A Birth Day: Twin Edition

A picture of RD because I think my exact words were "do not take my picture". (He did end up taking the worlds least flattering picture later as I walked to the OR)

We woke up at 5:00am on January 1st, 2014. It was dark outside, cold, and surreal. We were driving to the hospital to meet our babies! These tiny humans we felt like we knew from months of ultrasounds. We valeted the car and took the all too familiar walk that we’d taken dozens of times down the halls of St Mary’s hospital. Only this time we didn’t turn left on the second floor to head towards the maternal fetal medicine office. We turned right towards the birth suites. 

We spent 2 hours in the triage room answering questions and checking baby vitals, position, etc. The only delay came when a light bulb in the assigned OR went out and they had to prep a different room. As soon as I walked into the OR I got a little (lot) overwhelmed. The anesthisologist started right away with the numbing and the shot. At one point, I felt a reflex in my left leg and said “Ow my leg!” And he said “It’s a very small area we are trying to find.” Of course. While that's not something you should tell a patient, this is coming from the doctor who I'm fairly was checking his Facebook during the surgery. But he did his job because I went numb in just a few seconds. Everyone in the room seemed to have a hand on me, everyone was talking, putting shots in the IV, pulled up the curtain, Dr. Fok giving instructions, always someone saying check, or proceed, or some command. Dr. Fok asked how I felt and I said “nervous”, and he said, “You don’t get nervous until I get nervous.”

I was wondering when RD was going to come in. I heard Dr. Fok ask for the scalpel and RD still wasn’t there. They finally brought him in in his scrubs and he sat down right away and held my hand. I guess I started to look bad and needed a distraction because he began talking about how he wanted to be a doctor in the 4th grade, but the reality set in and it was meteorologist for a while after that. They said I would feel pressure and quickly after “there she is!” and a wave of complete emotion took my breath away. RD stood up to look and his eyes were so wide. I said “what does she look like? how is she? is she ok??” and he said “it’s not like the movies.” And a pause, “she’s so small, and purple.” Of all the first words from a man who I considered to be a great wordsmith could say at the sight of his firstborn daughter. :) Finally we heard a cry from Maisie which was an amazing relief. Camille came 3 minutes later at 9:20am. Once at the baby station Camille let out a big cry and we heard the beautiful chorus of two crying babies, which was foreshadowing of the next three (maybe five who's counting?) months. RD came back from the baby station with Camille first swaddled in several blankets. We asked a few times “is this baby A or baby B?” and after clarification they said it was baby B as her hat displayed "B" in sharpie. It felt incomplete though without Maisie. Soon a nurse brought Maisie, and there was our new perfect family.

Our awesome parents and Ryan came a couple times a day for a couple hours. I was on such a hormone crash I know that I wasn’t the most pleasant to be around. Bless family.

I look back on those 5 days though as such a sweet sweet time. The food was terrible and we just ate chicken fingers for every meal, well RD hardly ate anything besides goldfish. But we had our babies and just sat in bed all day and night. I took a lot of walks to get cranberry juice and try to keep the c-section recovery going strong. RD held both babies on his chest and in his arms. I took a picture every single time he did.

Sunday, the last day in the hospital, things were quiet as we were all done with tests and vitals and just packing up to leave. We had 37 weeks of a problem-free twin pregnancy with zero NICU time, thankful was an understatement. RD and I were alone with the babies, Maisie in a bassinet and I was holding Camille. RD read Psalm 139 out loud, walking back and forth from Camille to Maisie. That familiar Psalm resonated deep in my heart as if I was hearing it for the first time. To go on this twin journey with the babies, to see their first ultrasound at 11 weeks, the shock, and then twice a month at 16 weeks until 34 weeks, and once a week after that. We learned their personalities and saw them grow before our eyes. They were knit together and we had the privilege of really seeing it close up. We heard the ultrasound tech say “oh, there are wisps of hair!” and to know that God knows every hair on their head. God knit them together. God knows them. My hearts desire is that He would save them, that He would call them to Himself, now. That they were called in the womb, and it would just be a matter of time before they can verbalize that He is their Savior, their King. That their hearts would long to worship Him above all earthly things.