It was February 9th.  A Tuesday.  Every Tuesday and Friday for the past few weeks we had been seeing our Maternal Fetal doctor to do a non-stress test.  Today was like any other Tuesday except we were going to see the babies' growth since 32 weeks.  These had become my favorite days.  Mike and I would grab coffee and I would waddle into my appointment.  We would sit through the non-stress test with Mike making jokes the entire time and giving me updates on what the monitor said because it sat behind me.  We would chit chat with the nurses about the babies' room or if we had twins in our family.  We'd usually go out to lunch after and then take a nap in the afternoon.  The morning of February 9th, it was very cold and lightly snowing so I reluctantly put on my Uggs and we called Mike's mom telling her to stay home because we were both nervous about the road conditions.  We'd call after with an update on their growth.

We started the 35 week non-stress test and surprisingly both boys passed.  This is unusual with twins, especially mine, because one will kick or wiggle the monitor off.  We headed into our formal ultrasound to see how the boys measured up.  The tech always checked them quickly on Tuesdays and Fridays but today we were measuring for growth as well.    Campbell looked great but he refused to show us his face.  He was difficult towards the end, he was done with the poking and prodding that occurred so regularly.  Next up Luke.  The tech rolled over Luke who had positioned himself early on up in my ribs folded in half with his feet near his head.   She laughed and said "Well it looks like you'll be having the boys today!"  My head jerked to my left to look at Mike whose face was in shock.  "What do you mean?  Are you sure?" I asked frantically.  I hadn't even packed my hospital bag, it was on my to-do list for that week.  The tech couldn't find a pocket of fluid big enough in Luke's sack but she said the doctor would make the decision.  As soon as she left, I started crying.  I was excited to meet my babies but I wasn't ready.  I didn't have their pictures hung in their room, Turbo was at doggie daycare for his Tuesday visit, and did I mention I hadn't packed a hospital bag!  Our doctor came in a few minutes later with a very somber look on her face.  She has a sarcastic jokey personality so this wasn't making me feel any better.  "Well it looks like you're having your babies today!"  "Ok so I'll run home and grab my hospital bag(I was obsessed with the hospital bag, I know) and get the dog to.." She stopped me.  "Stephanie you need to walk over to the hospital right now, someone else will have to get the bag and take care of the dog.  You need to call your family.  Baby B has no fluid left in his sack and we aren't sure why.  He also really hasn't grown since week 32."  I didn't hear much after that, just a laundry list of disabilities and disorders that she was pretty sure we had avoided.  There was no option of what kind of birth I would be having.  Dr. Delaney would be meeting us in the maternity ward and I would be prepped for a C-section.  

It all happened so fast.  Our families showed up and we figured out our arrangements for the next few days.  Mike told work he officially wouldn't be available for awhile and we called our closest friends to let them know today was the day.  I was taken into the OR without Mike at first so I could get numbed from the chest down and he could scrub in.  I had an unbelievable team taking care of me.  It felt like an eternity until Mike finally walked in and sat down beside my head.    Every part of it did feel like an out of body experience.  There was a mirror angled down from the ceiling across the room and I remember seeing our reflection but refusing to believe that it was us.  We couldn't already be here, about to have two little baby boys.  Dr. Delaney warned us that because of the C-section, the boys may not cry but not to be worried.  But then I heard it, a little scream and they lifted Campbell up over the curtain.  I've never felt the way I did the first time I saw him.  Then exactly one minute later, Mike heard "Well that explains it, the little guy tied a knot in his umbilical cord" and the teeniest little baby was lifted over the curtain. I saw Lukey for the first time and felt the rush of emotion again. Mike relayed what he heard our doctor say but I couldn't comprehend the humungous bullet we just dodged.

Campbell 5 lbs 6 oz

The day the boys were born, I saw them for a total of maybe 15 minutes.  They were taken out of the operating room almost immediately after birth, laying cozily next to each other in an incubator.  I was wheeled to the NICU in a hospital bed about an hour later to visit with my teeny guys.  The first time I touched them, I was allowed to hold them for a few minutes.  I could do skin to skin for a little with each but we all needed our rest.  They needed to be in their heated beds with many wires attached to monitors, keeping a close eye on their vitals.  Before we left, I kissed my hands and laid one on each of their heads.  I had to say goodbye for the night.  I could come back in the morning the nurses reassured me but for now Campbell and Luke needed to sleep and I needed to start pumping.

Lucas 4 lbs 7 oz

I didn't know it yet but we were about to embark on quite the journey in the NICU.  Learning the ins and outs of NICU babies and what that entails.  But at that moment, as we were taken to postpartum, we were happy.  Mike and I were finally Dad and Mom.