Mira Sorvino Welcomes Son Holden Paul Terry
 Matt Symons/Pacific Coast News |
It’s a boy for Mira Sorvino! The actress welcomed son Holden Paul Terry Backus on Monday, June 22nd at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles. Weighing in at 8 lbs., 12 oz, Holden was born at 12:10 a.m. — but not without complication. Mira, 41, developed placenta previa along with a blood clot and was hospitalized for a total of nine weeks during the pregnancy.
Holden — who is named for his grandfathers — is the third child for Mira and husband Chris Backus, 28. He joins siblings Johnny Christopher King, 3, and Mattea Angel, 4 ½.
“We are overjoyed to bring our beautiful healthy son home to his brother and sister,” the couple said in a statement. “We are blessed to have a home filled with so much love.”
Source: PEOPLE
Click below for an in-depth Q&A with Mira on her pregnancy and the arrival of Holden.
Congratulations on Holden’s arrival! How was the birth for you? Were you apprehensive about it?
The birth was difficult and full of unanticipated, seemingly life-threatening complications, right up until the final stage, the part which is often the hardest. But for us, it lasted two counts of ten plus three more seconds, and we had a baby!
His full name is Holden Paul Terry Backus. The middle names are from both his grandfathers.
Holden was born on June 22nd at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles at 12:10 a.m. He weighed 8 lbs., 12 oz.
How was this pregnancy compared to your others?
It was extremely difficult. My first two pregnancies were problem-free, and this time I had a condition called placenta previa, which meant I had to be in the hospital from 22 to 27 weeks as it could have threatened my life and the life of the baby.
At the 30th week, I had another episode and I had to be rushed back to the hospital by ambulance. After another week of complete bedrest at the hospital, I developed a blood clot (DVT) due to all the inactivity and had to be anti-coagulated for months to prevent a pulmonary embolism.
I spent another two and a half weeks at the hospital, during which time, missing the children and my husband and knowing what the separation was doing to the kids became almost unbearable. Prior to this nine week hospital stay, I had only ever spent one night away from Johnny and Mattea.
Was it a difficult labor?
Yes, and long! The baby was very big and he came a couple of weeks early so it took longer than we thought.
During the day we had some scary difficulties with the epidural as I achieved almost no progress with the labor and then at night the placenta created problems again. Although it was not blocking the baby’s path as it had done for almost the entire pregnancy, it started causing me a substantial loss of blood.
Just as we began begging for a c-section, the situation turned around and the end of the birth was very easy.
Did you have Christopher there again?
Yes, I couldn’t have done it without him. He is my rock. We are a team!
What was it like when you saw your baby for the first time? Was it as emotional as you had anticipated?
It was amazing! As soon as they placed him in my arms I knew it had all been worth it.
He is my miracle baby; with everything that threatened this pregnancy and both of our lives, he came out of it completely unscathed: perfectly healthy, beautiful and wonderful!
How was it to bring Holden home for the first time? Do you feel like you have a complete family now?
It is fantastic for us to be reunited and bring our bundle of joy home for Mattea and Johnny to adore.
It is also wonderful to be able to tell the kids that Mommy is not sick anymore and that I am not going back to the hospital (despite how terrific and kind my doctors and nurses were).
We are so thrilled to have a family of five; our love keeps growing with each child!
How are you and Christopher managing with all three children? Who does what? Do you share the night shifts?
Chris (literally) does all the heavy lifting, managing all the sometimes cumbersome gear that travels with baby. He often plays with the older two while I feed and change the baby.
Nights are usually mine but if I’m too tired I’ll wake him; he has a magic way of getting Holden back to sleep walking him around.
And Chris was a true hero while I was in the hospital, taking care of every aspect of our lives and attending to all of the kids needs during a truly difficult time for all of us.
How is Holden sleeping/feeding? Does the baby have any aspects to his personality that you are seeing yet?
He eats very well and usually sleeps quite well too. He has a darling personality, very sweet and inquisitive and calm. He seems like an old soul, if one can say that of a baby!
Do you think Holden particularly resembles one of you?
I think he looks like Christopher, but also like some of the men on my side of the family. There’s a little of my Dad and my great grandfather, Anthony Renzi, in him.
How has the other children reacted to their new baby sibling?
Mattea and Johnny love Holden and make up songs to sing to him! My only challenge has been convincing them not to touch him and pet him while he’s sleeping, because they wake him up!
What are your hopes and dreams for your family?
That we grow and learn from and love each other more with every day.
This whole experience, however challenging it was at times, really strengthened my faith in God and I know we are so blessed to have each other in good health.
Because of my husband and my children, I feel like the luckiest woman in the world, and I just want to cherish every minute we have together.
And finally how are you capturing the first few weeks?
Well, in the traditional ways, like still photos and lots of flip video. But I’m also writing a book about my whole crazy year, and I find that putting pen to paper helps me remember more details about the experience and sort through my feelings and the way it has changed me, I believe, for the better.
Also, Holden might enjoy knowing about his journey into the world and these early, priceless days.
You forget how tiny they are; when I look at my son Johnny now, that is who he is to me. Watching Johnny lying next to Holden, in all his tall three-year-old cuteness, I suddenly flash back to him as a delicate, dark-haired little infant, just opening his eyes to the world and all its splendor.
- Posted on Jul 13, 09 at 5:15PM
- Permalink
- 30 Comments
July 13th, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Beautiful interview! Congratulations to Chris and Mira on their miracle baby!
July 13th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
I can’t think of the name holden without thinking of catcher in the rye. The name is a little dramatic for my taste and Terry sounds a bit like a nickname. Congrats to her, 3 kids all under the age of 5. Gotta be interesting and I didn’t know her hubby was so young.
July 13th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
What a neat interview! She’s a rock star!
July 13th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
What a great interview! CONGRATS to Mira and Chris! Holden was definitely a big baby! I saw that he had his grandfather’s middle name and then in reading the interview he has both his grandfather’s names! That is a nice tribute to the both of them. Congrats again and enjoy your little one!
July 13th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
congrats to the family and I love the name Holden and it flows well with Paul & Terry
July 13th, 2009 at 5:42 pm
I like the name! I’m reading Catcher in the Rye right now.
Congratulations to everyone on a healthy baby.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
Congrats to them. How scary the previa must have been.
I don’t see 8 lbs 12 ozs as being big, but then again, my smallest has been 9 lbs 6ozs so I have a different point of reference.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:02 pm
I was waiting for this news! I like the name. My youngest brother is named Holden Kile(a Yankee player with the last name Kile died around the time he was born and his dad is a super fan of the Yankee’s) but I like how Holden Paul sounds. I think the Terry is a little much, but its their choice. I’m glad their all healthy and happy.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
What a wonderful interview. She seems like she has a great family.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:27 pm
Congrats to Mira and her hubby! 8lbs12oz is BIG for a couple weeks early!!!
July 13th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
It’s a good interview and wonderful that everything turned out well after very serious complications.
But the name … Holden Backus? Sounds too much like “holding back us”. Holden is a fine name, but it wouldn’t be my choice for a last name that starts with “Back”.
July 13th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
I know parents want to honor family members, but, try not to give one baby all the names at once! lol Though, I do like the flow of Holden Paul. Terry seems out of place, imo. Of course the most important thing here is that baby & family are doing well!
Gongrats!
July 13th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
Wow he was born at almost 9lbs and he was early! Yikes!! I love the name Holden though.
My SIL had placenta previa and was put on bed rest in the 4th month. After a month on bed rest she was okay to go back to work but was told to limit activity. However she landed back in the hostpital at 26 weeks and had to have an emergency c-section bc both babies were losing oxygen. My nephews were born at a little over 1 pound each. Today they are healthy happy 4 year old’s. My one nephew as a result of months in an incubator does however suffer from cerebral palsy but no matter what they’re both miracles!
July 13th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
What a terrific interview. Thank you to Mira for taking the time out of your recovery and family bonding to talk about this issue and your pregnancy and birth!
July 13th, 2009 at 8:24 pm
Congratulations to the whole family. So many new celeb babies have been born in the past few weeks
July 13th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Wow, I have not heard that name since we named our son Holden almost 5 years ago. Love how some people can refer to the book The Catcher and the Rye as soon as they hear that name. I think it’s a unique name.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:37 pm
I was just thinking about her last night and thinking she must be having the baby this month. She had Holden on the same day that Sarah Jessica Parker had her twins. Glad everything turned out okay.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:43 pm
I am so happy for Mira. She seems to be a sweet person.
July 13th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Congratulations to them on the arrival of their new little one!!
I like the name Holden Paul but not crazy about adding the name Terry into the mix.
July 13th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
Congrats to the whole family! I love the name Holden!
July 13th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
She looks beautiful, I wish I had looked like that when I was pregnant!
July 14th, 2009 at 3:24 am
A true miracle indeed, love the name!
July 14th, 2009 at 6:16 am
I am not normally fond of three names for one baby, but I guess they wanted to pick their own names for thier children and then also family members as well. Sometimes you have to add in that third name to get everyone in. In the grand scheme of things, it’s really no big deal as no one really goes by their full names.
Great interview. I love Mira.
July 14th, 2009 at 7:34 am
So glad everyone is healthy! I love the name Holden but thought the same thing as danda_lion: holding back. In any case, best wishes!
July 14th, 2009 at 8:13 am
Yay! Someone else who used the name Terry! My son is the only Terry I know under the age of 28, and we get asked all the time if his name is Terrence. Which it’s not. It’s jsut good old Terry. They have such a beautiful family, adn I’m glad to see everyone is doing well. (And her hubby is a hottie!) Congrats to the whole family on the new addition!
July 14th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Seriously people why can’t you just be happy for them instead of complaining about how you don’t care for the name they have chosen or how 8 lbs is not a”Big Baby”? Does all that really matter? Just be happy she & baby came out of this ok & are healthy!
July 14th, 2009 at 10:57 pm
I saw a photo of Holden and the whole family today on TV. He is very cute.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:49 pm
brannon and danda_lion- Well, it’s very possible that Mira and Chris won’t have any more kids, especially considering Mira’s age and the complications she went through this time around. Therefore, if they wanted to honor both grandfathers, they sort of HAD to give him both of their names!
July 15th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Congratulations on a healthy baby and for making it through. Your success story is givnig me hope!
I’ll be spending my 21st night in the hospital tonight, due to placenta previa. I’m also 41, this is also my third baby, and I’ve been hospitalized twice before during this pregnancy. This time, however, I don’t get to leave until baby girl arrives:-)
I know how hard the hospitalization can be for everyone: you, the kids, and your husband, but as you say, completely worth it for a healthy baby.
Sure hope I have an 8-pounder!
July 17th, 2009 at 2:01 am
I absolutely love “Catcher In The Rye” and love the name Holden. And 8 lbs is great for being early!