Tuesday, December 30, 2008

The Twins Are Here!

Here are some of our first pics taken on our last day at the hospital and when we first arrived home.

Here we go!

My husband, Eddie really surprised me with how he handled the delivery. During our first daughter's delivery he sat for the entire thing and did not dare look over the sheet. But this time, he was a totally different man. He took lots of video and pictures during the delivery. I'm so glad he did. At one point, the doctor asked him what he thought of the entire process. Eddie replied, "It's got to be the Holy Spirit, because I should have passed out by now!" Here is my favorite video from the delivery. Beware: It's pretty graphic...you will actually see the babies come out.


Saturday, December 27, 2008

Happy Birthday

On Friday, Dec. 19, 2008 our twins entered the world! What an exciting time. Mariah Brielle was born at 1204 p.m. weighing 5 lbs and 13 oz. Maxwell Eddie arrived 2 minutes later weighing 4 lbs and 13 oz. They are PRECIOUS and greatly loved! Here is a slideshow of pics from our hospital stay.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Party of 3...soon to be 5!



We took these pictures on Saturday at Portrait Innovations. I was very pleased with their service and quality of the prints.

Nesting

The babies are scheduled to be here in 4 days!!! That's soon, don't ya think? In preparation, I have done a little sewing and LOTS of cleaning. We are also working hard on our budget and getting business stuff in order.
Here are some pics of a few things I have made.







I thought this apron was super cute. Apparently, Halley did not! Here are the directions for this super easy-to-make apron. I taught my friend Nicole how to make one for her daughter, Kaiya.


I made this quilt for Max. I took it to be embroidered and will pick it up today. I also did one for Mariah, but I did not take a picture of it yet.


This is a "hooter hider" aka nursing cover up. You can learn to do anything on the internet. Here are the directions for this item. I changed a few things to make mine a bit nicer. I sewed two fabrics together to make it a little thicker, added a decorative stitch to the outside, and put on a pocket as suggested. I saw this same cover up here on sale for $19.95. Maybe I will go into business making these!


I taught myself how to crochet when I was pregnant with Halley. She has a nice sized blanket now. I decided to do one for the twins. So far, only Max's is done! I learned how to do this "granny square" on the internet. Click here, to learn to do one yourself. I do have one for Mariah, but it looks more like a cape than a blanket! Oops. I am going to start over using this same pattern that I used for Max. My goal is to get hers done in time so that they can come home from the hospital with them. I would love to have them as a keepsake to pass on to their firstborn.

I just went in the nursery and noticed that I need 2 curtains for it. My plan was to make them, but I think I will have to purchase them...time is of the essence. I also need to get something to put on the wall over their cribs. So much to do, so little time.

I have my last MD appointment as a pregnant lady at 815 this morning! If all goes well, we will have the babies Friday. I'm so excited, I can hardly contain myself! When I get done with that, I have lots phone calls to make and a few errands to run. I have to get it all done now, because by Friday I will be milk distribution center ONLY! Well, not only...I still have responsibilities as a wife, mother, domestic engineer, accountant, delegator, friend, daughter, sister, organizer, etc, etc, etc!!!

A Tribute to My Parents




Lately, I have really been thanking the Lord for my parents, James and Cynthia Caine. They have brought lots of joy to my life as my parents and the GRANDparents of our children. By God's grace they have been together for 38 years and married for 34 years! That's unheard of in these days. What a blessing to be their child. Their entire lives were changed in 1980 when they both accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior together at a Sunday church service. God completely turned their lives right side up and changed the course of their lives and their children.

What has most impacted me lately is the love they have shown by caring for our little Halley. I absolutely love that they feel the need to visit her every other weekend (like they have visitation rights) and they faithfully do so. They leave Atlanta on Saturday morning and drive 2 1/2 hours to get here around lunch time. We spend the day together and then they are back on the road by 6:30 a.m. to make it to their church. Now that's dedication...5 hours driving only to spend less than 24 hours with us.

Halley has been with them since last Wednesday afternoon. My dad met me at the stateline to pick her up and take her home with him. This gave me the chance to get my hair braided (it took 11 hours), get some much needed rest (what a joy to have uninterrupted sleep at night), run errands, and spend quality time with Eddie. They all came to visit Saturday. My mom and I went to the commissary while my dad stayed home with Halley. Then Eddie, Halley, and I went to take some family pics. Thankfully, my mom came with us. Halley was not on her best behavior and I know Eddie and I would not have been able to take any pics together if my mom weren't there to take care of Halley. On Sunday morning they packed up to leave and took Halley back with them! We do love and miss her, but are so appreciative of the chance to get stuff done without a 2 year old.

Guess who watches Halley most of the time while she's in Atlanta. My Dad. My mom is still working and my dad is retired due to a medical disability. Because of that, he takes care of her until my mom gets home. Opa, as Halley calls him, is wonderful. He says it brings him great joy to take care of her and is no problem at all. I have been most shocked by this...I never knew this side of my dad, but I'm very thankful for it!

Opa, Oma, and Halley will be back Thursday night for the birth of the twins on Friday! They are going to stay with us through Christmas and New Year's and a little beyond that to help with the babies. My mom says she will be on duty during the day and my dad will be on night duty to help with the feedings. What a huge blessing they are!

Mom and Dad, we love you very much!