I'll start off the same way I always do and apologize for my lack of posting... But follow it up with the fact that this is a brand new blog, so that means I get a brand new start, right?
For those of you that followed me over from my First Time Daddy Blog, welcome, it was so fun to blog about my firsts with Benson and I hope eventually he can look back on the posts, read them, and hopefully smile and know how much he is loved. That being said, this Blog is not called "twins blog" meaning I definitely still plan on posting about Benson as well as the two new additions to our family. As all parents generally say, I plan on loving all three boys equally and there will be no clear favorite!
OK, now with all of that out of the way, let me give you the details of the newest additions to the Keeler family (which are now almost a month old... oops):
Wyatt David Keeler - Baby A - Born @ 12:10 PM on 11/7/14 weighing 5lb 3oz and measuring 181/2" long
Ryder Lee Keeler - Baby B - Born @ 12:11 PM on 11/7/14 weighing 5lbs and measuring 19" long
Here's the story of how that day progressed. I had taken off work in anticipation that the doctor may reference that the C-section would be that day (11/7/14). We got up relatively early, my mom watched Benson for us while we went to the final ultra sound for the boys. That was about 9:00ish in the morning and we had the appointment with the doctor right after. The reason for the ultra sound and ultimately having the C-section is because it appeared that Ryder was taking fluid from Wyatt since he was laying on top of him.
After the ultra sound, the doctor confirmed what they had been seeing on prior ultra sounds, Ryder was still showing a lot more fluid than Wyatt and just to be safe they were going to take them out that day! This news came to us relatively quickly and we were told to make our way over to the main hospital (Mercy) to prep for the C-section, We met up with Pauline's mom, Loretta, in the cafeteria so I could get some breakfast in me (to prevent fainting while I was with Pauline in the C-section room), we thought we had some time prior to needing to be up on the delivery floor, but apparently they were anxious to get started because they called us shortly after we sat down to eat and asked why were weren't up yet. I felt bad eating in front of Pauline since she was not able to do so with the C-section.
At any rate we made our way up stairs where they prepped Pauline for her surgery and I prepped for sitting in the room with her. Another embarrassing thing about me (apart from what I told you about what we thought Benson was doing when we first brought him home, see previous Blog), they gave me a full body scrubs thing to wear and I failed to ask the best way to wear it. My assumption, since they sent me to the bathroom to change, was that I was not supposed to wear anything but my undergarments under the scrubs, so I proceeded to keep only my socks, underwear, and undershirt on as I put on the full body scrub suit. I wasn't uncomfortable so I assumed I did it right. More on that later.
After awhile they transitioned us to the surgery room where they injected the numbing medication into Pauline's spine (spinal tap?) and set up the surgery room to prep for the boys and the incision. I opted to remain by Pauline's head, sitting on a chair, so as not to watch any of the cutting/pulling that would shortly ensue. There were a lot of strange noises and things going on that made me nervous for Pauline, but I knew were normal, Pauline was starting to feel nauseous as the doctors and nurses did their thing. Eventually they said that they were getting close to the boys and asked if I wanted to pop my head up to take a picture of them coming out, I was taken aback by the question, but decided that I would probably regret it if I didn't do it, so I popped up just as Wyatt was being pulled out and took a picture and remained there until they got Ryder out and got a picture of that as well. It's not something I will post here since it is a tiny bit graphic, but I definitely am happy I did so!
After cutting the cords for both boys (or rather re-cutting, since they already had done so), they bundled them up and brought them up to where Pauline could see them and kiss them, which is when the first picture below was snapped. Shortly after that they wheeled them to the NICU to hook them up to heart monitors and breathing monitors, standard procedure for twins born early. I confirmed with Pauline that it was fine for me to go with the boys since she had to remain and be sealed back up and wheeled to the recovery room and she encouraged me to go with the boys since she couldn't. That's when I was able to snap the second picture you see.
Here is where that embarrassing story comes into play. Once I was in the NICU with the boys, one of the nurses said that I could take off the scrubs since we were no longer in the OR. I believe my exact words were, "I was a little overzealous about the scrubs and thought I shouldn't wear pants, so I am going to wait to take them off." She laughed a little bit and said that it's happened before and to not worry about it.
Here were my thoughts from the OR when the boys were being bored. At first I was scared to see any sort of blood/fluids, but once Wyatt came out, I was overwhelmed with a Joy that brought tears to my eyes as I saw how perfect he looked, that Joy continued as they also pulled out Ryder, who happened to already be crying when he came out which made me smile a little and brought even emotion in side of me. It is such a wonder to see what God can create and how instantly he can provide an unbelievable love for someone that you haven't actually seen for the past several months, but you knew was a part of you. I am so thankful for all three of my boys and so grateful to God that all three were born without any issues and all three were so healthy, only by God's grace and the fact that they were all surrounded in prayer from the beginning.
That was the basic story of delivery day. Unfortunately the boys had to stay in the NICU for a bit longer than we initially realized that they would be, but looking back on it, I think Pauline and I can both agree that it was a God-send, because we built some good relationships with some of the nurses and they taught us a lot about feeding the boys and helpful tips in general that we may not have gotten if they had just been discharged. We are so thankful for all who visited Pauline and I and may not have been able to see the boys due to the limit of 4 per day. We are also very thankful for Mercy hospital and the nursing staff there, they were so amazing with re-teaching and showing us new things. Here are a few of the pictures from the hspital.
They were in such great hands while we weren't with them at the hospital, but any chance we got to hold them or feed them we took!
The home life transition has been a lot better than Pauline or I could have expected. Benson seems to tolerate the boys just fine and even on occasion will hug or even kiss them. The only lashing out that he is done appears to be the normal "terrible two" type stuff, so we have been trying our best to discipline in a way that he will learn and grow, but also, the hope is that he will grow closer to a relationship with Jesus through that as well.
The pets are somewhat oblivious of Wyatt and Ryder and only occasionally will look/smell them to see what they are all about. Which is probably a good thing that they aren't lashing out or attacking them, which I know I have heard of in the past!
Overall it has been a relatively smooth transition to have the twins in our lives now and Pauline and I have been a pretty good team when it comes to everything with the twins and Benson. They sleep quite a bit and aren't quite into the stage where they just cry and cry and cry.
I am looking forward to watching these boys grow and watching all three grow into the best of friends through they years. One of the blessings of them being so close in age is that they should share a lot of the same interests and should be good buddies.
Pauline and I are so thankful for all of the meals and help that we have been getting already. Specifically from each of our parents who both have been very helpful and are continuously helpful with staying with Pauline during the day and helping out any way they can.
Our biggest help comes from your prayers, continue to pray for the boys and just for Pauline and my relationship, that we continue to make our marriage a priority. We look forward to all that God has in store for our family!
God bless and as always I leave you with random pictures that you may or may not have already seen!
