updated January 26, 2007 (bottom of page)
(new pictures February 21, 2007)


By Deanna Fené
First Coast News


January 26, 2006 -- As many of you know, I am pregnant with twins and I am due any day now. While I plan to take some time off from work after the babies are born, I will continue to write regular updates to keep everyone informed on the experience.

Here's my first entry on: 'Having Twins.'

There is so much to do to prepare for twins, I'm not sure where to start. The nursery is just about ready. The theme is 'cowboys' and it is so cute. I have two cribs, but my 2-year old daughter is still using one of them. I plan to put both babies in the same crib at first. I hear twins like to be close together when they sleep since they've been so close to each other for the past nine-months. Eventually, I will put them in separate cribs. This is all assuming they will even sleep in a crib. My daughter, Lauren, slept in her car seat for the first two-months, in her room. She didn't want anything to do with a crib. Now she loves it and I'm thinking when she's about 3, which is in May, she'll be ready to switch to a 'big girl bed.' Of course, this presents all sorts of new problems; mainly keeping her confined while I try to take care for two baby boys.

This week, I plan to get a third car seat. I just hope they all fit in the back seat of my car. If they don't, I'm not sure what I'll do. I also need to get a double stroller. I've been trying to decide between getting a double or a triple stroller. With a triple stroller, my daughter can ride along as well. However, lately she's not as interested in riding in a stroller. My plan right now is to get a double stroller and if she wants to ride, I'll put one of the babies in a sling and carry him.

Everyone ask me about names. What will we name the twins? I am serious when I say, 'We have no idea.' We really don't. My husband and I are having a hard time agreeing on names. He likes off the walls names, like 'Razorback.' (He's from Arkansas) He would also like to name the twins after his favorite Jaguars player, 'Matt' and 'Jones.' Both are cute names, but I'm not sure I can go for it. I really like family names. When we had our daughter Lauren, we were in the hospital for two days before we named her. They brought the birth certificate to our room and we still didn't have a name. I knew what name I always wanted for a girl, Lauren Grace, after my sister Laureen who died of leukemia. After I talked my husband out of naming her 'Razorback', he agreed 'Lauren Grace' was the best name for her.

We had Lauren in May of 2003 and her birth was all natural, meaning no epidural. Everyone told me before hand, I was crazy to even try, but I was determined. We had a beautiful birth but it was also very, very hard! They don't call it 'labor' for nothing. This time however, it looks like I will have to a C-section. I have a condition called, placenta previa, and the only safe way to deliver the twins is surgery. So, in two weeks, at 36 weeks, the doctors will check to see if the boy's lungs are developed and if they are, I could be delivering them the very next day!

I'm very excited and a little apprehensive. I know taking care of two babies will be quite a challenge. I remember when I brought Lauren home from the hospital and I was so overwhelmed. I asked my mother, who also had twins, 'how she did it.' She responded, 'You just figure it out.' I guess that's what I'll do.

I'll keep in touch and wish me luck. Deanna.

Having Twins: "Born Too Soon"

January 28, 2006: Wow! The last 48 hours have been incredible. I wasn't expecting to be the mother of twins quite so early.

On the evening of January 26th, my husband, Greg, and I went on what we thought would be a final date before the babies arrived. I totally expected to have them after 36 weeks, the second week of February. I was scheduled to have them a little bit early because of a condition I have called placenta previa, that's where the placenta is covering the cervix making the vaginal delivery impossible.

Doctors had warned to watch out for bleeding and the onset of early labor, neither of which I was worried about because my pregnancy had been going so well to this point. But on the evening of January 26th, everything changed. My husband and I were watching a movie at the San Marco Theater, "Walk the Line," when about thirty minutes into the movie I sneezed, and felt a gush. I thought, 'My water broke.' I was terrified to learn I was bleeding badly.

Greg and I both knew I had to get to the hospital immediately. The closest was Baptist downtown. My husband ran just about every red light to get me there as fast as possible. I have to say I was saying many prayers along the way. As soon as I arrived at the emergency room, I felt many blessings were showered on me and the babies and my prayers were being answered.

First, we were able to get to the hospital in less than five minutes and that was key. Second, when we arrived at the emergency room, Baptist OB/GYN doctor Gerald Stenklyft, the only OB at Baptist that time of night, was leaving. He saw me being brought in and decided to stay even though he wasn't the on call doctor.

I was quickly wheeled to maternity Pre-Opt. After consulting with my regular doctors a decision was made to do an emergency c-section and get the babies out. I was given a spinal, but it only worked part way. With no time to waste, the doctor went ahead with the incision.

Now, my first child was an all nature birth: no epidural. I thought with a c-section I wouldn't feel anything, but I was very wrong. At one point, I felt so much pressure the anesthesiologist wanted to put me to sleep, but Dr. Stenklyft supported my decision to try and stay awake and hang in there so I could see my babies as soon as they were born. And it was well worth it. The first baby arrived at 10:40 p.m. weighing 5 pounds and 2 ounces. The second came two minutes later weighing 5 pounds 4 ounces. Both luckily were healthy and even though I had lost a lot of blood I was doing well too.

In Post-Opt, the nurses kept telling us "we were lucky, the out come could have been much different." And I feel blessed. I wasn't planning to have the twins at Baptist, I wasn't pre-registered there, but every single person I came in contact with, worked extremely hard to save all three of us, and for that I will be forever grateful.

After that, the hardest part for me was spending so much time without my two baby boys. They were whisked away after surgery to the neonatal intensive care unit, NICU. I didn't' see them for ten hours! I cried through the night. It seemed so unnatural to have two babies and not be with them; not be able to hold them; nurse them; comfort them.

Now for the names. We decided to give the twins family names. The first baby is named after my husband's grandfather and father, Chester Dale. The second is named after my grandfathers William Edvard, "Wil." Chester and Wil are doing great and I can't wait to take them home.

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"Having Twins: Going Home"

February 7, 2006: I never thought I would leave the hospital without my twin boys. Even after all I had been through, it was one of the hardest things I had to endure.

The nurse wheeled me downstairs where my mother was waiting to pick me up and take me home. I had been in the hospital for three days recovering from the delivery. The twins were in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, NICU. I had been told they could be there as long as four to six weeks!

I got in the car with no babies and I couldn't stop the tears. I cried all the way home. The tears flowed even more when I walked into our house and saw the empty nursery.

My 2-year old daughter, Lauren, couldn't understand why mommy was crying and she was concerned. My husband kept reminding me the boys were in the best place. He told me, 'They were being watched 24 hours a day by medical professionals.' He also reminded me, 'This would give me time to heal from the C-section.' I knew he was right, and his words were reassuring but it was still hard.

I spent the next week at the NICU every day. I wanted to hold Chester and Wil as much as possible and be there for their feedings. Seeing them in the NICU, hooked up to so many monitors, wasn't easy.

I could only hold them and be with them at certain times. I would sit near their bedsides and hold their hands, rub their heads, and pray they would be okay.

As I looked around the NICU, every mom had the same look of concern; wanting to help, wanting to do something, but feeling so helpless.

The one thing I discovered I could do for my babies, no one else could, was provide breast milk. It has been proven, breast milk is especially important for premature babies. So I began pumping like crazy every day to make sure each twin had enough for all their feedings.

Instead of dreading pumping, which is expressing breast milk, I looked forward to it because I knew it was important for their development, and again, it was the one thing only I could do for them.

During the week, everyone kept asking me, 'When are the babies going home?' I truly had no idea, so I was shocked when after six days the doctors announced, 'Chester is going home tomorrow and Wil two days later.'

I was so excited and yet felt totally unprepared to care for two premature infants. But I wanted them home and couldn't wait for them to join the rest of our family.

The next day was bitter-sweet and heartbreaking for me as we took Chester home and had to leave Wil behind at the Nicu. I cried and cried once again, but the nurses assured me they would take good care of him.

Two days later, Wil was finally home and our family felt complete. It was an emotional day. For the first time, I was able to hold both babies in my arms; and for the first time, they were able to lie side by side in the crib. They grabbed and touched each other as if they had been wondering where the other had been for the past week.

I'm not getting much sleep, but I am enjoying every second having these boys home.

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(4th entry)

'HAVING TWINS: HOME SWEET HOME'

February 16, 2006: The first full week of having the twins at home has been amazing. We are all doing so much better then I had expected. Chester and Wil are growing and thriving. They both seem so happy to be out of the hospital and at home.

The one good thing about being in the NICU for over a week was it put the twins on a schedule. So they nurse every three hours and then they're ready to go to sleep on their backs, in their crib.

As an infant, my daughter Lauren, refused to sleep in her crib for the first two months. She didn't want to be flat on her back, so she slept in her car seat in her room. We had many sleepless nights trying to get her to fall asleep.

Amazingly however, the twins don't seem to have a problem falling asleep, even in the middle of the night! Rarely do they both wake up at the same time. When the first one wakes up, I get up and nurse him and put him back to sleep. Then, I wake up the second and nurse him and hope to get two or three hours of sleep at a time.

I am nursing both twins even though they started on bottles in the NICU. The nurses told me they start all premature babies on bottles using either formula or expressed breastmilk, so they could measure how much each baby was getting.

I was told by some friends that once the babies use a bottle they would never 'latch on' and nurse. I am happy to tell you, that is not true; at least not in my case.

Before the twins were born I read a ton of books and sought the advice of other parents of twins. The one thing I learned is to have plenty of help. I am blessed to have my mother living close by in St. Augustine. My mother-in-law flew in from Arkansas to help, and my sister in California plans to be here later this month.

I love having a lot of family around and it's
still incredible to me that I am a mother of three.
As I write this, Wil is on my lap, Chester is asleep in the crib, and Lauren is taking her afternoon nap. Yes, life is good!

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(6TH ENTRY)

March 20, 2006 -- 'Having Twins: There's No Rest for the Weary'

There's no rest for the weary; at least not when there are twins. I've learned this over the last couple of weeks. It's been a while since I've written an update and that's because things are very hectic around our household.

The twins are growing and therefore they are eating more, crying more, sleeping less, and needing more attention.

Chester and Wil are now 7 weeks old, but since they were 6 weeks early, their corrected age is one week old. I can't believe I still have two newborns. That means the sleepless nights and exhausting days will continue for several more weeks. Every one keeps telling me, it will get better and I know it will.

Chester has apparently gotten his days and nights confused. He now sleeps a lot during the day, which is good. It gives me more time to tend to the needs of Wil. But Chester is now awake more at night, which is bad. It means I don't get any sleep. By the time I finally get Chester back to sleep in the middle of the night, Wil is ready to wake up and eat.

I'm still nursing both babies, but it is challenging at times; especially when they're both hungry and crying. I did learn how to nurse both at the same time, but it's not easy and quite frankly I feel like a cow being milked. At the same time, I'm so glad I'm able to nurse the twins.

I've also learned how to carry both babies at the same time to comfort them. I do it by using a sling. I put one baby in the sling which frees my hands to carry the other one around. I can only do this for 30-minutes to an hour at a time, because it's hard on my back; but it does help during those times I'm by myself and both babies want to be held.

I'm not getting much sleep at all. If I get a two hour stretch during the night I feel lucky. It's amazing what your body gets use to. Before the twins, I wanted to sleep nine hours a night. Now if a I get a total of four hours, I'm happy. The key is getting a nap during the day. Luckily, I have a lot of people helping me out during the day so I can take a nap.

People keep asking me, "How do you get by with so little sleep?" I tell them, "I can sleep next year." Right now, I'm enjoying my little bundles of joy and realize before I know it, they won't be little babies any more.


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(7th entry)
April 20, 2006
'HAVING TWINS: BACK TO WORK'

I head back to work next week, and while I'm excited to return to the job I love, I'm sad to be leaving my three children at home. I still can't believe I have three children.

The twins are now three-months old. Lauren turns three next month. They have all gotten use to having Mommy around all the time. I think it will be the hardest on me not see them all day. I know they will be having a great time and getting the best care possible. My mother,'Grammy' as she likes to be called, will be watching them along with the help of a babysitter.

I've talked to many new moms and I think no matter what path you choose once you have children, whether to stay at home or go back to work, the decision is difficult. If you choose to stay home, you often say good-bye to a career and an identity. If you go back to work, you have to say 'good-bye' to your kids every day.

These last couple of weeks before I go back to work have been extremely difficult. I had planned to spend as much time as possible with Lauren and the twins doing fun things. However, last week, my daughter got a terrible stomach bug. She was sick for a week and my mother couldn't help me because she threw out her back. I was taking care of a very sick child and infant twin boys by myself and it wasn't easy. After I made it through last week exhausted and in tears I told my husband, 'Going back to work has to be easier than this.' I have a new appreciation for stay-at-home moms, and I realize it is also a difficult job and exhausting at times.

So back to work I go. I've been through this before so I know what to expect. The first couple of weeks will be tough; being away from the kids and trying to juggle so many things like dinner, baths and sleep.

If I have bags under my eyes during the newscast, you'll know, I'm in the middle of a juggling act; and sleep, well, hopefully its something I can catch up on eventually.

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(8th ENTRY)
MAY 7, 2006
"HAVING TWINS: WORKING AGAIN"

I'm back at work and I have to say, 'It's a lot easier than staying home with three kids, two of which are infant boys.' It's good to be back at work because, quite frankly, I need a break. Don't get me wrong, I love, LOVE, my children, but things are not easy at home right now.

The twins are still very demanding. They're still not sleeping through the night. I'm lucky if they sleep four hours straight; and they're still nursing every 2 to 3 hours.

It's been good to return to a job I love. I have a pump so I can continue nursing. I hope to nurse for at least a year. I also have the best help anyone could wish for to watch the children: my mother. We also have a wonderful babysitter to help as well.

The first day back at work I didn't cry at all, like I did when I returned from maternity leave after I had my daughter. However, it will take a while to get back into the groove of things. When you've been changing diapers and nursing for three months, it takes your brain a while to remember how to use a computer and write a story.

Now that I'm back at work, I don't know how I'm going to get everything done; like grocery shopping, cooking dinner, and giving baths. I have to realize, and my husband has to realize, some things won't get done as quickly. Some times there won't be dinner on the table and we'll have to order pizza or take out; some times there won't be any food in the fridge because I didn't get to the store; and some times the house will be a mess and stay a mess for days. I know myself and I know I can't do it "all" all the time. I am no super woman, but I have to say, I do feel like a super mom when I look into my kid's eyes and I feel so blessed.

Have a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY. I know I will.

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(9th entry)
"HAVING TWINS: 4 MONTHS OLD"

June 12, 2006 - I looked at my son Wil the other day, who is now four-months old, and I noticed scratches on top of his head. Wil doesn't have any hair and he's got a bad case of cradle cap. (If you know of a cure for cradle cap, please let me know) I figured his head must itch and his little fingernails have gotten long again. So I grabbed the nail clipper and I started working on his nails. In just a few minutes they were short again and I knew I wouldn't have to worry about those scratches on his head or his face.

Apparently, there are just some things you're able to do when you're a mom for the second time. When Lauren, my first born, was an infant, I couldn't bring myself to cut her little fingernails. I was too scared I would hurt her. I just let her nails grow and hope they would file themselves down on their own. A friend of mine told me to try cutting her nails when she's asleep and I remember thinking, "Are you crazy? There's no way I'm going to do something to wake a sleeping baby."

Speaking of sleeping babies... my little ones are starting to sleep through the night. Yeah!!! Two nights last week, and three nights this week, both babies slept through the night!! It was so wonderful. I actually went into their room in the middle of the night to see if they were okay. I thought, "This is it, my twins are now sleeping through the night." Not so fast. It hasn't lasted long. They are now back to waking up every two or three hours. Hopefully they will let me sleep soon.

The babies sleep great in their swings. It's a little trick I've been using for a while. When they take their naps during the day, I stick them in their swings and they're out for a couple of hours. Many times I can take a nap myself or get a couple of things done around the house. The babies are also still sleeping in their carseats in the crib at night. I found they sleep better if they're in their carseats and they go back to sleep in the middle of the night easier. You do what works, right? So you can imagine my surprise recently, when my doctor told me I need to stop using the carseats and the swings!

I couldn't believe it. I thought, "I just started getting some sleep at night and now I need to try and get them to sleep flat on their backs in their cribs?" Right now I have them both in the same crib and Lauren is still in her's. So now I need to get Lauren in her big girl bed and get the babies to sleep in their cribs and get them out of the swings. I'm exhausted just thinking about it. My doctor, who is wonderful by the way, says the longer I wait, the harder it will be to get them use to sleeping in their cribs. She says, "We'll all pay for it later." She also says, "Make sure you're ready and committed when you get them to start sleeping in their cribs instead of the swings."

I don't think I'm ready just yet. I need more sleep. Infact, I think I'll sleep on it.

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(10th Entry)

"HAVING TWINS: 5-MONTHS OLD"

June 27, 2006 -- I am happy to report, Wil's cradle cap is gone! Yeah!! Thank you to everyone who emailed and gave me some great advice. What I ended up doing was putting baby oil on his head every day and when I washed his hair (which he doesn't have much of) I used a little comb on his head. The cradle cap was gone in a week. I couldn't believe it.

I received such a great response on how to take care of Wil's cradle cap I decided to seek even more help, but this is a tough one. How do I get my twins to sleep through the night? (I told you it was a tough one.) They are 5-months old and they should be sleeping for at least six to seven hours straight by now.

Chester still wants to get up and nurse every two or three hours; but he is now sleeping in his crib without a car-seat (yeah), so maybe that's why he's waking up more. Wil is sleeping longer but he's still in the car-seat in the crib. I decided I would try to get them to sleep in the crib one at a time.

I've heard once moms return to work, the babies make up for not seeing their mom during the day by nursing longer and more frequently at night. I'm wondering if that is what's going on because before I returned from maternity leave, the twins started sleeping longer, only to wake up again when I started working.

I do enjoy our time together during the night, but I need to sleep too. The days and nights aren't long enough. I'm sure all you moms agree.
Sweet dreams.

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(11th Entry)

"HAVING TWINS: A LOOK BACK"

July 6, 2006 -- Attention: Anyone who is about to have twins!!!

I went to a local baby store recently with all three kids by myself. I thought, 'I can do this.' I used my double stroller and Lauren walked next to me. It worked great for the first 15-minutes and then the babies started to get upset and Lauren was running around the store trying out all the beds and rocking chairs; and then I realized, I was crazy for trying to take them anywhere by myself.

While I was trying to get the babies calmed down and look for Lauren, I had many people ask me about my double stroller and any other advice I might have about having twins.

Turns out, there were several parents in the store that day expecting twins. They had lots of questions about what to buy and what to expect when their twins arrive... so here it goes.

First, get a double stroller that will use both car-seats. Most of the double strollers will only take one car seat, which works well if you have an infant and a two-year old, but not twins. I got the Graco and the only place I could find one was at USA Baby. You can buy it with or without the car-seats. If you don't buy it with the car-seats make sure everything is compatible.

My next piece of advice, use a sling. This saved me in the first several months. I could place one baby in the sling and have my hands free to take care of the second. Also, the sling immediately calmed the babies. They almost always went right to sleep. There are many different types of slings but my favorite was from New Native. I had several and sometimes both me and my husband were carrying slings with a baby each. It was the only way we could keep our sanity some evenings.

Third, get a twin nursing pillow. When both babies are starving and wanting to eat you can breastfeed or bottle feed both at the same time using the twin nursing pillow. When the babies turned 5-months old, I stopped using the pillow because they were too big and I prefer to nurse them separately, but again in those early weeks, it was a life saver.

Those are my only tips for now. I'm still new at this, but if I think of anything else I'll let you know.

By the way, thanks to all the moms who have been sending me some great advice.

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(12th Entry)

'HAVING TWINS: PUMP AND GO'

September 18, 2006 - The babies are now nearly 8-months old and I'm proud to say, 'I am still a nursing mom.'

It isn't always easy though, especially with my job. I'm on the road much of the day reporting on stories. The other day I had to pump in the parking lot of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Two weeks ago, I was covering a swat stand-off and it took too long. So after about three hours, I had to run to my car in the parking lot and pump. Nursing moms know, you have to pump (or nurse) when your body tells you.

Other times I'm on the road with a photographer. When I need to pump, I suggest to the photog to stop for lunch, and I have him go inside while I sit in the car and pump, and then I join him for lunch when I'm done. It isn't always easy to pump on the job, and it takes a lot of determination and at times, creativity, but it is so worth it.

By the way, did you know the first week of September was 'National Breastfeeding at Work' week? It was a celebration dedicated to breastfeeding at work and the companies that support nursing moms. I thought it was great to be recognized in this way.

While researching this, I learned many new moms plan to continue breastfeeding after returning to work, but 29-percent stop prematurely due to work related issues. These include: no designated place to pump (57%), no place to store pumped milk (27%), feeling that pumping negatively affects colleague/client perception of them (5%), or that their boss/colleagues make it difficult (5%).

Here's my advice to working, breastfeeding moms. If there's not a designated place to pump, create your own. You can pump in a stall in the bathroom at work. The handicap stall usually has a sink, an electrical outlet, and room for a chair; or, pump in your car in the parking lot. Believe me, no one can tell what you're doing. If you need a place to store your milk; make sure you get a pump that has a built in cooler, so you can always keep your milk with you. Also make sure you get a good double electrical pump with special attachments so you can pump in the car or somewhere else where there's not an electrical outlet. I use the Madela Pump-In-Style Breast Pump and I love it. And finally, if you're worried about what other people will think, then don't. You know you are doing the best thing possible for your baby, or in my case, babies.

I find that many times, when I'm on a story, I have to tell the person I'm interviewing, 'Sorry, but I'm a nursing mom and I need to pump.' Nine times out of ten they'll respond (if they're a man), "Good for you. My wife nursed our kids too."

I was talking to a woman the other day who is about to have a baby. She was talking about breastfeeding but said once she goes back to work she would not nurse. I said, "Why not?" She said, "It's just too hard." I told her, "If I can breastfeed on my schedule, anyone can."

By the way, new and expecting moms can visit www.lansinoh.com to register for a chance to win a free Lansinoh Double Electric Breast Pump. On the site, moms can also sign up for the "Nurture Note," a special e-message providing breastfeeding tips, encouragement, and support. For each mother who registers for the Nurture Note from August through October 2006, Lansinoh will donate $1.00 to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in support of breast cancer research.

Good luck and happy nursing!!!

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(13th entry)

"HAVING TWINS: FLYING BY THE SEAT OF OUR PANTS"

November 9, 2006 -- We love to travel. After our first child was born we continued to fly across country several times a year; but with three little ones I haven't wanted to travel at all, until recently.

When my sister was renewing her vows with her husband in the beautiful Red Woods of California, we decided it was time to try to fly by the seat of our pants; and that's exactly what happened.

Now, I know a little about flying with an infant. It's really not that hard. If you're nursing, you nurse the baby on take-off (so it doesn't hurt their ears) and hopefully they'll fall asleep. Also nurse as the plane is descending. Since I can't nurse two 9-month old babies at once on a plane, my plan was to have my husband give the second baby a bottle, and my mom would come along and watch after our 3-year old.

Weeks before our trip, I was getting increasingly anxious about traveling with all the little ones, but I felt I had a good plan; that was until my husband announced he could not go because of something that came up at the last minute at work. I thought, 'How are we going to do this?'
but I was determined to go on this trip.

My best friend Kelley, came up with a great idea. She said, 'Get a portable dvd player for Lauren so she can watch movies during the flight.' I didn't even know such a thing existed, but it totally saved us and it cost less than a hundred-dollars.

The flight to California is a long one; an hour to Atlanta and then 5-hours to San Jose. Lauren watched her movies, my mom held Chester, who pretty much ate and slept the whole way, and I had the wild baby, Wil, who wanted to get into everything. It was the longest flight of my life, but we did it!!

Once we were in California I rented a car complete with three car seats. It makes traveling so much easier if you don't have to carry the car seats through the airport. Most car rental companies have them for an extra charge of $25 each. To me it's well worth it.

One of the hardest parts of flying was getting through security at the airport. I had the babies in a fold-up twin stroller and Lauren in a small umbrella stroller; but going through security everyone had to get out of the stroller and security checked everything, even the baby's milk.

We arrived at the airport in plenty of time, but we needed every second to make it to our flight on time. We were almost always the last to get on the plane.

I also discovered the airlines won't allow two babies to sit in a row together, so 20-minutes into our flight to California they moved my mom and Chester to the aisle across from us.

Most vacations go by quickly, but this one seemed to last for weeks. It was a lot of work, but it was also a lot of fun and well worth it. We had so much fun seeing the family and a lot of good friends. Luckily for me, there were plenty of people wanting to hold babies.

We are now thinking about taking our next vacation and this time, I'll make sure my husband makes the trip.

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(14th entry)

"HAVING TWINS: A NEW YEAR"

January 1, 2007 -- It is a new year and looking back at 2006, what a year it has been; full of joy, love, laughter and yes, even some tears. Tears of joy and at times, tears of frustration.

The year started out with the birth of our twin boys in late January. They were six weeks early so we spent the first part of February in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) at Baptist downtown.

In March, the babies turned six-weeks old, but according to their corrected age, they were still newborns.

In late April, I returned to work after three months on maternity leave; and in May our daughter, Lauren, turned three.

I'm not sure how I made it through the first half of 2006. It was tough at times because I didn't get very much sleep. The babies kept me up four, five, even six times a night.

Everyone kept telling me, "It will get easier," and it has.

In September, Chester and Wil were baptized in a special ceremony at our church in San Marco.

By October, the babies were sleeping more, they were sitting up, holding their own bottles, and entertaining each other. We went on our first big vacation to California and it was great. A lot of work, but well worth it.

In November, we celebrated Thanksgiving with my sister's family from California. The turkey dinner however, was a little late. My husband's turkey wasn't done until 10 o'clock at night!!
Luckily my mother made a back-up turkey so we ended up eating at 9-pm.

Finally, in December, the twins experienced their very first Christmas. Santa was very careful to fill the stockings of all three children, but little did Santa know our oldest daughter, Lauren, would think everything was for her.

The twins will be turning one soon. They are now moving all over the house. Wil is crawling and pulling up. We think he will be walking soon. Chester is moving a bit slower. He's not crawling yet but he is scooting.

Personally, I'm not in a hurry for them to start walking, because I know I'll be chasing them everywhere.

Right now, the twins follow each other all over the house. In the morning, they start in one part of the house and together they gradually make their way around to every room. The two are almost always together. I often think how great it must be for them to have a constant playmate.

2006 turned out to be a year of transitions. A very big transition. Going from one child to three was a huge difference. With one child we could still go out to eat all the time and travel a lot; but three kids change everything.

Eating out is almost impossible; traveling takes a lot of preparation, and gone are the days of running to the grocery store on a moment's notice. I can't carry two infants and a three year old into the store with me.

It has been a big change of pace, but I've loved every minute and I feel so lucky to have my three little kids, my wonderful husband, an exciting job and our health.

Yes, 2006 was a wonderful year and I look forward to 2007. I hope you do too. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

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(15th Entry)

"Having Twins: Happy Birthday"

January 26, 2007 - The twins turn one today and I can't help but feel like it's my birthday too. I feel like celebrating! I keep thinking to myself, "We made it."

It's been one of the most wonderful years of my life, but it's also been one of the longest and one of the hardest. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard and cried so much. At times I felt completely overwhelmed, helpless, and totally exhausted.

The lack of sleep was one of the hardest things to deal with. I thought the babies would start sleeping through the night at 3-months, or at least by 6-months, but I was wrong, very wrong.
Wil still doesn't sleep through the night, but he's getting close and things are getting easier.

At this time last year, I remember exactly what I was doing. I was writing my first baby blog entry, which is funny to think about now because at the time, I still thought I would be pregnant for several more weeks.

On this night, one year ago, Wil and Chester came into this world. I don't think they were ready to be born, but they had no choice. I still get goose bumps and sick to my stomach when I think about what happened: how I lost so much blood; how I was rushed to the hospital praying the babies were okay; and how things could have turned out much different for us.

I feel so lucky to have my two baby boys. All those sleepless nights and exhausting days are nothing compared to the joy I feel in my heart every time I look at them. They are truly a wonderful gift. To have twins and on top of that, to have a sweet little daughter, I feel I'm the luckiest Mom in the world.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Chester and Wil. I love you!!