Today is the day my girls were born.

For those of you who read my blog post from Sunday, you know that our idea of  how this week would work was thrown into disarray on Friday. (If you haven’t, you can read about it here.) After a lull during the weekend, this past Monday, we went to see Jenn’s OB/GYN, Dr. Maddalena, hoping that we could convince him to take Jenn in earlier. The constant “in-n-out” Saturday and Sunday was adding more stress to Jenn, which exacerbated the purpose of her going to the hospital. We had our arguments all laid out to present to him but it turned out that they were not necessary. As soon as the doctor took Jenn’s blood pressure, he immediately decided to admit her the next day (a.k.a. today). 

We then spent the rest of Monday, preparing for the big day. I took Jenn to her favorite restaurant, Mongolian BBQ. I went to get my haircut so the first time the girls saw me, they wouldn’t wonder who this scruffy guy is.  Luckily, their stroller came in Monday, so we went to pick that up. After running these errands, we then went home so Jenn could rest and I could finish what office work I had left and then clean the house. (Even though Simply Clean was kind enough to come in and clean our house while we were out, we didn’t want them to see how dirty it was. Weird, huh?) The rest of the day went rather slow. Puck was Puck and he didn’t let me get much rest. He wanted to play and, knowing I wouldn’t see much of him the next few days, I obliged him. Jeff (of bestjeffever.com) and Lisa Barton blessed us by bringing us Jenn’s favorite pizza and my favorite pizza (Garlic Chicken Alfredo and Hawaiian, respectively.) While he was there, Jeff helped me set-up the aforementioned strollers. Knowing we had to be at the hospital by 7:30 am, we attempted to go bed early. Of course, due to the excitement, neither one of us did. Jenn went to bed at 12:45 and I finally fell asleep at 2. (Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to focus on anything but the next day so I didn’t have a post last night. Sorry, UCW fans.) 

We awoke early the next morning and headed to the hospital. Checking in was relatively smooth. Shortly after changing into our hospital gear, we went into the operating room. Well, Jenn did. I waited in a hospital room while they numbed her. Once they had her prepped, I went into room to join her. I walked in and saw Jenn strapped to the table, arms laid out crucifixion-style. The birthing classes had taught me that Jenn should focus on me while they were operating, so I sat down next to her head and we talked. She told me how numb she was and that, even though she knew she was breathing, she couldn’t feel it. I told her that the position she was in reminded me of Mel Gibson at the end of Braveheart. She asked if she should yell “Freedom!” when the girls were born. Before we knew it, the anesthesiologist told me to get my camera ready. 

I looked over the sheet that separated Jenn’s head shoulders from her lower body and saw what looked like a white, bloody alien pop up from the curtain. And thus, at 10:22 am, Alexis Victoria entered the world. About one minute later, another white, bloody alien appeared, this one much larger than the first. At 10:23 am,  Joanna MacKenzie joined her sister. We could almost immediately hear Alexis’ cry as she gasped for air. A short time later, Joanna joined her. However, her cry was not as loud or as frequent as her sister’s. I noticed this but did not mention it to Jenn because I did not want to worry her. They finally brought both girls over to Jenn so she could momentarily see them.  After she had what amounted to a quick glance at them, the girls and I headed to the nursery while they sewed Jenn up. 

As soon as we arrived in the nursery, I asked the pediatrician, Dr. Gold, what was wrong with Joanna. He explained to me that when Joanna was born, she swallowed some ambiotic fluid. He explained to me the technical aspect of what happened, but in layman’s terms, during the birthing process, they broke Alexis’ water first. She was then pulled out but while Joanna still inside, she was hit by basically a wave of fluid. She had ingested some of the fluid and was now trying to expel it by coughing and wheezing. They were going to have to keep her in the nursery for anywhere from a few hours to a day in order to make sure she was okay. Like an idiot, I asked if this was normal. Dr. Gold kindly told me that anytime you are having trouble breathing, it’s not normal. He then explained that this was common for the second child of C-Section twin births. They were going to keep an eye on Joanna in order to make sure she was breathing okay. 

I stood there in the nursery and stared out at the assorted crowd on the other side of the glass. I could see worry on both sets of grandparents’ faces. They were staring at Joanna as the nurses set her up to be monitored and receive oxygen. As I looked across the room, I could see Alexis was awake and moving. I began to feel sorry for her because, even though she was only about an hour old, she was already becoming the forgotten sister. I went over and started talking to her. Eventually, they allowed me to pick her up and hold her. 

Now before this point, we had not named them. Jenn and I had gone back and forth about when to decide who was who. We both agreed that the one who looked like my side was Alexis and the one who took after Jenn’s side would be Joanna. The debate was when the names would be decided. Jenn wanted to name them rather soon after they were born. I wanted to wait for a few days to see who was who. Well, the argument was moot. As soon as I stared down at the girl in my arms, I knew she was Alexis. 

After about 90 minutes, I was able to take the newly-named Alexis in to see Jenn. Thankfully, as soon as Jenn saw her, she agreed. I left Alexis with Jenn and, while they were bonding, I headed out to let the crowd know what was going on. Once everyone was calmed, I went back in and took Alexis to join her sister in the nursery. I let Jenn know I was going to stay with the girls and I would see her downstairs. 

Eventually, the crowd dissipated and I was left alone in the nursery with both girls. I took the time to introduce myself and then give them a little speech I had prepared for that day. Other than telling them who Jenn and Puck were, I made them a couple of promises. Girls, at whatever point in time you find yourselves reading this, you can ask me what they were. I am sorry to everyone else but this was a special moment between the three of us. 

After about 3 hours in the nursery, they were finally able to clear Joanna and we were able to head down to Jenn’s room (although they said she was going to only be allowed in the room for an hour at a time.) As I write this, Joanna’s been with us for over 3 hours without having to be sent back. (Praise God.) Both Mom and the girls are sleeping soundly as I type. For those of you wondering how I feel, well, I don’t know yet. I know I am excited and happy they are here.  I know that I love each one tremendously. There is not much else other than that. I expected this big revelation, in the form of a light from heaven, accompanied by a thunderous voice that sounded suspiciously like James Earl Jones, decreeing “David Quintanilla, thou art father.” But nothing like that happened. In its place was a quite realization that these girls are my responsibility and that I am not scared of that. Those of you who know me, know that I am planner. Oddly enough, right now, I am just enjoying each moment. Now before I close, here are the pictures I promised. I hope you enjoy them. 

Jenn and I Before Surgery

 

Alexis being born

 

Joanna being born

 

Alexis, active in the nursery

 

Joanna, moving around

 

Some of the Crowd

 

Alexis and I

 

Jennifer and Joanna

 

Our Family

 

The girls right now. Alexis on the left and Joanna on the right

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