her blog to
share with friends and family, but her brave choice has spread way
beyond her immediate circle to bring comfort to other grieving mothers.
Alexis Fretz was 30 years old and 19 weeks pregnant with her third child when she began bleeding lightly.
Not overly worried, she called her
midwife and as a precaution was advised to head to the ER in a Kokomo,
Indiana hospital for a check-up. By the end of the day, her son Walter
had been born and died in her arms.
Fretz had no inkling that the day, which
began with a pedicure and lunch with a friend and bride-to-be whose
wedding she was supposed to photograph the following day, would end in
such devastating loss.
In a waiting room in the hospital, Fretz
was given three glasses of water to drink in preparation for an
ultrasound. Soon after, she began to feel the first twinges of pain.
A few minutes after 6pm, 'I knew I was in labor, there was no doubt in my mind,' wrote Fretz on her blog.
Nurses were sceptical and she was
finally taken for her ultrasound at 7pm. Fretz felt heartened when the
technician found a heartbeat, but soon her bleeding increased and the
pain of her contractions intensified.
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Taken too soon: Walter's tiny heart was still beating as his mother and father said their goodbyes
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Closure: Joshua Fretz and his wife Alexis say being able to hold their son and say goodbye has helped their healing process
The ultrasound technician told her
husband when Fretz was out of the room, 'I’m sorry, and I don’t want her
to see me crying, but I will be praying for you.'
'At this point there was no break
between the contractions. Just as one finished another would start. I
knew that I was at the end. I didn't give up hope, but in my heart of
hearts, I knew that I was losing my baby.
'At some point the PA came in and said
"your foetus is still viable." I seriously wanted to slap her. When the
doctor checked me and sat down beside me on the bed and told me that we
were going to be delivering our baby, it was the first that anyone had
called him a baby.
'I immediately started bawling and asking if there was any other option,' she wrote.
Walter Joshua Fretz was born at 9:42pm.
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Family: The Fretzes also wanted their two daughters to be able to farewell their longed-for brother
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Discussion: Alexis Fretz says pre-term labor and miscarriage aren't
spoken about and many women are not given an opportunity to grieve after
losing a baby early in pregnancy
'I was crying so hard at this point but he was perfect. He was fully formed and everything was there, I could see his heart beating in his tiny chest,' wrote Fretz. At some point, Fretz's husband Joshua went to her car and retrieved the camera she was going to shoot her friend's wedding on and took photographs of the couple's first son. 'I am so very glad that Joshua [did that]. At first I did not want any photos, but they are the only thing I have to look back on now,' Fretz wrote. 'I held him, cuddled him, while his heart was beating I held him to my heart, I counted his toes and kissed his tiny head. I will always cherish those memories that I have of him.'  +8
Beloved son: Fretz says the term 'fetus' is insulting, and that her son was a baby, even though he was so tiny
Fretz shared the confronting yet
touching images not to cause controversy, but to open up discussion
about a tragedy that affects more than 1 million American women each
year: pre-term labor.
'Pre-term labour and infant loss is not something the public wants to talk about,' says Fretz. 'To most people it's not a big deal, you just try again for another baby, so they pretend it never happened and go on with their lives while the mother and family are left in a pile of grief they don't know how to deal with.
Credit: Daily Mail
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P-Square Buy Two New Houses in Atlanta, Georgia [Photos]
Peter Okoye posted pics of their new home on his instagram page just this afternoon and wrote:
"Bought ourselves two new homes in Atlanta GA. Thank u Lord. #Hardwork"
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| Office to be converted to a Recording studio in few weeks |
'Mad Dog' the cannibal pictured eating SECOND Muslim in as many weeks as Christians lynch and burn two men in Central African Republic (WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT)
Shocking photographs have emerged of a cannibal by the name of Mad Dog
eating the flesh of a lynched Muslim man for the second time in as many
weeks.
In one, 'Mad Dog' - real name Ouandja Magloire - cuts a portion of meat
from the body of a murdered Muslim lying burning on a roundabout in the
capital of the Central African Republic, with the body of another a few
yards away.
Another photograph shows him licking a bloodied knife as he stands over a
body, wearing the same T-shirt he was pictured in during the previous
act of cannibalism.
SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO
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A man who goes by the name of Mad Dog cuts off a portion of a burning
body to eat, as the bodies of two lynched Muslim men are burned in a
street in Bangui, Central African Republic
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'Mad Dog' licks blood off a knife, as a crowd prepares to burn the body of a lynched Muslim man in Bangui
The horrific images were taken in Bangui on Sunday.
According to The Associated Press, the men were killed by residents of
the Sango neighbourhood in revenge for the lynching of a taxi driver
from Sango a day earlier.
Two other Muslim passers-by escaped to the protection of French and African peacekeeping forces.
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Men carry the body of a lynched Muslim man through a street in Bangui, Central African Republic, on Sunday
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A French soldier looks on as the body of one of the lynched Muslim men burns
The agency understands that Magloire didn't take part in the killings, but turned up in the aftermath.
According to its source, he is the only person in the Central African Republic known to be carrying out acts of cannibalism.
Earlier in the month horrific footage emerged from Bangui of Magloire eating the leg of a Muslim who, according to the BBC, was hauled from a bus, battered and then stabbed before being set on fire.
In the aftermath of the incident, Magloire grabbed hold of his leg and then began to devour it.
Magloire told a BBC reporter at the time that his action was revenge for
the murders of his pregnant wife, his sister-in-law and her baby.
He claimed that Muslims were responsible and he was angry with them.
'They broke down the door and cut my baby in half. I promised I would get my revenge,' he said.
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Horrific: Ouandja Magloire - who also calls himself 'Mad Dog' - is seen
eating the leg of a Muslim slaughtered by a rampaging Christian mob in
the Central African Republic
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Magloire said that his action was revenge for the murders of his pregnant wife, his sister-in-law and her baby
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Bloody: The charred and dismembered body is dragged through the streets with Magloire at the head of the mob
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Killed: The body is dragged through the dusty streets by the cheering crowd
‘Mad Dog’ spotted his victim on a minibus and followed him after deciding he looked Muslim.
He gathered a crowd of about 20 Christian youths who forced the bus driver to stop and dragged him from the bus.
Without emotion he told the BBC: 'I poured petrol over him. I burned him. I ate his leg, right down the white bone.'
Witnesses did not intervene but recorded the footage on mobile phones, including the act of cannibalism.
A video shows his cheeks bulging as he consumes the flesh.
Witness Jean-Sylvestre Tchya told news agency AFP: 'One of the
individuals took hold of an arm and went and bought some bread and
starting chewing on the flesh, along with his bread.
'The scene made many people vomit, and some cried out in horror.'
Another witness, Alain Gbabobou, said he watched a man wrap the head up and proclaim that he would 'feast on it'.
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Violence: People throw stones at a car transporting two children of an
ex-Seleka colonel at the 'UN crossroad' on Sunday in Bangui
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Men brandish machets and knives to threaten Muslim people in Bangui
According to The Sunday Telegraph, this may not have been an isolated
incident, with a source speaking of more than one person being eaten.
An aid worker told the paper: 'They were taking machetes to people and burning the bodies and eating them.'
Sectarian violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) has been rife
in the past month and flared up again following the resignation on
Friday of president Michel Djotodia, the first Muslim to rule the
Christian-majority nation.
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Shocking: A man ate the leg of a Muslim in the Central African
Republic's capital, Bengui (pictured), in revenge for the murders of his
pregnant wife, his sister-in-law and her baby
So far it has claimed around 1,000 lives, with the reports of
cannibalism bringing to mind the macabre tales associated with Jean
Bedel Bokassa, who ruled the CAR with an iron fist between 1966 and
1979.
He was regarded by many as a brutal dictator and was accused of eating
human flesh, incorporating it in meals for visiting officials and
feeding slain opponents to animals.
He died in 1996 and received a posthumous pardon in 2010.
Some Christian fighters believe that human flesh makes them invincible and put chunks inside amulets that they wear.
Credit: Daily Mail
Beyonce reveals Blue Ivy's first ride... a mini Lamborgini AND a pink Cadillac
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| Now
THAT'S a ride! Beyonce revealed daughter Blue Ivy's first cars - a
Lamborghini and a pink Cadillac in a picture posted on her Tumblr |
She's just turned two. But Blue Ivy is already learning to expect the finer things in life.
And Beyonce has revealed her daughter's first ride - in a snap posted on her Tumblr account.
The image showed a pink Cadillac and a blue Lamborgini parked side by side in a hallway.
With two miniature ride-on cars to ride around her undoubtedly huge mansion, Blue will be the envy of her preschool peers.
While undoubtedly a little ostentatious, the cars were, rather sweetly, personalised for the toddler.
The Lamborgini bore the legend 'Blue Ivy Baby Club' across the front windshield, and 'Baby Slab', on the seat.
Perhaps they were gifts from her famous parents friends - with musical mastermind Jay Z chums with most of the industry.
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Daddy's girl: Another shot showed Jay Z watching indulgently as his daughter skipped around
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Off she goes! Blue Ivy is on the move
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Yummy mummy: The singer wore heels and hot pants
While Beyonce carefully manages her public persona, she has slowly been introducing her only child to life as a celebrity.
Using her Tumblr page she has given fans glimpses of Blue Ivy as she travels the world in her parents' entourage.
On Friday Beyonce revealed new shots of the toddler at play.
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Keeping busy: Beyonce visited an office building in New York on Friday
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Family values: Beyonce was joined by her mother Tina for her day of errands
Dressed in a white summer dress, the youngster ran around while her parents chased her.
Jay z stood watching, dressed casually
in black trousers and a white T-shirt as Blue skipped across a lawn. She
then ran over to Beyonce, who crouched down to greet her.
As always the singer was looking picture perfect in heels, hot pants and a white shirt.
Other snaps posted by the 32-year-old
showed her posing in a fashionable outfit of green cigar pants, striped
coat and zig-zag top, a look she finished off with a fabulous bag.
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Fashion plate: Beyonce also posed for pictures showing off her fabulous outfit
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