6 Weeks and GROWING

It's so hard to believe that our little girls are already SIX WEEKS OLD! Time is flying SO fast, and the girls seem to be growing like crazy! It is SO amazing to watch how they grow and change every single day from the size of their little hands and feet to their completely different personalities and actions!

The girls went yesterday for their 6 week checkup and the doctor was completely thrilled with their progress. Both babies checked out perfectly, and have gained appropriate amounts of weight and length. Amazingly enough, both Macy and Makayla are 8 lbs 12 oz and 21 inches long! We were expecting that they may be close to 8 lbs now, so we were completely surprised and excited to know that they had substantially exceeded that! Their height and weight falls at the 50th percentile for their age, so they're perfectly where they need to be! Other than that, there were no issues, except a little bit of baby acne on Macy's little face. We will return to the doctor next month for their 2 month checkup and first round of shots. We're already dreading putting them through that necessary evil!

We've gotten into a fairly stable routine around the house, with the girls still eating about every 3 hours. Mom and Dad are doing everything they can to "promote" longer sleep segments during the night, and, although it's not consistent yet, the girls have made it for four hour segments several times. Mom is amazed at how much of a difference 20 minutes can make, so we're very much looking forward to when 4 hours becomes the norm...or maybe 5 or 6 or 8! :)

The girls still love their play gym, and spend quite a bit of time staring at the lights and animals. We work on tummy time, which Macy likes and Makayla "tolerates", and they also spend a decent amount of time in their bouncy seats and swing, and still love to go for walks (although they still almost immediately fall asleep!) We've started taking some naps in their cribs upstairs, and actually spent the first full night there last night! It went very well and are proud of our progress!

We've also been getting better and better at bath time, and can make it through a complete bath for each baby without a tear! (sometimes! :)) Every day, I find that mommy seems to learn more than both babies put together, and bathing techniques are just one of those many things to learn!

We've had quite a busy last few weeks, where the girls made a trip to mom's office and the infamous "FQ01", met up with Joe, Christy, and Owen for lunch, and have had quite a few visitors at home. David and Sevena Gagnon came over with their "brood of boys"! Turns out, they're working on a couple of new playmates for the girls too! Congratulations to David and Sevena on their expected twin boys who will be here in a few months!

One of their favorite visitors is their "Uncle Todd", who is getting quite good at feeding and holding the girls...now we're working on his diaper changing skills, but, for some reason, his interest isn't that high for developing that skill set!

The girls attended their first wedding last weekend for "Auntie Melissa", and enjoyed the live music, (especially Makayla, our music buff!) being outside with Mom, Dad, Grandma and Papaw Childers, and seeing and HEARING their first trains...boy were they loud!

After the wedding, the girls made their second trip to Mimi and Grandpa's house in Georgia, where they were able to visit with their Aunt Sheryl, Aunt Sabrina, Uncle Clayton, cousin Haley, and even Uncle Nathan for a short time...and, of course, they spent time with Mimi and Grandpa!

Football season is underway, and the girls are doing their best to support their Mountaineers...even though the season hasn't gotten off to such a good start. We're all headed to the game this coming weekend, along with Aunt Melissa and Uncle Whit. Hopefully our attendance will bring some luck to ASU!

Going on Week 3!

Macy and Makayla have been busy girls, meeting and visiting their family both here in NC and in Georgia!! The girls first went to meet their Great Grandma Eunice for dinner, where they also got to meet their Great Uncle Chuck, Great Aunt Nan, Great Uncle Terry, and visited once again with Great Aunt Crystal and Cousin Shawnna. They had a great time, and enjoyed the ribs and chicken that Mamaw served for dinner!! :)

A few days later, the girls got to meet their Uncle Nathan, Aunt Lauren, and 3 month older cousin Emmy Cate. Over the weekend, the girls also went to Grandma and Grandpa Childers' house, where they met an assortment of family and friends from Papaw Childers' side of the family. They also got to meet "Uncle Jimmy"!

On top of all of their family, the girls were able to meet their dogs, Max and Marley! Max doesn't seem to concerned about sharing his house with the new babies, but Marley is very intrigued! We've been amazed at her "pet instinct", as she's done an EXCELLENT job adapting to the new additions. She loves to walk by and sniff the girls, but is managing her temptation to give them a big lick better each day!

The girls traveled with Mom and Dad so dad could do some business in Cumming, Georgia...coincidentally, nearby Grandma and Grandpa Reed's house! The girls were pampered and spoiled by their grandma and grandpa and thier aunts for a few days, and mommy and daddy enjoyed the help, even taking a quick break to grab dinner alone for their 8th anniversary! During thier stay, the girls were also able to meet Uncle Clayton, Uncle Ryan, and Cousin Haley!

After getting back home, Uncle Clayton, Aunt Sabrina, and Haley came to visit for the weekend. It was awesome having some help around the house (Sabrina even helped out with all of the middle of the night feedings!) Haley had a blast watching the girls

and playing with her new best friend, Marley! We spent some time at the pool, where Grandma Childers met us as well, went for a walk, and had our first sushi dinner! The girls seem to have fairly open taste buds at this point, so mom's making sure to introduce them early to all of her favorite foods!

Besides all of the visits, the girls are just enjoying hanging out with each other and mom and dad. We are doing our best to savor every moment! Dad is slowly getting back in the habit of leaving to go to work (he has his first overnight trip this coming week), and mom is learning how to manage with two babies on her own while he is gone (although Aunt Melissa is coming to visit for the first overnight)! Overall, everything is going perfectly (although sleep is still scarce)!! We've started back on our walks, which makes for an excellent nap time for babies and a happy time for Marley and Mom!

The girls are gaining weight like champs, and Macy

has passed her birth weight and is still gaining (as of Friday, she weighed 6 lbs 9 oz), while Makayla

is creeping close also, now weighing in at 6 lbs 11.9 oz. Once the girls both reach this milestone, Mom and Dad are hoping to sleep a little more and let the girls get their rest at night!!

Macy and Makayla - Our Perfect Angels...Already 1 week old!

Most of you know, Macy Faith and Makayla Grace arrived last Tuesday, August 11th. It's hard to believe that it's already been more than a whole week!!! And it's taken me that long to get an update for the blog completed!! The first lesson we've learned is that our "timeline" for getting things done goes out the window...we're on "baby time" now!

Macy made her appearance on Tuesday at 7:36 pm. She came out perfectly, and was quickly swooped up by Daddy to work with the doctors to get cleaned up and ready for the world! Macy was the smaller of the 2, weighing in at 6 lbs, 2.8 oz, and was 19 inches long.

Makayla made us wait just a little longer (it seemed like about 3 days for mom!), and made a grand entrance at 8:31 pm. She came out with just some minor fluid in her lungs that was quickly taken care of in the nursery, and was soon cuddling in our arms as well. Makayla weighed 6lbs, 13 oz, and was also 19 inches long.



We could never have imagined what a feeling it is to hold our babies in our arms! After a long, hard night, we were moved into our postpartum room and ready to begin our journey as parents!

We had several visitors in the hospital, including Grandma and Grandpa Childers, Grandma and Grandpa Reed, Aunt Sheryl, Aunt Melissa, Aunt Sabrina, Great-Aunt Crystal, Cousin Shawnna, Auntie Melissa, and Josh and Abby. The girls haven't picked their "favorite aunt" yet, but have a lot of competition!! :)

Apparently there was "something in the air" in Mooresville late last year, because the girls were one of 4 sets of twins born within 3 days at that hospital, and the girls were instantly "made famous" in the Statesville Record and Landmark! (Hopefully this link to the article will still work: http://www2.statesville.com/content/2009/aug/15/area-hospital-delivers-four-sets-twins-three-days/)

After the newspaper pictures, the girls said goodbye to our wonderful doctor, Dr Adams, and our patient nurse and child birth education teacher, Laura. We could not have asked for better care through pregnancy and delivery!

We came home from the hospital on Thursday evening, and took the girls around to check out their new room and the pack and play in our room that we're using as "temporary quarters" while we all adjust. They seem to like everything just fine!

For the past week, we've spent a lot of time getting to know each other as a family of 4.

The babies sleep A LOT (which we're trying to enjoy while it lasts), and LOVE hanging out in their bouncy seats. Mom and Dad have definitely had an adjustment to their sleep schedule! We are currently waking the girls for feedings every 2 and 1/2 to 3 hours, which can be painstaking around 3 am!! We are all anxiously trying to make sure that the girls eat as much as possible so that they can put on some weight, since they started so small, and have, as usual, dropped several ounces over the last week. We're making lots of progress, and are blessed with the fact that everything else about the babies checks out perfectly!

Now that we're settled at home and starting to develop something of a routine (although there's still work needed), we'll try to do better with blog updates. It's been an overwhelming week, but we've realized, however unqualified we might be, God has honored us with a special gift, and we're just loving every minute of the experience and looking forward to the adventure ahead!

The Date has been Set!

Yesterday we planned for the arrival of our little girls! We will go to the hospital at 7am, Tuesday, August 11th, to be induced, and should expect the girls to make their appearance sometime that day! We are SO excited!

We've only got 5 more days to make our final preparations for their arrival! (unless they decide to come SOONER!) We'll send out an email when they get here, and will do our best to post pictures and updates on the blog as soon as possible!

Until then, keep us in your prayers as we prepare for the awesome adventure ahead of us!

Welcome to Macy and Makayla’s Crib!

We have finally finished the nursery, and are washing linens and getting ready for the arrival of the new tenants! We've had a lot of fun putting all of this together, and have been able to realize that we both enjoy "crafts" more than we thought! It's been quite a stretch for us, and we're proud of the fact that we worked together to get the room set up (with some significant help from family), and are very pleased with how it turned out!

We started the project back in March, when Gary’s entire family swooped into town to get us to painting! In one weekend, we picked out the bedding, chose the paint colors, and painted the entire room! The guys did the “bead board” on the bottom, and the girls worked on painting over that “nautical blue” paint that once covered the room! (Unfortunately, we didn’t get any “untouched ‘before’” shots, but you can get a pretty good idea from the pictures below.)




Here are the pictures of what the room looks like today!! Notice the nice, clean, and organized room! We’ll be hanging onto these to remember what that was like!!

As for a "pregnancy update", there's not much news to tell. Mom is still pretty miserable, and having to sit and/or lay around more than she's ever done in her life! Dad's been extremely patient and accomodating, and has to be getting pretty sick of hearing mom whine! We're getting so close, so we're both very anxious to hear what the doctor has to say at our appointment tomorrow!!

For the past few weeks, we haven't had ultrasounds, but have had "No Stress Tests" done on each baby to measure their heartrates over a 20-25 minute period of time, and to measure contractions. Everything has been perfect so far, so with each visit, the doctor sends me away to continue to "wait patiently"! While I keep hoping for a little bit of "light at the end of the tunnel", we're happy that the girls are hanging in there so well, and, obviously, want them to stay in there until they're "good and ready" to make their appearance!

Hopefully more news to follow SOON!!

Celebrating the Girls' Arrival

I know I'm REALLY late with posting an update from our showers, but I'll blame it on those who were supposed to send me pictures (that sounds like a good excuse, but it's really entirely my fault!)

Unfortunately, I didn't really get any good group shots at any of the showers, but thought I'd post the "candid" shots that I have! Again, thanks to everyone who attended or sent gifts...we're STILL getting gifts!! We have such fantastic friends and family!

Our first shower was at my mom's house, and was hosted by my mom and all 3 of my dad's sisters.

Among our many great gifts, we recieved a few very special "personalized" items!


The second shower was at Abby Wilson's house, and was given by the awesome girls in our Sunday School class at church. (I don't have any pictures of this one yet!)

The third shower was at work. All of my co-workers played "guess how LARGE Mandy is". It was quite an eye-opening experience, and I'm pleased to say that most of them guessed WAY over!!
Here's a picture of Gary and Leslie taking the "official" measurements.

Notice how some people expected me to be as wide as the table??!!


The fourth shower was at Matt and Ashley Raymer's house, given by my wonderful group of neighbor friends.
Here's a shot of some of the girls doing what we do best...standing in the kitchen chatting it up!

Michelle made adorable (and YUMMY) pink cupcakes, which complemented all of the other awesome food that was served! I never leave a neighborhood event without overeating due to all of the good cooks of Crown Harbor!

And here's a picture of some of the gifts...I received so many extremely thoughtful gifts and cards...


The fifth and final shower was at my Aunt Crystal and Uncle Terry's house, and was given by Crystal and my cousin, Shawnna, my mom (Pam), Gary's mom (Marian) and Gary's sisters (Melissa, Sabrina, and Sheryl).
Everything was perfect, complete with adorable "floating" centerpieces...as would be expected, our girls will be quick to recognize airplanes!

Princess Haley was escorted in by her Dad and her Uncle...:) It was a perfect night out by the lake!

I know there are a few of you who still claim you haven't seen my BIG belly, so here's a nice side shot...and cutting the wonderful cake!

Haley helped us open a gift or 2...she wasn't all that into this "little kid" stuff, though...she's such a big girl now!! :)

Among the many fantastic gifts and cards, we received little pink cowboy boots to match the ones grandma and grandpa got for Emmy Cate at her shower. We'll have some country superstars in just a few years!

Here are a few other candids as well...



We had such a great time at each shower! It was great seeing family and friends that we don't see that often, and, again, we're so thankful for the love and support from everyone! We look forward to introducing Macy and Makayla to their new friends and family soon!

Getting Closer!!!

We had another doctor visit and ultrasound this week, and left with, once again, an excellent report! Both babies seem to be growing fast...Makayla passed up her sister and is now measuring right at 5 lbs! Macy's not too far behind at 4 lbs 9 oz. They're still both ahead of the game in the 70th and 60th percentiles, respectively. I'm thrilled that they're doing so well, but having trouble imagining how I'm going to survive through 4 and 1/2 more weeks if they keep growing at this rate! I never knew the meaning of the word "UNCOMFORTABLE" until now! :)
It's so worth it to know that everyone is healthy and safe, but boy is this pregnancy thing a tough one to get through!!

Below are several ultrasound shots...there's not a whole lot to see, since the images aren't that clear, but it's easy to see how much the babies have grown since the first postings.

The first picture is of Makayla.

The second is a shot of the tops of their heads! For the first time, the babies are lying head to head! This is great news, since now, both are head down, ready for delivery, and Makayla no longer has to lay her head on Macy's butt! :)

The final picture is of Macy.

On top of the good doctor report, we've been honored with 5 baby showers from various friends and family, and have received amazing gifts and support from those at the showers, as well as all of our out of town family and friends as well. We are SO BLESSED to have such wonderful people in our lives, and are able to say that we are truly set for the arrival of our little ones. We could never have imagined all of the wonderful gifts that we would get and the generosity that has been shown to us. To all of you who have been a part, we can't say THANK YOU enough times!! Our girls are in for a special treat to meet all of you!! :)

I still need to get pictures from our showers (various "photographers" have to send me their "work"), and I'll post those when I can. We are also finishing up on the nursery, so we should have pictures of that to post soon as well! We're very excited with how it's turning out, and can't wait to show off our final product! (We have to take plenty of pictures now, while it's clean and tidy!!)