Visit with the cousins

Henley, Reid, and Davis
Precious babydolls

We've had many 60th birthday surprises in the family lately. My Mom turned 60 on May 30th and Billy's Dad turned 60 on June 8th. Both families managed to pull off two surprise parties for the birthdays! While we were down in Dothan for Simon E's birthday, Davis and Henley got to meet their cousins -- Gant & Reid. Most of you know, but Reid and the twins were actually born on the same day, April 21st! We were so excited for everyone to finally meet and we got some funny pics. As you can see Reid is a healthy baby boy...but, the twins are not too far behind. They just have a little catching up to do from the lower birth weight.

Other than our successful trip to Dothan, we're continuing to battle Davis's colic. He has nightly meltdowns starting around 5pm and lasting until about 7 or 8pm. Some nights are better than others, but we're praying it all subsides SOON!

The other picutures below are just too sweet not to share. I caught the babies before they woke up from a nap. They have been sleeping in the same crib for now -- I think they like being close. I'm probably going to use one of the pictures I got for the birth announcement -- it's just too sweet!

This is how we feed ourselves

Davis feeding himself
Henley and her bottle
Henley passed out
I think having twins makes you even more resourceful than having one baby. We've found keeping twins on the same schedule is key to keeping sanity. So, in order to be on the same scheudule, we have to feed them at the same time...the twins "feed themselves" sometimes. I just prop up the bottle with the blanket and they do really well like this! Believe it or not!

The babies are going on 6 weeks this week. I have to admit, I'm getting a little stir crazy in the house. We've tried to go on a few outings though. We had a very successful trip to Nonni's house last weekend, but lunch with Emily at the store did not go so well. Maybe they just need to be a little older? I'm not sure, any suggestions on how to get out of the house with twins are welcomed! We're going to try and get to the park this week with Carlie -- wish us luck!

1 month old

Family photo with Ally
Davis -- 1 month old
Henley -- 1 month old
The perfect pair
The past few weeks have been extremely tough with Ally and I have been rather lax on the blog (not that I'm ever that good with keeping up). But, we also missed a major milestone -- 1 month birthday for the twins! I can't believe it's been 4 weeks since I gave birth to these little monsters. They have grown so much -- about 2 lbs each so far. I don't have official weights, but it's around 2 lbs. They both have started to track objects with their eyes and it's so neat to see them developing.

Not only are they developing physically, but their little personalities are coming out too...Henley is Miss Independent, she only cries when she needs something and once she gets it, she's good to go. Davis is another story...he's a little more "sensitive" we'll say. We're still trying to "please" him at every hour of the day -- hopefully we'll figure it out soon. For the most part though, they are good babies and I'm enjoying just being with them.

Happy Birthday to you!

Our Girl

Today is an incredibly sad day for us...we lost Ally. Everybody who knows us, knows how devastating this day is for both Billy and me. Our house will be very empty without her and life will just not be the same.

The past couple of weeks have been hard to watch as she has deteriorated, but at the same time, her condition makes it a little easier to let her go today. We can definitely say, it's time. She's ready to go. What a fighter she was -- she beat cancer once before 5 yrs ago and call me crazy, but this time she held on for us to get through our struggle with infertility. I think she knew she couldn't leave us without seeing us to the next phase of our lives and she did -- thank you Al!

We're trying to focus on all the things we loved about our girl..

Some things we'll miss....

She loved to play keep away, maybe the only Golden in history that hated the water, her "freakouts" in the yard, her saying "hello" or "good morning" when you walked in the door or got out of bed, watching her get the squeakers out of toys (it was her goal in life) and once she got it, she was done, her riding in the backseat with her head out the window, her "hairtoes," she gave the BEST hugs, I'll miss seeing she and Billy play on the floor every night -- Oh how she loved him!, seeing her sleep with her paw across her face -- it was precious..

I think most of all, we'll just miss her sweet face...it always looked like the day we got her.

She was our precious girl....

~ Long may you run~

Days gone by...

Sweet little boy
She's a pacifier baby for sure!
Davis (left) Henley (right)
On Our Way to the Doctor
I've been so bad about posting, but I'm a little busy these days! It is so much fun though and I'm loving every minute. We had our first Dr. appt on Monday and both babies have gained 1 pound! We were thrilled, but at the same time, I've noticed their little hands are bigger and it makes me so sad. They are already growing up! I'm trying to enjoy each and every minute of this time -- for one, I'm off of work and have time to enjoy and also, it is such a special time in their life. I'm so thankful I get to spend my days with them right now.

A special thank you to everyone that has been by and brought food. It has been a lifesaver! I've loved seeing everyone meet the twins too, it just never gets old (at least not yet). Thanks again everyone!

Bath Time!

Very alert after their bath
Davis
Henley loved being clean!
Henley after her bath
Henley in the bath
Davis after his bath
Davis getting his first bath
Sorry for such a long delay in posting. As you might imagine, it has been crazy the past few days. We arrived home on Saturday, but that night I developed a "spinal headache." It is a complication from my first spinal tap during the c-section. I was in so much pain and had to go back to the hospital on Sunday morning. The cure for a spinal headache is another spinal tap and what they call a "blood patch." They took blood and put it in my spine and the headache was gone! I'm so thankful to be feeling better and also to my friend, Megan, for taking care of me that day. Other than the headache, I have been trying to figure out how to be a mom to twins. My mother has been here for the past few days. It was great to have her help and input -- Billy and I are both so grateful. Tonight is our first night alone, so wish us luck!

This afternoon Henley and Davis took their first bath and I wanted to share the pictures with you. They are beyond precious and we are having SO much fun. I just STILL can't believe I am so lucky! I find myself thanking God so many times a day for such an immense gift.

Also, I just wanted to update you on a friend of mine who had IVF in Maryland with Dr. Levy. I requested prayer from all of you a couple of weeks ago as she underwent the process. I'm SO happy to announce she is pregnant! Please keep her in your prayers as she awaits the milestones and news of the days to come.

One last note, I know I'm jumping around but there are just so many things to share. When I was in the hospital, the phone rang and the number was unknown but had a (301) area code. I remember this being the area code of Dr. Levy's office in Maryland, so I answered. It was sweet Dr. Levy himself! The day I gave birth, my elated mother had emailed the only contact person she had in her phone -- the financial planner in Maryland. She thought her email would probably never reach Dr. Levy, but we were just SO grateful for the gifts we had been given at that moment. He was on all of our minds. Well, the financial planner gave him the email, he looked up my number and called to personally congratulate all of us! He is just a precious man. Thank you again Dr. Levy.

Still a Mom!

Davis
Henley and her very dramatic stomachache
Davis how he has been so far
She didn't feel so great
Well, turns out this was not all a dream (kind of seemed like it with the morphine!) We are day 2 in the hospital and all is going well. I've learned so much the past couple of days and I think we'll stay til Saturday so we can soak up all we can and take advantage of the nighttime nursery... Davis is precious and so far EXTREMELY laid back. Henley is a little MESS aparently...everybody (nurses, petiaticians, staff) make sure and stop by to tell us. Here are a few more pics of day 1 & 2...