Twins 3 months

Sedona with Mom at a Christmas Party

Sedona waking up in the morning

Sienna a very happy girl

Happy Holidays from the sisters!

Sedona & Sienna were three months to the day yesterday.

They have grown and developed so much.

They interact and smile a lot now.

They also started to "talk" - don't know what they are trying to say.

We wake up every morning and see these girls with big smiles on their faces. It's an amazing feeling.

We are looking forward to celebrate the firsts Christmas with them. They are the only once with a lot of gifts under the tree. Last weekend they went to four Holiday parties.

Happy Holiday!

10 weeks and growing

Sedona 8 weeks enjoying her swing

Sienna 8 weeks taking a nap and blowing bubbles

Sedona a happy girl

Sienna - eye lashes to die for

Wow, can't believe I haven't written for a month. Time is just flying. A lot of things has happened since last time I wrote. Sedona and Sienna have doubled in size since birth. They are smiling a lot now, which melts your heart. And they started to like pacifiers a few days ago. Wow, what a huge difference that has made. They can calm themselves down much faster now.
Jack was able to bottle feed Sedona some breast milk for the first time, a couple of days ago. Sienna still only wants the real deal - smart girl.
I am getting a little bit more sleep during the nights. They are starting to sleep longer every week, which is great.
The girls have also taken two road trips - one to Lake Havasu, AZ where Jack worked for a few days and one to Santa Barbara to celebrate our 9th Anniversary. They are very good travelers. We are sure they will become great globetrotters :)

6 weeks today

Proud Parents

Wake up sister!

Can't believe that Sedona and Sienna are already six weeks old. Time is flying. They have almost doubled in weight and now weigh like average newborn babies (approx 7.5 lb).

You never know what the day has in store. One day they are very easy going and the next they need some more attention and want to be held all the time.

They love the car and to go for walks by the beach.

They have so many new experiences during these first weeks - first bath, restaurant visit, trip to the mall, professional photo session, giving us their first smiles etc.

We have tried to bottle feed them and to give them pacifiers a few times- none of which they seem to like very much. Who can blame them when they have the real deal?

They both love sleeping on Dad's chest, which he equally enjoys.

I am not getting much sleep these days and my nipples are very sore sometimes. However, it's all worth it. Just feeling their warm little bodies next to yours makes your heart melt.

We have been home with the twins for over a week now and time is flying. Here it's all about pee, poop, eat, sleep, cuddle and above all love. It's indescribable how much love we feel for Sedona and Sienna, it's an amazing feeling. The girls are very easy going and hardly every cry.

I am like a milk machine that is open 24 hours. There is no set feeding schedule this early, which can make some nights tough. Two days ago I was awake 2 AM - 6 AM. I finally got some sleep early morning. After the nap I woke up really thirsty. I reached for my glass of water on the night stand next to the bed. I positioned the glass to my breast instead of to my mouth - this is when you realize that you have done a lot of breast feeding and need some more sleep.

THE STORY OF TWEEDLE DEE AND TWEEDLE DOO

DAY ZERO:

I received call at 700 am Monady September 21st . having just finished a night shift, I was waiting to renew an ID card at Balboa hospital, where often I get no reception. I was up next in line so I texted Yasmin that I couldnt talk and asked that she text back. This is what I saw: "my water just broke".

Anxious and excited I called home as I walked to the car quickly and said I would be home in 20 minutes. Please set out the bags we had prepared. I drove home (quickly, but not too recklessly) , opened the door. Yas was doing ok, and in her usual fastidious fashion had focused on getting the wet sheets and liner into the washing machine (water broke apon turning over when awakening) so I took a quick shower, packed the car and we were off. Today our babies are coming. Yas started to have contractions in the car .

I parked in front of Mary Birch and asked for a wheelchair. They were very calm and told me to leave the car while I took Yasmin upstairs. By now she was moaning and not too happy to fill out paperwork they handed her on arrival at triage. She thrust the papers to me to fill in. When I handed them in, the nurse said that I shouldnt do it because there was a question about abuse asked. I yelled across the floor: " Yasmin, am I beating you?" She said no and the case was closed.

We were taken fairly quickly to a birthing room. The nurse checked Yasmin and she was 2 cm dilated. An epidural was offered which Yasmin accepted because she didnt want to be exhausted if there was long delay between babies being born (nothing to do with the excruciating pain, Im sure). Our OB doctor Rowena Reagan came and checked and said it could be hours til delivery.

The epidural kicked in and Yasmin sent me to eat. I leisurely went to the cafeteria while texting my Dad and Yasmin's "chain" (Yas asked me to give her the necklace that was made for her to keep it close) .

When I arrived back in the room about 45 minutes later the anesthesiologist was leaving the room. Apparently the epidural catheter had become disconnected from the fentanyl and so Yas had gone almost the whole time w/out the drugs, in severe pain because Siennas head was lodged very deep relative to the level of dilation.

She was feeling better and I put the food down to eat later. I watched the monitor and Siennas heart rate dip (a decel) . The nurse came in to check that the leads were in place. The heart rate didnt budge. She yelled out : 2 minutes" . Another nurse came in. " Three minutes". Someone else came in. " Four minutes".

Then a blurr of activity as Yasmin was taken for a crash C-section to prevent Sienna from having distress. The nurse told me to wait and someone would get me while Yasmin was prepped. I demandingly said "NO!, Im going with her!" The nurse held my shoulder, seeing my fear, and brought me to a waiting area outside the OR. I could see people coming and going from the OR. I was pacing . There was a Chinese gentleman waiting quietly. I paced some more. I HATE WAITING!

Dr Reagan stopped to tell me that Siennas heart rate had come up but Sedonas had now dropped and the babies had to come out NOW and a couple minutes later someone brought me in to the OR. I sat next to Yasmin behind the drape shielding us ftom the activities below. I held Yasmins hand. Then I heard a cry and my

baby Sienna was shown to us. I cried as she was whisked away for routine resuscitation. It seemed like a half our later, with some difficulty, but in reality a couple minutes, that Sedona was delivered. She was blue and not crying, so went right to resusc area. About 30 seconds later we heard her cry. I broke down in tears again.

Soon after we were brought our babies to hold briefly.

I waited a few minutes in recovery until Yasmin joined me. She couldnt feel the lower 2/3 of her body because of epidural , but was otherwise doing well. Sienna and Sedona were brought to us and I watched them be weighed and measured : 4 lbs 11 oz and 5 lbs 13 oz respectively- much smaller than projected by prenatal ultrasound.

Recommendations for stimulating labor: Eating a capon (castrated rooster-likely works better for boys)), having sex (not highly desirable right now), taking a rough car ride or going on a roller coaster(right), drinking coconut milk or cider vinegar (tried the former last night and didnt work), doing hypnosis tape specifically designed for this purpose ( I want my money refunded).

I asked Yasmin again about "elective" C-section. She refused (thats my girl!)

My stamina for suspense is waning. Excitement toned down as we still await the girls. Had the whole months schedule planned around arrival at 36 weeks or so. We are past 37 now. Really wanted at least a week off to play and get adjusted before working.

Still playing intrauterine footsies with the girls. They kick and I push back a little. We have gone on for at least a minute at times.

Strange again being a doctor and family . Yasmin had increasing swelling of one leg yesterday and chest pain. We had to take her to the ER for ultrasound of the legs to make sure she didnt have a clot (much more common in pregnancy). Tests were fine but they wanted to do a CT scan of the chest which is the only very sensitive way to find a clot in the lungs. We chose not to do it because I could reproduce Yasmins pain by pushing on 1 spot.

36 weeks and 5 days - how much longer? Never thought being pregnant could be this uncomfortable. I am sitting up sleeping now and can't even find a comfortable sitting position. Also I have terrible heartburn. However, main thing is that Sedona and Sienna are doing well. I did another non stress test yesterday where they monitor fetal hearts and fluid around the babies. Four days ago the twins weigh over 11 lbs together.

Waiting Waiting Waiting. When are these girls going to come out and play?

Met a guy at the Cove a few days ago that said if he knew what he knows now, he would have stayed in there until he was 85 and then told Mom to cut him loose!