First Adventure in the BOB stroller

Mitch and I took a very nice walk down to Sunset Cliffs from our house with Cooper and Mackenzie in the BOB stroller. Although we have to take them in and out of the stroller, as opposed to snapping their carseats into the other stroller, it was an awesome experience! The BOB stroller is so light and easy to push! We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place that we can enjoy as a family.

Thanksgiving

We had a very nice Thanksgiving here in San Diego. Mitch's uncle Jim and aunt Chris flew in from Cleveland to see Cooper and Mackenzie and were a big help with the Thanksgiving meal. Cooper and Mackenzie cooperated very well taking a nap during our dinner. We look forward to sharing turkey day with Cooper and Mackenzie in the future, but appreciated them sleeping this year!

Go Tennessee Vols!

Halloween

Cooper and Mackenize had a busy Halloween changing outfits! We received so many cute things and did our best to get them dressed and photographed in everything. We look forward to participating in trick or treat next year!

First Bath October 24, 2009

Hanging Out

First Trip to the Zoo

Mitch and I had to be out of the house for 4 hours for Orkin to spray our house for bugs. That is a long time to be gone with newborn twins! The San Diego zoo is free for active duty military and the weather here was perfect, so we thought, why not! We had a great time, Cooper and Mackenzie were wonderful and we didn't have anyone bother us. We will definitely be back!

Family Visit

My sister Amanda and her husband Chris arrived from Birmingham on Thursday and my father (Poppa) and brother Nick arrived from Memphis on Friday. They were here in San Diego to see the babies, so there wasn't any site seeing other than the local beach.
We had a wonderful visit. They were a big help with the babies and around the house!

Professional Photos by Molly Hilton

I found the photographer Molly Hilton while I was pregnant and hired her to take newborn photos of Cooper and Mackenzie. She takes the photos during the first 2 weeks so that she can capture the adorable newborn phase. I hope she will have a website so that we can share the photos with everyone.




Molly came to our house and spent about 1.5 hours shooting some amazing photos of Cooper and Mackenzie together and also individually. I was able to help sooth and help pose them as she snapped away! Mitch took over 300 photos and was able to get a few really good ones that we will be able to print and frame.


It is going to be difficult to pick just one for their birth announcement! It was such a fun experience, and she did an amazing job with them. We will definitely be using her again for more photos!

First Trip to the Pediatrician

Our first visit to the pediatrician was after being home less than 2 days! We went in on a Sunday, which was nice because it was a quick smooth trip and avoided a crowded waiting room.

Mitch and I asked tons of questions, we didn't get a lot of advice before we left the hospital. The PA that we saw was very patient and answered everything. She also offered suggestions and handled them so wonderfully!

Cooper and Mackenzie were both down in weight, which can happen, but she gave us some feeding suggestions and asked to see Mackenzie back the following day and then both back a few days later.

Mitch and I felt terrible! Even though we know most babies loose weight the first few days after birth, we still felt like horrible parents. We worked really hard to make sure they both stayed awake to take enough formula. Mackenzie gained weight and they were both back to their birth weights by the follow up!

Our First Week Home

We came home on Friday, September 18th. We only stayed 3 days in the hospital, which is wonderful considering Cooper and Mackenzie are premature twins!




My mom flew in from Memphis to spend the week helping. We had a rough first night, but we slowly figured things out. She offered lots of great suggestions and advice, helped care for Cooper and Mackenzie, cleaned around the house, and cooked some great food!


Mitch and I are in amazement and filled with overwhelming love for them. I have never felt such a strong feeling of relief to have them home and healthy!

Last Day and Night in the Hospital

Mackenzie and Cooper swaddled







Enjoying McDonalds with my babies











Mitch enjoying my bed with Cooper

More photos from the NICU stay

Snuggled in the same crib in the NICU












Cooper and Mackenzie during the car seat test. They had to stay in the seats for an hour with their monitors on to make sure they didn't have any breathing difficulties.























Leaving the NICU!!!!

NICU

As soon as I could, I had the nurse help me out of bed and wheel me over to the NICU. Mitch went over to be with Cooper and Mackenzie as soon as he helped get me settled in my room.





Getting to my babies was the best motivation for getting out of bed so soon after a c-section! I didn't stay long on my first visit, I got really light headed.

We spent as much time as would could in the NICU, although we allowed the nurses to do the night feedings so that we could get some rest. Most of the nurses were WONDERFUL at helping us learn to care for our tiny babies!

It was reassuring to have them hooked up to monitors, but it was also challenging to feed and hold them. We are so lucky that all of their tests came back normal and they never had any breathing problems. They even had hearing tests that came back normal and passed their car seat test. After 48 hours they were discharged from the NICU and brought to my hospital room for 24 hours.