The "Home Team"

Since we began this journey here at Legacy there have been countless difference makers not only in the live's of Harper and Finn but Allie's and mine as well.  We feel a huge burden has been lifted off our shoulders with the great staff they've assembled here at Legacy.

It all started in the Labor and Delivery Unit.  We were not too thrilled to be at this unit in the month of December to be completely honest but Susie and Hailey really turned us around.  Here is where Allie was given medication to deal with some of her pre-term labor complications and had a pretty rough forty-eight hours.  Hailey was the nurse in charge when the twins' heartbeats crashed and was the one voice we remember saying "it's going to be okay, we will get through this." 

Next we bring in Post-Partum.  This was a real emotional stage for the both of us as we realized that we went from possibly going home pregnant, to proud parents of two in just hours.  Allie having gone through an emergency C-section was obviously in some pain.  Multiple nurses remarked on how well she looked and how little pain medication she was taking. I even asked a NICU nurse what kind of report I should give my wife and her response was " well when she wakes up tonight or tomorrow..." not knowing how tough Allie really was since she was already awake and asking about the twins. I was running back and forth between the NICU and post partum checking on all family members....We had a few rough moments in this unit but had such great nurses like Joy and Jen to guide us through them.  Then an extra special moment for us occured as Susie from Labor and Delivery was our discharge nurse the last day we spent in Post-Partum.  We can't express how much it meant to see her one last time and thank her for all her efforts as well as many other post partum nurses. 

Now here we are at the NICU and will be here for sometime.  This is where Allie and I truly believe God's angels are at work.  We have been here long enough to cycle through some of these nurses and really couldn't be any more pleased.  Our first experience was with Marceen and she has just been amazing.  She truly has a gift for this work and I swear the twins respond better to her and her voice than my own sometimes.  We have had night nurses like Kimberely and Pat that have given us a sense of relief at night as we try to get some rest that we desperately need.  We were also fortunate enought to have Kacia who guided us through our first time holding the babies during the skin to skin time.  The other nurses have included Courtney, Debby, and now Tina which we're just getting to know.  Here in the NICU they also have RT which stand for Respitory Therapist that monitor the babies breathing extremely closely.  The RT's that have been caring for our twins are Lori, Curtis, and Marie and are all awesome.  We have had two Dr.'s and their names are Dr. Stirling and Dr. Freitiag.  They've kept us up to date on all the progress, testing, and milestones for the twins.



Helping Hands



Marceen hard at work



Kacia and Pat


Today we had a team that included a dietician, pharamicist, RN, RT, laction specialist, social services, charge nurse, occupational therapist, Dr. Freitiag, and our discharge nurse that briefed us on the progress of the twins and will do so every Wednesday.  The NICU staff is just "simply the best!"

Of course we would like to thank all of our friends who have supported us with prayers, thoughts, food, flowers, and many other kind gestures.

Last but not least we have our amazing family.  We get emotional writing about how supportive and dedicated our family has been.  We would like to thank our immediate family on both sides for all you have done and all you will do in the coming months/years.  Please know that without your love and support this experience would be completely different.  Just witnessing you with the twins is such a blessing as we know what great grandparents, aunts, uncles, and great grandparents you will be.  We also know how much our extended family has been supporting us through prayer as well.  We thank you all so very much and know that we couldn't do this without you all.        

One Week Older and Wiser

The twins are one week old today!  We can't believe it's been a week already since the twins were born.  During this past week they have achieved several little milestones and are on track to continued development and growth.  We are starting to finally breathe a little easier : ) 

We officially discharged on Monday night but were able to spend that night in the NICU, neither of us were ready to head home and leave the twins behind.  The set up here will actually allow us to spend the night pretty frequently and we can hang out during the days in the twin's private room...it's such a relief to know that we'll have a spot to call ours during our weeks here.  Last night was our first night at home and it was hard!  The saving grace of course was Ella...it was fantastic seeing her again and it was good for us to recharge at home.  But we were back this morning for Kangaroo Care and plan to stay here for the next day or two.  I'm so thankful we don't have to say goodbye to the twins and head home without them every night...it's too tough!

On a happy note, we thought we'd include some recent pictures of the twin's without all their gear on.  A few times a day the staff does a "hat check" where their hat and CPAP are removed for cleaning and to give their little noggins a break.  We LOVE this time!  It's so fun to see their little heads of hair, little ears and faces.  Now just to be fair to them both, their tiny faces are swollen and a little misshapen from the CPAP...they'd like you to know that this look isn't permanent even though we think they are perfect : )



Finley





Harper



Harper's Feet



First Couple Days...

There is lots to learn about the NICU and about preemie babies...Greg and I are quickly becoming experts!  Besides learning about the various support systems, tubes, procedures, etc., we've also been learning how to "parent" our kids while being cared for in the NICU.  We've been changing mini diapers and cleaning mini bums, taking temperatures and our favorite, practicing "Kangaroo Care".  This is the only time we're able to pull the babies out from their incubated beds and hold them, skin to skin.  



Harper's 1st Change w/Dad

Finn's 1st Change w/Mom








In anticipation for our first hour long holding session, we were both feeling anxious and super emotional at the prospect of holding these fragile guys for the first time.  I have to say it turned out to be the most surrean experience and continues to be our favorite thing to do.  In the dark we get to cuddle with a baby as they sleep and squirm and hold our fingers while Greg sings the OU Fight Song and I doze off  :)



1st Kanga Care (Dad's with Harper)



1st Kanga Care (Mom with Finn)

We're able to start holding twice a day now when they are up for it.  They are also increasing their intake of my milk and are doing better and better at breathing on their own.  They are little champs! 



Greg & Finn





Allie & Harper



How did we get here?

Finn & Harper's Birth Story...

Greg and I discovered over the 4th of July weekend that we were pregnant...we were so happy!  Later that summer we were in for the surprise of our lives.  We were having twins!  We were so shocked but very excited about what was sure to be a special experience.  As we wrapped our minds around how drastically life was going to change, we anxiously anticipated discovering the gender(s)...would we have two teenage girls to manage someday?  Two boys??  We truly lucked out in the end and were blessed with the best of both worlds...a boy and a girl.  From that point on we truly began to fall in love with Harper and Finn.

Twins!!

Fast forward now to December when we discovered that Harper was a petite little thing!  We were worried about her since she was actually trending much smaller than Finley.  After 16 days of bed rest and high protein, we were very anxious to find out if Harper had grown and whether or not she would be able to further develop properly.  We had our appointment on Tuesday the 27th and found out that yes, she had grown but not to the extent we'd like to see.  Harper and Finley were officially discordant twins and Harper was deemed IUGR.  This was not great news and on top of it, we discovered that I was actually 1 cm dilated and 90% effaced...I was in preterm labor and had no clue!  We were whisked away to the hospital and admitted for preterm labor for a minimum of 2 nights.

While there, I showed signs of pre-clampsia which were then added to our growing list of new complications.  However, after nearly two days of managing my contractions and testing for pre-clampsic issues, I was on the track to going home.  Greg spoke with our doctor late on Wednesday night and we were thinking I may be discharged that weekend.  The babies this whole time were also being monitored.  With their constant squirming around, the monitors on my belly were constantly being repositioned and adjusted to track their little heartbeats.  There was a discussion on Wednesday night before bed if we even needed to have the monitors on throughout the night...luckily our doctor decided it's better to be safe than sorry and we left the monitors on for the twins. 

At around 5:40am we were awaken by about 7 nurses flipping on the lights and rushing into our hospital room.  I was told to go on all fours and an oxygen mask was shoved in my face.  From there I could hear them shouting that the twins were "down" and it'd been 3 minutes, etc.  Greg woke up to this scene and we were both in such shock.  After their heartbeats dropped and I showed significant signs of stress, they decided to deliver and did so via emergency c section.  The whole event was over in a matter of minutes.   Greg guesses the surgery took maybe 10 minutes total and both babies were safely delivered.  I'm even told that Harper cried when she was born, just as a baby should :)

I woke up from general anesthesia in the OR and was wheeled through a room where both babies were being incubated and Greg was waiting.  From there it's been a whirlwind of recovery and staying involved with how the twins are doing. 


We are still piecing together how this all happened but it seems their cords became tangled early Thursday morning and since they had been on monitors, the nurses were alerted quickly and able to save them both.  This is a true miracle since had we been home, we would never have known and would have surely lost them both...we can't begin to express how grateful we are and how amazed we are at God's work. 

Finn & Dad

Ms. Harper

Finn's Scuba Gear

Mom & Harper

Introducing Finn & Harper Roberts!

Greg and I decided to start a blog as a means to journal and share Harper and Finn's story with those we love.  We are so blessed to have two beautiful babies and are excited to share them with you!

Harper Paris Roberts
12/29/2011 @ 6:06am   29.2 weeks, 2.4 lbs

Finley Asher Roberts

12/29/2011 @ 6:05am  29.2 weeks, 3.3 lbs