One Month Old!

Wow, does time fly!
Our baby girls are 1 month old! I can't believe how fast this first month has gone!

I love this picture! We gave the girls their baths right before we took these pictures, so naturally Vivian fell right asleep. I love that it looks like Helen has just been surprised by Vivian. Or, like she is saying, "Is she there someone right behind me?". 

We then turned on another light in the room, and Viv woke up immediately. She loves looking at lights right now! Most of the pics she still looked pretty sleepy, but this one was great, because they both have their eyes open. (Helen is holding her pacifier because she hadn't eaten yet and was getting a little antsy.)

Viv soon passed out again, and this time, it was on Helen's shoulder. She loves to snuggle while she is sleeping! So sweet!

My hope is to document their growth every month. At least, that is my goal. We will see how crazy life gets and if I'm able to continue with this. I'd love to be able to look back and see their growth throughout the year!

Their First Bath

When the girls were about two weeks old, we gave them their first bath. 

Seems gross, but most things we had read and heard told us to wait until at least then since their skin would be so sensitive. Their umbilical cords had fallen off a few days earlier, which  also was a big reason for waiting until then. Don't get me wrong, we had wiped spit up and milk off of them, they weren't filthy, they just needed a bath. Especially their hair. :) 

Two weeks sounded like good timing to us, since the girls were about to have their first photo shoot. We had planned for them to have their newborn pictures taken the next day, so we wanted the girls to be fresh and clean for their debut. 

(The photo shoot was actually originally scheduled for the Monday of the hurricane, but due to the weather, was rescheduled.)

Helen was first, this was her face when we told her she needed a bath. :)

 Daddy bathed both of them, while I (Mama) attempted to document this milestone.

Not sure about this whole thing... 

Enjoying getting her hair washed and her head massaged, she suddenly calmed down completely. Who wouldn't?

Upset again! She finally started enjoying the bath, and then it was time to get dried off! :) 

 Waiting while Vivian got ready for her bath.

Look at that sweet face! 

Vivian was sleeping so peacefully we hated to wake her up!

 Not liking it at first either, but not quite as upset as her sister.

I loved that she kept dangling her leg over the side, as if she was relaxing in a hammock. She really started to enjoy the bath once she got used to being naked. 

Vivian really loved the hair washing too! 

 Upset that it is over.

 Sweet and calm again!

Vivian and Helen, just hanging out together in their hooded towels.

We then took a few pictures of comparison pictures of them in just diapers before we got them dressed again. Some of our friends and family that haven't been able to meet them yet requested these kind of pictures so they could get a better idea of the girls' true sizes.

Vivian just relaxing while Helen flailed around in typical fashion. :)

 I love this picture! They both posed the same way without us moving them at all! 

So cute!

I'll end with this picture. Vivian is looking at Helen, and Helen is staring down the camera.

Disclaimer: I usually try to post about the same number of pictures of each of the girls. It's not always possible, for this post it wasn't. We also took video of the girls getting their baths, and for some reason, we ended up with a longer video of Vivian, and more pictures of Helen.

Our First Family Walk

This Sunday, November 11th, Nick and I took the girls on their first walk. 

The weather was nice and the sun was finally out. We figured we would take advantage of it before it really started getting cold.

Daddy and his girls

Vivian (top) and Helen (bottom)

Bringing my girls back inside after a successful first walk.

The girls did so well during the walk! 

After taking in the sites, they soon fell asleep for the rest of the walk. They were so tuckered out from all the activity, that they took amazing naps when we got them settled back inside.

Sweet Girls

Well, I'm behind on updates, I know, I'm sorry. I will try really hard to get better about it, hopefully soon. Things are starting to fall into a better routine, so I'm going to try really hard and make more time for updating this during the down time I have.

The girls are doing really well, and are so sweet! We have enjoyed every second with them, and it has been so fun to see them grow and their little personalities start to emerge!

Here are just a couple of cute pictures of the girls. 

Vivian

Helen

We love our sweet babies! They have been so much fun!

The Day After the Girls' First Hurricane

We were really lucky and survived Hurricane Sandy unscathed. We never even lost power! The lights flickered on and off all day and night, but other than that, we had tons of rain and strong winds. The girls have officially experienced their first hurricane!

Today we are just taking it easy, as most things are still closed, even the doctors. The girls were scheduled to have their 2 week checkup, but due to the weather, the doctor's office is closed. We are rescheduled for later this week, and we can't wait to see how much our girlies have grown!

Here are some snapshots of the girls today:

Our First Week

Yesterday the girls turned 1 week old! 

It feels like just yesterday we were holding them for the first time.

We have had so much fun getting to know them this past week!

Birth Story Part II

After they set up the Operating Room, they immediately had me start pushing. 

Vivian Alice arrived at 4:40 pm.

Here she is getting all cleaned up, and about to be weighed.

Vivian getting her footprints taken.

Vivian and me meeting for the first time. As you can tell, I was a crying mess! 

They quickly took Vivian away and had me start pushing again. 

Helen Morgan arrived at 4:54 pm, just 14 minutes later! 

Helen with Nick, getting some sweet kisses as he meets and holds her for the first time!

Helen getting all cleaned up and about to get her footprints taken.

Me with both my girls, together for the first time! 

Our first family picture! 

Nick and I overwhelmed with love and so happy with our new little family of four.

In total bliss with my two girls. Vivian kept her eyes shut pretty much the entire time, but as you can see, Helen was very alert from minute one! 

Helen and Vivian, ready to be wheeled to our recovery room. Sisterly bonding. :)

Last shot of me, in our Operating Room, about to be wheeled to our recovery room.

The day went so fast, and it was so amazing! Having them was one of the proudest and most incredible moments of my life! I feel so lucky to have had my amazing husband, Nick, with me throughout this experience! I couldn't  have done this without him, he was so supportive and loving the entire time! We are so in love with our little ladies!

Birth Story Part I

October 18, 2012 @ 8am

Nick and I showed up for my induction-can you see my excitement mixed with extreme tiredness from carrying twins full term? :)

In our Labor & Delivery room. Our nurse, Ginny, is attaching the heart rate monitors to my belly. She also attached a contraction monitor.

The monitor tracking the girls' heart rates and my contractions. The two lines above are their heart rates (Vivian is the yellow line and Helen is the green line). The line below is tracking my contractions. You can see that they were still not very strong or frequent at this point. 

Waiting for the Pitocin to start working in order for them to be able to break my water. In the background is one of our awesome nurses, Ruby. We had the best medical team, they were so amazing!

Nick and I waiting excitedly. He was so supportive, I couldn't have asked for a better person to help me through the contractions as they rapidly increased.  

This picture is of us is right after I received my epidural. I thought that the choice to receive an epidural was going to be really tough to make-it wasn't. My contractions had gotten so strong that it was causing me to vomit and my body to shake from the pain. The Pitocin medicine they gave me to induce labor causes the contractions to be stronger than usual, and since things were moving so quickly, we had to make the epidural decision pretty quickly. The nurses did say that it is unheard of for women with inductions to not get an epidural since the contractions become so strong, which made me feel really good about my decision to have it done. We also were told that if I didn't get an epidural and I ended up having to have a c-section, they would have to put me under full anesthesia. I definitely did not want this, I wanted to be fully alert for the arrival of the girls! Let's just say that the epidural is a marvel of modern science! :) It allowed me to go without any other pain medication!

My parents were able to come and keep us company as we waited for the girls' arrival. It was so nice to have them there!

Headed into the Operating Room! With twins, it is hospital policy that once you are at 10 cm, they take you into an Operating Room. There is such a high chance of complications leading to c-section that being in the Operating Room already makes it so much safer for all of us involved. In my case, my labor progressed so quickly, that even the nurses were shocked! Less than 6 hours from the start of my induction, they were prepping me to deliver the girls! 

Timeline:

8:00am-Check in to Labor & Delivery-2 cm dilated

9:15am-Start my Pitocin to induce my labor

11:00am-Vivian's (Baby A's) water is broken

12:00pm-Receive my epidural

1:00pm-6 cm dilated

2:00pm-9 cm dilated

3:00pm-Start pushing and are moved to the Operating Room