If you can remember Members of the Duggar family have had their picture taken number of times on the cover of PEOPLE Magazine more than nine times. This week is Israel David Dillard's first appearance. We have included a few highlights below, but you can read the full article by visiting your local news stand starting this Friday.
Jill and Derick Dillard had been planning for a home birth with a team of
midwives, but the newlywed couple experienced complications and ended up having
a hospital birth. Jill had been in labor for 70 hours when Israel David Dillard
was finally born via emergency C-section.
Twelve days past her due date, Jill's water broke and she tested positive for
strep B. She began labor at home, but she and Derick decided to head to the
hospital after 20 hours of labor had yielded little progress. Jill, who is
trained in midwifery, also noticed a meconium stain, which often indicates that
the baby is in distress.
After arriving at the hospital, Jill continued with natural labor for another 50
hours, but by that time, it was clear that little Israel was in distress. Jill
and Derick decided to go ahead with a C-section.
Throughout their difficult delivery, the couple continued to pray. Although the
road was hard, their story had a happy ending, and Jill told
PEOPLE that Israel is worth
all the pain and discomfort that she endured
credit to A Blog About the Duggar Family