Kylie at 6 months!

It is bittersweet for me to say, but my baby is 6 months old already.  *Sigh*  OK, I think I'll be alright :)

Kylie is growing so fast I can hardly keep up with her!  This little girl will be crawling and/or walking before I know it.  It is so fun to see her learn something new or do something different each day.  Lately, it has been a little something like this:

open mouth
insert (blank)
hold the (blank) with a death grip
cry like mad when mom takes the (blank) away!

But, hey,  that's what 6 month olds do, right?  As I type, she is trying to reach out and play with the laptop.  And, of course, put it in her mouth :)

Anywho, here is a little log I kept of Kylie on the progress she was making on each of the months between 3 – 6 months.  It’s not necessarily exciting news, but I like to keep track of things like this for her baby book.

3 months

Giggles in her sleep

Acting more alert and aware of her surroundings

Sitting up more (supported)

Turning her body while lying down

Responding to colors

4 months

Taking a bottle (this one took her a while!)

Taking a pacifier more regularly (also took a while!)

Sit comfortably in the bumbo

Laughs and talks more

Had her first headcold

Grasping and holding things

Responds to singing

Started teething

Started to roll over

5 months

Started holding her bottle while feeding (not quite a pro yet though)

Started on some solids (Rice cereal mostly)

Stands up in her saucer

Touching things like my face

Slept in her crib and not the swing (yay!)

6 months

Sleeping through the night  (YESSSS!  Notice it’s at the top of the list!)

Supplement breastmilk with some solids everyday (veggies mostly – she loves carrots!)

Smiling a lot

Crying is for babies, screaming is for 6 month olds J

Helps dress herself (putting arms through sleeves – very cool!)

Grab whatever is nearby and shove it in the pie hole!

I gotta say, however sad I may be of my baby on the fast track to toddlerhood, she is making me fall more in love with her every passing day.  I am learning to appreciate each stage, and enjoy each memory in the making.

Here are some memorable moments from 3 – 6 months old!

6 month "Birthday"

Easter 2012 (5 1/2 months)

St. Patrick's Day (5 months)

First time in the walker (4 1/2 months)

Valentine's Day (4 months)

Visit with cousin Isaiah (3 months)

Kylie's first 3 months!

The past three months with Kylie have been an absolute joy for me and Ryan.  It's funny how something so little can bring you so much happiness!

We can hardly believe she turns 3 months old today!  

Where did the time go?  Perhaps the photos below will help answer that question.

A baby experiences many things for the first time during their first few months of life.  Here are just a few of the many moments we experienced together, mother and daughter (and daddy).

First drive in the car

First bath at home

First walk

First visit to her brother

First latch on the pacifier

First Thanksgiving

First time at church

First purse (Vera Bradley of course!)

First "white dress"

First Christmas

First crocheted ear flap hat (handmade by mommy!)

First time on an airplane (to Boise to visit family)

First time to the acquarium

Also, please enjoy this video we made of the birth of our twins!

Our twins have arrived!

Wonderful.  Amazing.  Beautiful.

These are the words that best describe my experience in becoming a mother and parent.

I find myself so incredibly blessed to have these two little angels in my life.

As most of you know, we delivered our twins on October 17th via a scheduled cesarean section (just two days before our 9th anniversary!...talk about an anniversary gift!).

Henry James was born first at 9:04 a.m. and weighed 4 lbs. 4 oz.  He was immediately wrapped and brought over to be by my side.  Two minutes later at 9:06, Kylie Nichole was born and weighed 6 lbs. 15 oz.  She was taken to the nursery to have some skin on skin time with daddy while I was getting stitched up.

The nurses and staff at the hospital were very generous to us, and let us use a deluxe birthing suite as our recovery room.  This was an extra special treat since generally family and friends aren't allowed in the recovery room.  They knew our situation was special because of little Henry's condition, and not knowing how long he would live, allowed the family to come be with us as soon as they were born.  When the family came in to greet us, there wasn't a dry eye in the room.  It was so special to have all the family there to shower love on our new little babies.

There was a large window next to us that provided some beautiful natural light for some professional photographs.  These photographs taken by Terri Fairbanks Photography, which you will get to see....very soon....are absolutely stunning, and beautifully capture our first moments with the babies.  Thanks to my best friend Valerie Tingey for providing the photography as a gift to our family!

Now back to the babies.

Henry James was given a name and a blessing immediately after his birth by his father, uncle Paul, and grandpa Scott.  He was such a sweet and precious little baby.  He had a soft and short cry, usually had his eyes closed, and loved to blow bubbles from his mouth.  He made cute little grunting and cooing noises, and was showered with love by the family, visitors, and the nurses.  We attempted feeding him and giving him as much comfort and nourishment as possible.

Kylie is small, sweet, and just as perfect as I imagined she would be.  She was brought to me with dark, curly, thick hair.  I was surprised that it was curly at first, but after they bathed her, it turned straight.  I was beginning to wonder where the curly part came from!

We were able to have both babies with us during that first night, which was such a special time for our little family.  However, I did find it incredibly conflicting to have to decide which baby to attend to first.  I wanted to take care of them both, but knew that Kylie's needs were more immediate and demanding.  This was the hardest part about that first night in the hospital.  I was able to spend some quality time with  Henry during the night while Kylie slept in her bassinet.  That was a very special time for us.

The next morning, with most of the family present, little Henry's heartbeat became more and more faint.  When we thought we could no longer feel it, we called in the doctor, and they called the time of death at 11:43 a.m.  Even though I knew this moment would come for the last 7 months, nothing could have prepared me for the aching I felt in my heart.  We had a family prayer after his passing, and it helped us cope with the loss of our little son.  The staff at the hospital was so comforting and encouraging, and we had lots of friends and family visit us. The nurses took some cute photographs of the twins, a hand impression of Henry, and put it in a cute keepsake box to take home.

Our experience bringing our sweet babies into the world was perfect, and I wouldn't change a thing.  It was a joyous yet heartbreaking experience, but the best part of it was knowing that these little babies are ours, and they always will be.  Life is good, and we are very, very blessed!

Thank you everyone for your love and support...we will continue to blog on Kylie's progress!

Enjoy some pictures from the hospital!

37 weeks...1 WEEK TO D-DAY!

So the countdown has officially begun!.....OK, who am I kidding, I've been counting down for a while :)

I can hardly believe this pregnancy is coming to a close, the time has truly flown!

I had my last doctor appt. this morning, which lasted a whopping 15 minutes, lol!  I guess that's a good thing....no complications (so far), no new pains (so far), and no contractions (so far)!

Anyway, I am sooooooo ready to welcome my two little ones into the world, it has been a LONG wait.  I know it will be the most special time of my life and I can't wait to savor every minute of it!

We will be delivering via scheduled cesarean this Monday, October 17th at 8:30 a.m. at UC Davis hospital (Tower 3) in Sacramento.  Obviously we'll have our hands full , but we will try to send a text out as soon as we're ready for visitors at the hospital (sorry folks, but family has first dibs on visiting)!

Again, I want to thank everyone for your love and incredible support thus far, and for the support that will be shown to us after the delivery.  We appreciate and love you all, and can't wait to share the news of our newborns in just a few short days!  Muah!  XOXO!

36 weeks...2 weeks from today!

Here is a profile picture of our sweet daughter at 35 weeks at my monthly (and last) growth scan.  The doctor said she is measuring at about 5 lbs. 4 oz., and that hopefully she'll be around 6 or 6 1/2 lbs. by the time she's born.  The perfect little size... imagine how cute and tiny she'll be!!!

Our little son is hard to accurately measure, but the doctor said he's probably around 3 lbs, and he may weigh up to around 4 lbs. at delivery.  So our little kiddos will definitely be on the smaller side...which is normal for twins. 

I have two weeks left from today!  I cannot believe how fast the time has flown.  This has been such a wonderful time I've had to spend with my two little babies, and to be completely honest, I'm sad that the pregnancy is coming to a close, probably more so than most mothers.  Knowing that the last 9 months I've spend carrying my son (and the short time after delivery) is the only time I'll have with him in this earthly life has been bittersweet.  I feel privileged to have had this time with him, but sad that soon I'll have to say goodbye.  

But mostly, I just can't wait to meet them and fall madly in love with them!  I know that raising my little girl will be a sweet reminder to me of the tender mercies of the Lord, and that families can be together forever.

34 weeks...the last month!

So yesterday was my 34 week mark!  Wooo-hoo!  I can tell things are getting close because last week I finally started experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions, which is a good thing.  Labor and delivery wanted to see me since they were strong and frequent, but all tests they took seemed to check out fine.

I am starting on the fetal heartbeat monitoring twice a week, and a weekly doctor visit.  The heartbeat monitoring has gone fairly well so far, considering our boy's heartbeat is always a little slower than our girl.  The fluid in our boy's sac has increased a little, which can be a cause for concern for preterm labor, but since I am already at 34 weeks the doctor thinks most of the risk is minimal.

The doctor and I discussed a day for my scheduled cesarean section, which would be at 38 weeks gestation......the date we set is October 17th!!!  I am so excited!  It's only 4 weeks away, so I don't know if these last few weeks will drag, or fly like the wind!  Of course if natural labor begins before that date, then we will have an earlier delivery.  Either way, I only have a max of 4 weeks left!  We will be delivering at UC Davis hospital in Sacramento, and will most likely be there for up to 5 days after the delivery.

I am so blessed to have had the privilege of being pregnant with twins, this truly has been an amazing and special time in my life!  I love my two little ones more than words can say, and I know that love will deepen beyond my wildest dreams when I will finally be able to hold them in my arms.

Thanks for all your love and support!!!

32 weeks...Almost there!

Well...I can't believe I made it this far!  I've heard of so many twins that come early, therefore causing all kinds of problems for their little underdeveloped bodies.  But my doctor said that as long as I can make it to 32 weeks I'll have a fairly good chance of delivering fairly healthy babies.

The main goal in any multiple pregnancy (twins or supertwins), is to stay pregnant for as long as possible.  One doctor in the book I've been reading, "When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets, or Quads", likens a pregnancy to a game of football, each critical phase of pregnancy you can successfully pass gets you closer to achieving your "touchdown".  I really liked that analogy.  Eating healthy, taking the appropriate supplements, and getting some daily exercise are the things the book stresses (among others) in helping achieve a long and healthy (multiple) pregnancy.

This has been a very unique pregnancy than most others.  I began the usual "symptoms" a lot sooner than an singleton pregnancy.  I had to leave work extra early, my feet and legs began swelling extra early, and of course the most common symptom for multiples....gestational diabetes.  I knew as soon as we found out it was twins, there would be more complications and issues than normal.  It was especially hard hearing the news of our son, and the emotional aspect has put an extra strain on my already fatigued body.

I am so grateful to have many close friends and family to help and support me along the way.  You guys are the best.  There have been so many miracles along the way, that I have not felt alone.  There are things that we experience that we can't always explain, but I know that I have had the spirit of the Holy Ghost with me along the way.  It seems that every time I feel too tired or too sad to go on, a little miracle will remind me that I don't have to face these things alone.  And I am so grateful for that comforting presence.  I know that the hardest part is yet to come, and I hope to draw on my relationship with the Savior to get through it all.

Anyway, 'nuf of the mushy stuff.  Here are some new baby pics!

This is a profile of our sweet our daughter, who now weighs approximately 4 pounds.  She is so cute, and stays active by playing soccer with her little brother in her mommy's belly :)

Here is a cute picture of our little son...if you look closely, there is a light colored line in the middle of his picture (that look kind of squiggly).  These are his little fat rolls!  How sweet is that?

If you look close on the upper right, you can see his little profile.  The nose at the top, cute little lips, and chin.  This is probably the best profile picture we've gotten yet!

Thanks for visiting!