Fall Photos

Over the weekend, my SUPER talented sister, Kayla, captured some sweet pictures and took some posed shots of the babies. Please don't be surprised if one of these is your Christmas card photo from the Lee family. I just couldn't wait one more second before I posted them. Thank you so much, sister! We love you!

  

Making Baby Food

No, I didn't start making baby food because I am a super health-nut who doesn't want to feed my babies canned baby food. In fact, the first foods they ate were canned, and I have quite a large supply of canned baby food in my pantry right now! It's easy, quick, convenient... and expensive!

I stopped breastfeeding at 4 months when I started back on Humira for severe chronic ulcerative colitis I have battled since 9th grade. The scary "what-ifs" of the medicine made the decision for me, because if it was my personal choice I would still be breastfeeding. But, it is what it is, and after a lot of internal struggle I have accepted this fact! That being said... formula is dang expensive!! A couple awesome girlfriends collect the similac coupons for me, and I get some here and there in the mail. But a tub of similac sensitive for $23.99 lasts me three days. That's about $240 a month, or $1,920 for the 8 months Keegan and Noelle will take formula before transitioning to other milks.Yep. Babies are expensive. Two babies are really expensive. :)

Back to the homemade baby food.....

It relaxes me. Is that weird? I don't like to cook. Sorry, hubs. But, I have found I love to make baby food. There is something about watching my freezer fill up with fresh, organic (when possible), frozen cubes of perfection, that just makes me so happy!

In the past two weeks, I've made carrots, sweet potatoes, bananas and butternut squash. I plan to start making 'combo' flavored fruits and veggies sometime next week as the babies pallets grow. I am careful to only introduce a new food every couple of days so if they develop any sort of weird reaction I can catch it quickly. So far they haven't, and they love everything... except bananas!

I'm learning, and doing a ton of googling to find out tips & tricks of baby-food making! Fellow Dallas twin-mom, Amber, has done a terrific job of documenting baby food making on her blog and I have checked it several times!

Sliding Toward One

Seven months. My babes are now closer to being one year olds than infants. Hands down, the past 4 weeks between 6-7 months have maybe been my favorite month. Although that's hard to say, because every month has those "favorite" things about it. This past month just totally rocked though. Personality-wise and developmentally, Keegan & Noelle are growing leaps and bounds. I think months 5 & 6 were a little hard because they were working so hard mentally, physically and emotionally to reach the huge milestones we've witnessed this month. The greatest blessing... they have both been sleeping through the night all month. From 7-7:30 pm to 6:45-7:00 am. Every night. It's absolutely amazing. Keegan started sleeping through the night about 2 weeks before Noelle, and after letting Noelle cry for about 45 minutes two nights in a row, she got the picture. And has been a sweet sleeping pie ever since. Keegan and Noelle also finished their doc-band treatment this month and are helmet-free! Yay! Their moderate plagiocephaly is a ton better, and will only continue to get better as they grow. We also said goodbye to our sweet nanny, Faith, as she is due any minute with a baby boy of her own! We miss her a ton already. She was the biggest blessing to our family over the past 4 months.

Keegan
Nicknames: Keegs, Bug, Munka, Keegan Lee. Our most used term, Bug, for sure.

No well-check, so I am just guessing, but Keegan probably weighs about 20 pounds. He takes a 6 oz bottle at 7, breakfast at 8, bottle at 10, lunch between 11-12, bottle at 1, bottle at 4, dinner at 6, bedtime bottle at 7. The babes started attending a Montessori Academy a couple weeks ago, so their nap schedules are still adjusting. They used to take two really long naps every day, and now its about 3 shorter naps. It seems to fit them just fine, as it hasn't affected their night-time sleeping. On the food front, Keegan has tried sweet potatoes, carrots, peas, green beans, squash, bananas, pears, and banana-strawberry. His favorite... peas! Least favorite.... bananas. Weird, right?

Keegan started sitting up un-assisted the week of October 21st. He is a pro and absolutely loves sitting and playing with his toys. He is also on the verge of crawling. He will get on his hands and knees and rock, rock, rock and then thrust himself forward to scoot to whatever he wants to get! While it may not be an official crawl just yet, there is no stopping him from getting from one side of the floor to the other. Keegs is also blabbing non-stop. We're working hard on 'mama' and I swear it sounds like it here and there... but it is mostly bla, ba, ma, da, ah, bla. You get the point...

This month, Keegan loves walks in the stroller, reading books, hitting toys that make a lot of noise, watching Noelle's every move, being held by his mama, holding his own bottle, dinner time, baths, his jumperoo and making friends at school. He doesn't like when Justin or I leave his sight, getting dressed or diaper changes and getting his snotty nose wiped.

He is the happiest, smiliest, laughiest baby boy in the entire world, and I can't help but smile every time I get him up in the morning. I'm greeted with a smile and a hug (yes, the kid gives hugs!) every single day.

Noelle
Nicknames: Noelley, Pie, Angel Pie, Noelley Bell. Our most used term, Pie, for sure.

Just a guess, but Noelle is probably 18 or so pounds. She's tall and skinny! She also takes a 6 oz bottle at 7, breakfast at 8, bottle at 10, lunch between 11-12, bottle at 1, sottle at 4, dinner at 6, bedtime bottle at 7. Noelle is a better eater than Keegan, and never lets a drop of food out of her mouth. She's such a priss, not a messy eater at all. She's tried all of the same foods as Keegan, and so far has the same favorite and least favorite! Maybe its a twin thing.

Noelle started sitting up un-assisted her second week of Montessori school, the week of Halloween. A little wobbly at first, she is now also a pro. She loves to grab toys and wave them around and laugh. No crawling yet - this angel pie knows all she has to do is make a peep and her daddy comes and grabs her to go wherever she wants. She already has him eating out of the palm of her hand... SUCH a daddy's girl. You should see the smiles she gives him. Noelle likes to hear herself... usually by screeching or 'singing' or saying ahhhhh really loud. She now just likes to make really loud noises and get our attention. It works.

This month Noelle loves bath time, playing with toys, reading stories, watching Keegan play, watching the other kids at school play, swinging in our new backyard swing, and eating. She does not like getting dressed, when we walk away from her and getting her nose wiped.

Noelle has grown a ton this month. She's outgrown her frequent spitting up from acid reflux (and colic - which I will now admit she had a really bad case of) :) - so she is just a much, much happier baby all around. Maybe it is partly to do with the fact she now has enough hair for a BOW! WOOO. hehe. She is our sweet angel pie girl and such a blessing.

We had a super fun month in Dallas. We had visits from Netta & Grandpa, Mamais & Pappa, Mimi and Papa and Aunt Kristin. We went to downtown McKinney, the park, a BlueGrass Festival, played with our friends at school, went to a church craft show, and out to dinner a few times as a family. Now, half-way through November with Thanksgiving and Christmas on the horizon... I am GIDDY as I can only imagine what the holidays will be like this year with kids. It's like a whole new world, and I can't wait for the new memories we'll build as a family.

If you follow me on Instagram, (@lee_erika)you've probably seen these, but here are a few favorites from this months!

6 Month Stats

Here are the stats from their 6 month well-check today:

Keegan
18 lbs 12.5 oz (68% tile)
27 1/2 inches long (79% tile)
Head circ 17 in (29% tile)

Doc says: Handsome, healthy, inquisitive, curious, happy boy!

Noelle
16 lbs 1 oz (46% tile)
26 1/2 inches long (71% tile)
Head circ 16.07 in (29% tile)

They both received 4 shots and an oral vaccine - it was rough.

Doc says: Gorgeous, healthy, exploratory, expressive, skinny and tall!

1/2 of a WHOLE year

Our kiddos are 6 months old!! Hooooooow did it haaaaaapen so fast? I just don't know. Part of me can't even imagine life before them - like they have always been a part of our family - but part of it seems like they were just born yesterday!

Little Miss Noelle

Nicknames: Noelley, Noelle Bell, The girl, Missy girl, Pie, Angel Pie

Noelle has the most amazing laugh. When she thinks something is funny she laughs and has this hilarious little hiccup at the end. It really is the sweetest thing. Noelle slept through the night for the very first time on 10/15. 8 pm - 6:30 am without a peep. She typically wakes up once around 3 AM, so I am hoping this is a trend that sticks around. Last night she slept 8 - 5, and fell back asleep until 8. Progress! Noelle loves her blocks, sophie giraffe, being held and carried, watching Keegan bounce, playing with her fingers, rolling and inching her way around, music, and eating! She does not like the hours of 6 pm - 8 pm (hehe), when mama and daddy walk out of her sight, waking up hungry, and spitting up. (Although her acid reflux is SO much better recently yay!)

Noelle is on the move. She will scoot her way across the blanket to get to what she wants, and she is constantly rolling back and forth. We are on baby-proof mission this weekend!

Her hair is getting longer, and pretty soon a clip will work I just know it! No words yet but lots of babbling and cooing, blowing bubbles, and 'talking' to her animals. She is our princess, a daddy's girl, amazingly sweet, and keeps us on our toes. Man oh man, the girl can really get our attention when she wants it....

Mr. Keegan

Nicknames: Keegs, Chunka, Chunka Munk, Munka, Keegan Lee

Keegan is just a fun, funny kid. He wakes up smiling and rarely gets upset. He thinks everything is hilarious, and gives the most adorable hugs already. Our 'little baby' can now wear 9 month and even some 12 month clothes. Keegan sleeps pretty good - usually from 8 pm - 7 am without a fuss. He had a mega cold last week which he did NOT like. It kept him up a lot at night and he was just not a happy camper. Not fun at all. Keegan loves his jumparoo, exersaucer, singing puppy, laughing, and stroller rides. He does not like wet diapers, stuffy noses, when mama and dadday are out of his sight, and sitting in his bumbo.

Keegan is also a rolly polly - rolling all around and scooting in circles on his belly to get to his toys. He can also sit up un-assisted for a little while before toppling over. Getting him to laugh is one of the best things ever, and I have loved watching his personality continue to grow.

We introduced veggies this past month and so far they have had: sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, summer veggie mixture, peas and pears. Their favorite was pears and carrots and their least favorite was the veggie mix. I have also let them try drinking a bit of water from a sippy cup which Keegan thought was awesome and Noelle was not the least bit interested in. :)

Last weekend we went to our first pumpkin patch with their Mimi, Aunt Jenn and cousins Connor and Molly. This weekend we are heading to their first Blue Grass Festival with their Netta and Grandpa. What an awesome month of family fun.

Our Schedule

Our schedule. I want to write this out just so I can look back and remember. The hard days, and the not so hard days. Cause lets be honest - there aren't any 'easy' days! haha!

Keegan and Noelle wake up for the day around 7:15 AM. We change diapers, set up our play area downstairs and either turn on the news or music. I try to wait until 7:30/7:45 to give them their first bottles of the day. After their bottles we play for awhile - usually under our play yard, with our musical toys, and they roll around on their blankets. Lately we have been adding in some oatmeal for breakfast before they get really sleepy. When Faith arrives in the morning, we bring them upstairs and set them up for the day. They are usually awake until 9:30/9:45 and then get really cranky and are ready for their morning nap. This one is usually about an hour. They wake up and play, and Faith gives them their next bottle around 10:45.

After their 10:45 bottle they play for awhile - in their excersaucer, bouncer, and with the different selection of toys they have upstairs. Around lunch time they get super tired and go down for their longest nap of the day. A couple hours, usually.

1:45 is when we shoot to give them their next bottle and then they play some more, and then another short nap. When Faith leaves in the afternoon, we bring the babies back downstairs and set them up on blankets in the living room so we can hang out the rest of the evening. Their late afternoon bottle is at 4:45, and after this bottle we keep them awake until they go to bed for the night. Our evening routine has been bottle, play, veggies, bath, bottle and bed. They have been going down around 8 pm every night! Which has been super nice because then we can hang out for a couple hours before crashing ourselves.

Keegan likes his sleep. He sleeps through until the AM, or wakes up once. I think those nights he wakes up are because he's been teething super bad and his gums hurt. Noelle wakes up once to eat, usually around 3/4, but goes back down super fast. Could be worse. :) I think she wakes up still because of her acid reflux. She spits up a lot during the day, so she gets hungry at night!

Of course this schedule doesn't happen every single day, but its what we aim toward. Sometimes we go out to dinner and do our best to keep them awake so they don't ruin their early bedtime. Sometimes we go for walks to replace their evening play time. (This has actually been happening quite regularly as the weather has cooled off!). I'm not super crazy schedule mom, but as a working mom of twins I need some sort of regularity so I don't lose my mind!!

So there it is. Their schedule at 6 days short of 6 months old.

Wow. 6 months.

Punkin Pies

5 Months!

Noelle and Keegan are 5 months old! WHAT one earth.
This has been a hard month for us. No sugar-coating it! They are awake much more, but still can't really entertain themselves. So they get fussy more easily, and fight sleep. They are also at such a fun age because they laugh and play. That makes the hard days a little better. :)

N + K turned 5 months on September 12th. This month they attended their first two birthday parties - one for their little friend Emma and the other for their cousin Connor. I can't believe baby C is 4 years old. Wow! He had an awesome birthday with a gigantic slide and lots of little friends. We took a trip to Houston, had our Aunt Jenn and Uncle Jack up to visit, and had a visit from Grandpa and Netta. October is going to bring even more visits from family and lots of fall fun! Bring on the cool weather.

What's new?

Noelle is a rolly polly. The second you lay her on her back, she flips to her belly. And she is so proud of herself! She still has acid reflux pretty seriously, but we are on a new medicine that I really hope works for her. I just feel so bad. She gets hungry but you can tell she just doesn't feel good after she drinks her bottle. We tried similac for spit-up, but didn't notice too much of a difference so we switched her back to similac sensitive which she has been on for awhile. Noelle also has a clogged tear duct that flairs up. Some days it is fine and other days her little eye is so red. The doctor won't do anything for it for a few months because its a procedure to unclog. Noelle loves her little blocks, fish bowl, sophie the giraffe, and anything she can hold on to really tight. She has THE longest fingers and loves playing with them (and sucking on them!) No pacis for this girl, but she is sort of getting the thumb thing down. She is in 6 month clothes, and sometimes 3-6 months depending on the brand. She is so, so long - so a lot of clothes that would fit her are too short in the body. Sweet girl is also growing some hair! I think her helmet is helping haha! Speaking of helmets, at her appt this week the doctor said she has already made a huge improvement and hopefully only needs it for a few more weeks. Noelle has quite a few nicknames, but mostly goes by Pie, Pumpkin Pie, The Girl, Girlie Pop, and Noelley Belle. Her smile and laugh is adorable and she throws her head back when she laughs hard. She loves when her dad makes faces at her and her personality is really coming to light.

Keegan. Keegan Lee, Keegs, Munka, Chunka Munk - these are the names for the boy. He is so dang funny. And huge. Our little 4 lber is now a chunk at 17ish pounds. He's got the extra chins to prove it. Keegan is in 6 month clothes, but has sported a few 12 month outfits! I know. His skull onesie for Connor's birthday was 12 months, and he wore a polo that was 12 months too. A little big, but not drastically. Keegan loves his door bouncer (I mean LOVES), knocking over his fishbowl and laughing, stroller rides, car rides, flying in the air with dad, and his excersaucer. His legs are getting a major work out from bouncing & bouncing each day. His laugh is contagious, and he is smiley pretty much all day. Until he gets hungry. But kid is so laid back. No pacis for Keegan either, but he also likes chewing his hands. Keegan is a better sleeper than Noelle. Once he goes down at night he rolls right over and goes to sleep. There are days he sleeps past 8 am and I have to wake the kiddo up!

October is going to bring FUN stuff for this fam! Visits to the pumpkin patch, play dates with friends, visits from family, sweaters & cardigans, and more exciting milestones to look forward to every day.

These kids may have upped my coffee intake, but I wouldn't have it any other way. How blessed are we to have two sweet faces looking at us full of love every day?

Infant Photos. Why does time go so fast?

 

 

NICU

I already know this post will be a jumble of words and sentences and thoughts. Because even thinking back to the 10 days we watched our sweet Noelle spend in NICU is still a blur.

Maybe it was ignorant, but I really didn't think either of the twins would have NICU time. I made it to 37 weeks, and our perinatologist watched their growth weekly. They were both estimated to be around 5 pounds and were active and were on track for a healthy delivery via c-section.

When Noelle was born, she was a dusty rose color. A little bluish, and although she cried it was muted. They didn't bring her over to me when she was born, and thinking back, I get so upset. They lifted Keegan up and he was screaming and 2 minutes later when Noelle was born, they brought her straight over to the incubator and started working on her. I remember just laying there. Justin went over to be with the babies as soon as they were born, as I had instructed him to do no matter what! I wanted him with them. I was fine. I didn't feel one single pinch or pull during my c-section. I remember hearing the two doctors talking about their latest vacations as they stitched me up, and in the background I heard them say 'NICU' and I knew they meant Noelle. Eventually a nurse came over to me and said they were taking Noelle upstairs and Justin was going with her. They let me see her for just a moment. When they left, I laid on the table by myself and no one was talking to me. I sort of feel like crying just writing that sentence. I wasn't worried about Noelle, actually. I knew she was in the very best care. I just felt lonely for a minute. It probably was the drugs, too.

I was taken to the recovery room and reuinted with Keegan almost immediately. We were able to bond, nurse, and introduce him to our family. But for most of the time I was in recovery (almost 6 hours because of my bleeding), Justin was upstairs with Noelle and my family circled between visiting me and her. I still hadn't seen her.

After 6 pm I was discharged from recovery, and able to move upstairs to my post partum room, but they let me go to NICU first to see Noelle. They wheeled me there on my hospital bed, right into her room, right up to the sweet glass container. It wasn't covered, so I was able to touch her, but she was completely wired. And on CPAP, which is the most terrifying thing I have ever seen. I don't remember if I cried at that first visit. There were so many tears over the next few days, I as in such a haze. She was breathing fast, and they believed she had fluid in her lungs. The nurses assured me she was really doing OK, and that they hoped to lower her CPAP by the next morning. I went back to my postpartum room and had to be a mommy to Keegan and love on him and show him off, while my sweet girl was not with us. My family was amazing - they all took turns between visiting me and Keegan in our room, or heading upstairs to see Noelle. I never felt like she was alone, which was a huge relief.

My c-section recovery went smoothly, although it was still major surgery. I had to wait until my catheter was taken out the next day to then be able to shower and visit Noelle again. I wanted to walk right away. Justin made me ride halfway there in the wheelchair. This time I cried. Noelle was not on a lower CPAP, but they actually had to turn the oxygen up and she was wired even more than the night before. Justin tried to prepare me before I got there, but you just can never be prepared for a feeling like that.

Truly meeting Noelle for the first time

Over the next 4 days in the hospital I spent my days nursing Keegan, pumping to bring milk to Noelle in NICU, spending time with family, and recovering from my surgery. I felt so, so proud everytime I would fill a tiny vile up to bring to Noelle. It was the only thing I could do for her, and it made me happy to be able to provide almost all of her nourishment while she was in NICU. Keegan was so, so tiny and we didn't want him to lose weight so while we were in the hospital I nursed him for 15 minutes, and then gave him either expressed milk or neosure to supplement him before he got too tired.

I remember just going and going. You don't even think about being tired. I wanted Noelle out of NICU so bad.

Then one morning we went upstairs and the doctor told us they heard a heart murmur and needed to run some additional tests. To me it was devastating news - and a set back I knew would add time to her stay. Luckily the heart murmur closed on its own within 24 hours, she was taken off CPAP and put on room air, but she was still being fed through a tube and get spitting up most of her meals.

Once she was in the clear medically (her lungs were OK and her heart murmur closed), the only thing that stood between us getting her home was for her to learn to take her feeds. She was moved from NICU to 'Special Care' nursery. I remember being SO excited. I was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday evening, and Tuesday night she moved into her private suite at Special Care.

She spent 5 days in Special Care Nursery. They wouldn't let her leave until she finished 16 feedings in a row of 40 ml. We actually had to break her out of there and convince a doctor to let us bring her home before she finished all 16 feedings. Keegan was at home eating 30/35/25/40... always something different. We wanted our girl home with us and knew she was doing amazing.

Our NICU journey (5 days) was amazing. Our nurses were terrific, doctors were very informative, and the NICU at Texas Presby is phenomenal. Our Special Care journey (5 days) was exhausting, frustrating, and overwhelming. The nurses were.. Ok... and I never felt like anyone would give me any information other than 'she needs to eat better.'

We survived 10 days at the hospital, and brought Noelley Bell home to meet her brother. They were reunited for the first time 10 days after they were born, and locked arms immediately. I love the pictures we took of them that very first day home.

Four months of crazy awesomeness

Well, some how my sweet babies are 4 months old. I don't even know how that happened. Time just flies. I find myself daydreaming about their birth a lot. I wish I could press rewind and live it all over again. But on the other hand, they are at such an awesome stage, and I don't want to go backwards. It's hard to explain, and emotional. Emotional... that's the best way to describe things lately.

My 4-month long breastfeeding journey came to an unplanned early end, and I wasn't ready. I have to begin a powerful medicine and I just can't risk passing it through my milk to Keegs and Noelle. I stalled as long as possible, but I knew it was probably going to happen this way. I loved every single time I got to nurse the babes, and I even loved pumping. Those 15 minute sessions were a chance to sit back, breathe, and return to the babies feeling refreshed. While I wish I could have done it longer, I am happy I was able to give them antibodies and nourishment for as long as I could. I'm emotional about it though. Sitting here right now I wish I could do something about it, but I know that I can't.

The past few months have been a whirlwind. In July we sold a house, bought a new house, packed, and I went back to work. In August we moved, hired a nanny, and began the work-at-home mom routine. It's been hectic, exciting, exhausting and humbling. There are days that I am just so tired. And then there are days that I feel like I totally rock at this whole mom thing. Those are good days.

Keegan and Noelle had their 4 month appointment today, and poor sweet babies had to get 4 shots each. Keegan is 15.8 and Noelle is 13.7. Keegs got the green light to start trying solids, but we will wait a few more weeks to start Noelle. Her reflux/spitting up could get worse if we introduce food too early.

The babies are at such a fun age. They laugh. Out loud. And when they do, they give themselves hiccups. It's so adorable. They also love to hold onto their toys, especially textured things that make noise. Right now their favorite things are Sophie (Noelle) and soft blocks (Keegan and Noelle) and the play mat (Keegan and Noelle). They also love looking at each other, watching Mickey Mouse, swinging, tummy time, eating, and bath time.  Noelle does NOT like loud, sudden noises, riding in her carseat, sitting in her carseat during walks, or when mama leaves the room. Keegan does NOT like wet diapers, getting scared, or when mama leaves the room. They are so funny - they totally know when I am in the room or not and they get upset when I leave. I love how much they love me. And I can't get enough of them.

As I'm typing this, their daddy is on the way to pick up mama's new hot stroller - the Baby Jogger City Select! Woo Woo! Buy Buy Baby price matches and the grey color was on salw at Allbeebaby.com. CAN'T WAIT to take the babes for a spin tonight.

Two Month Favorites!

These are the things we LOVE and couldn't live without at two months:

1. Aden + Anais Swaddle Blankets
2. Fisher Price Sea Horses
3. Dr. Browns Bottles
4. Hospital Medela Pump
5. Aveeno Wash + Shampoo
6. Fisher Price Piano
7. Boppys
8. Ju Ju Be BFF Diaper Bag
9. Rock N' Plays (retired them at 7 weeks, but loved every minute of using them!)
10. Old Navy size 0-3 month onesies. Love them! Fit perfectly! They wore newborn clothes until 7 weeks, and these onesies were a great transition until their other clothes started to fit.

At their two month check-up, Keegan weighed 10 lb 13 oz and Noelle weighed 9 lb 10 oz.
Perfect little angels. :)

I've been jotting down things here and there in a notebook about the babies but plan to sit down next week and transfer it all into their baby books! It's just so hard to find the time to sit and write when I should be doing a million other things to catch up! We are putting our house up for sale next week which just makes it all that much more challenging.

Overall, I'm feeling great. Of course there are some overwhelming days, but sleepless nights are quickly forgotten by the next day. Physically I feel good too. Suprisngly I am a couple pounds below my pre-pregnancy weight (although I have QUITE a bit of toning to do.) I haven't started working out yet but hopefully next week when my mom is here helping out I can squeeze in a few workout DVDs. :) I'm eating ice cream as I write this sooo.... I need a bit of help getting started!

The kiddos have a few nicknames but mostly Keegan goes by Keegs or Chunka or Chunka Munk. And Noelle goes by Noell-ey Bell or Missy Moo. They are both developing such strong personalities; its so fun to see the new things they are doing each week. And each week, they reverse the roles of the 'high maintenance' twin. Right now, Noelle is in the lead when it comes to eating and Keegan is in the lead when it comes to sleeping.

I want to sit down and write about our NICU experience with Noelle, and how the first 10 days of the twins life started off. Although it was a tough time, I don't want to forget it.

Happy Birthday Keegan & Noelle!

Today the twins are 19 days old. A TON of stuff has happened in the past 19 days, so I thought I'd sit down while these babies nap and type it all out so I don't forget any of it.

Let's start with their birth day - Friday, April 12th. After 15 days on hospital bedrest, it was time for them to make their debut. My c-section was scheduled for 12 pm, and I had to be ready to go at 10 am. The morning was really calm. Got up, finished packing up my room, showered and put on my hospital gown. They wheeled me down to Labor and Delivery at 10 o'clock on the dot, and I was put in a room to get monitored and start my IVs. Our families came in and visited with us and Jenn and Connor surprised us too! It was a really sweet, surreal time preparing for delivery. The anesthesiologist came and talked to us. He mentioned that since my blood pressure had been so high due to pre-eclampsia, that I would likely feel light headed after the epidural because that makes your blood pressure drop. I still felt really calm through the whole thing - I was ready to go.

They wheeled me into the delivery room by myself to get the epidural. It was a weird experience. There were tons of people in the room setting up the stations for the twins. The epidural didn't hurt at all. It literally felt like a shot. I instantly went numb and couldn't lift my legs. They laid me back on the table and the doc started asking me how I felt. The next few minutes were yucky. I was kind of nauseous, light headed, etc. But as soon as I told them how I was feeling, they adjusted the meds and got me feeling stable. The anesthesiologist took an ice pack and moved it from my legs up to my face to see when I could feel the cold. I didn't feel it until it was on my forehead! He actually joked and said next time I do this to let them know I am 'extra sensitive' to epidurals. What the heck! Then he pulled out his iphone and texted my doctor to let her know I was ready. (Technology is crazy, right??) Her reply to his text - "Let's do this!" A couple minutes later she came strolling in, with another doctor from the practice to assist her because it was twins. By this time Justin was in the room too standing right next to me and I could see him looking around soaking everything in.

At 12:10, our sweet Keegan entered the world screaming. I did not feel one single thing during my surgery. No pressure, pulling, tugging, nothing. Justin watched the entire thing! At 12:12, Noelle was born. She was also crying, but not as loudly as her brother. The next few minutes are kind of a blur. I remember Justin going over to be by the babies while they were getting weighed and cleaned up, and I also remember hearing lots of voices talking about Noelle and her breathing and coloring. While I was getting stitched up, one of the nurses came over to tell me they were taking Noelle to NICU to get checked out - so her and Justin left. I laid there for a little while longer, the doctors said bye, and I was wheeled to the recovery room. Kind of a weird moment, but I wasn't scared or nervous for some reason.

Keegan and I were taken to recovery where I was taken care of by the sweetest nurse, Emily. Right away she brought me Keegan and helped me nurse him. She is a huge breastfeeding advocate, so she also started helping me express milk for him and Noelle. Everyone came in and out to see me and Keegan, and give me updates on Noelle. I was in quite a bit of pain though, and Emily told me I was bleeding a lot more than she liked, so she called the anesthesiologist and my doctor to give them an update. Not to go into too much detail, but basically after you deliver, your uterus has to contract to start going back to its normal size. Mine was not, and I was losing a lot of blood and blood clots. The doctor had to come in and massage my uterus (hello worst pain ever, even on the hard core pain medicine I was on) for 30 minutes to get the bleeding to stop. He actually ordered me three units of blood because he thought I'd need a blood transfusion. Luckily the bleeding stopped, and while my 1 hour recovery turned into 6 hours, I finally got to leave and head to my hospital room.

On our way to my hospital room, Justin and I stopped at the NICU to see Noelle. I was laying in my hospital bed, and remember getting pushed up next to her incubator. She was the most precious little girl I'd ever seen, and I was extremely emotional. She was on a machine called CPAP which was helping put pressured oxygen into her lungs. The tubes and IVs were larger than her tiny little body, and I could only get a good look at her eyes. The NICU nurses assured us that she was doing OK, just getting some extra breathing support she needed, and that I should come back in the morning for an update. (I will write a whole post on our NICU experience later on).

April 12th was by far the sweetest day of my life. As I write this, I wish I could go back and relive every single moment. It was absolutely perfect, despite it going a little differently than I had imagined, and we were blessed with two sweet angels who have forever changed our lives in this short 19 days. The amount of love we have for them is unimaginable, and I find myself just staring at them soaking up every detail. God had a plan to bring our babies into this world, and while it was a challenging time with Noelle in NICU, Justin and I learned patience, trust, sacrifice and pure joy to a whole different level then every before.

My last pre-mommy post

Sitting here on day 13 in the hospital seems pretty surreal. In some ways it feels like I have been here forever, but in other ways the time has flown by. I know I am here for a reason. When I was admitted on March 28th, several of the doctors in the practice told me they didn't think I would make it a few more days before I delivered. My preeclampsia was mild to moderate, and the only cure is to deliver. Thankfully, strict hospital bedrest has kept my blood pressures pretty stable, my liver levels in the normal range, and my swelling has decreased dramatically. I am so blessed that I have been able to carry these babies two weeks longer. Bringing them from 35 to 37 weeks, they are not going to be considered premature. God's plan was for me to deliver two full-term twins at 37 weeks, and I am emotional realizing what a true, true blessing that is. Almost 60% of twins are born before 37 weeks, so we have really made it far. Phew, did I mention I was emotional? The past couple of days have been really tough, exciting, overwhelming, and in some ways very calming. Several times, Justin and I have just stopped mid-conversation about something else and started talking about Friday. About how in just a few short days we will be parents to two kids at once. How incredibly lucky and excited we are for this journey. How insane Friday morning will feel while they are prepping me for my c-section. As much as we have thought and talked about how Friday will go, I don't think we can fully be prepared for it.

I think the sense of 'calm' I have felt is another blessing I couldn't have fully understood until now. Justin and I created a To-Do list pretty early in my pregnancy. We always knew there was a chance I could go on bedrest, and our doctors suggested we try to have everything ready by 32 weeks. When I was admitted to the hospital, I was a little anxious that I wouldn't step foot into my house until I was walking in the door with Noelle and Keegan. But then I really thought about it, and realized that everything critical that needed to be done... was done. My bag was packed, nursery ready, clothes washed, house clean.... so thankfully I was able to get over that anxious feeling pretty quick. And, Justin was amazing. He has made sure our house is ready for guests, gone back and forth from the hospital every day to wash clothes, work, and made sure I have everything I could possibly need. I know me being here has been tougher on him, and I appreciate everything he's done so much. I know not everyone has such amazing support, so I am truly lucky.

I've also gotten so much support from friends and family. My Houston girlies have called and texted every day to check in on me. Amanda, Cara, April and Jenna came and brought me a survival kit of goodies and kept me entertained - we sat around and talked about the most hilarious things (as usual!). Rachel came and filled me in on her wedding and honeymoon and I got to see her gorgeous pictures. And today Bonnie is bringing me my super craving of the week --- an oreo milkshake from chic fil a. (And I get to see sweet baby Carter)! I've also been working away as usual - just with a bit of different scenery. But, today is my last day of work until July 8th!

I can't wait until I get around to my next post. It will most definitely be filled with pictures of our new additions!

The blanket I started! I've taught 3 nurses how to crochet!

 

So, so crazy. Car seats are ready for babies!

Top 10 Pregnancy Must-Haves

I'm pretty low maintenance. If I spend a larger chunk of money on something, its usually because I will get daily wear out of it, and truly get the best bang for my buck! Things that will last a long time - like a pair of jeans, or a neutral colored bag. But in the grand scheme of things, I have gotten better about spending frivolously.

That being said. I am so tired of my maternity clothes. I am SO excited to be able to walk into my closet and put on something, anything, else. I am also excited to go shopping for some spring-style-stuff! This week I've started browsing a few of my favorite online sites; The Loft, Anthropologie, and duh, The Gap. I can't wait to slip on some colorful khaki shorts, white tanks, and summer scarves. Soon enough!

Ok, that was a random thought. On another note - one thing I don't want to forget are my favorite things during this pregnancy. Just in case I do it again one day down the road. :)

1. Trader Joe's Coconut Body Butter

2. Ensure Chocolate Protein Shakes

3. Rosebud Salve

4. Gap maternity leggings

5. Bath & Body Works 'Sleep' Aromatherapy Lotion

6. Jesus Calling daily devotional

7. Cheeseburgers

8. Yarn

9. Burt's Bees Blemish Stick

10. J Crew Purple Suede Flats

I absolutely loved these things over the past 9 months! They were life savers!