Frame and Canvas: Collin Patrick

Frame and Canvas: Liam Ryan

Into the Mystic

Here are a few of our favorite pictures as well as a few newer photographs.  Cheers from the four of us!

La, La, Love You, Pretty Baby

And So it Begins

This posting is just a little footnote to focus on the journey of our little Irish lads to date.  On May 11th, Liam and Collin, the artist formerly known as Declan, were placed in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to receive treatment.  And yeah, we are starting to speak in acronym coding by the way.  Their little lives depended on the timely care of their specialists and the respiratory treatment they received.  After 15 minutes of respiratory therapy our little ones began responding to the therapy.  They were given IV lines which were placed into their umbilical stems.  Those lines have since been replaced with PICC lines that were inserted in through their arms and into the arteries leading into their chest cavitities (Collin had his removed first... Just sayin', don't count out the underdog).  Poor little dudes!  They are both receiving photo therapy to lower the bilirubin levels since they were off balance, thus, the cool-guy shades in the photographs.  They have already lightened considerably and are a lot less reddish-orange.  Liam had been receiving oxygen through the CPAP mask, which is a breathing apparatus that is placed over his mouth with a chin strap attached to keep his mouth closed.  Think, fish lips.  Yeah, that is kinda what it does to his little face.  He has since responded well and is requiring less help to breathe. 

Today, Liam joined his brother.  Both boys are now in incubators to eliminate noise and the potential risk for infection.  They seem to really enjoy the incubators; it is pretty cozy and warm inside and they have a cool blue light that keeps things ultra-cosmic.  I had the opportunity to hold Collin and give him skin-to-skin kangaroo therapy which was probably the most incredible feeling in my life.  My fatherly instincts were heightened to a whole new level.  Now, I understand what Peter Parker underwent when he received his spidey senses.  Just magical!  It was a whole different level of awareness.  I can't wait for Becky to experience it tonight.  We are headed to the NICU tonight to hold the little guys.  They have begun to eat 3 MLs of mommy's milk at each feeding which will be vital to their health and well-being.  Now, that Liam has had his IV replaced with a PICC line he can receive skin-to-skin therapy as well.  We will keep you posted with any updates, but so far all is quiet on the western front.  Well, maybe not at the Shark Tank... Boo Hawks!  Oh, and if the Flyers win the cup this year I will definitely know God is tossing me more than my share of blessings. 

Collin Patrick and Liam Ryan

Becoming Mommy and Daddy and Beyond

The last 2 months as many of you know have been emotionally draining on all of us. Having Becky in the hospital while the dogs and I carried on with our daily routines was probably the toughest thing I have ever faced in my lifetime. There were many days when I wasn't sure if I had any emotional energy to give, but I prayed to have my wife return from this journey safely, and for God to provide me with focus, strength, and patience. Becky, despite her situation, was in great spirits on most days because she knew her sacrifices would ultimately result in two cool little dudes. And quite honestly, she is the most remarkable person I know, and she is loved by so many people. She had rough days, but our parents were there to comfort her along the way. Sandy spent many hours with Becky mastering the art of Boggle; we spent our time trying our best to cuddle in a hospital bed; Don spent hours comforting his little girl in his stoic way, and Polly frequently dropped in to shower her with comforting gifts that helped pass through time. We thank everyone for the support and love.

On May 11th, the phone rang at 4:36 in the morning, or as my grandfather used to say, in the AM; it was Sandy calling to inform me about Becky. Her condition had gotten much worse and the nurses had moved her to labor and delivery due to the contractions and gut-wrenching pain she was experiencing. When I arrived at the hospital she was in a great deal of pain and the contractions hadn't subsided. And as you know, for Becky to complain, things are nearly dismal; she just doesn't do that sort of thing. After a few hours our shift nurse stopped by our room and handed me a set of scrubs and said, "Just in case he says we're going, be ready." Of course I replied like any strong husband would, "we've got this".  Even though I am not sure what I thought I had, or why those words came stumbling out of my mouth. The truth of the matter is,  I was frightened like a 5 year old lost in a corn maze due to all the potential complications that come with a high-risk pregnancy. At about 11:00 am Becky was wheeled into the delivery room, and the nursing staff asked me to wait until the room was ready to witness the birth of our boys. Of course I couldn't sit on the flower covered chairs DMC so gratiously provides fathers-to-be, so I proceeded to pace the floor... I probably wore a small hole into my booties, and if I was wearing a steps counter, I am sure I would have surpassed a mile... Well, maybe that is somewhat exaggerated.

At 11:12 am the nurse beckoned me with a wave, and I came nearly running like a little kid at Disneyland who sets his eyes on Mickey for the first time. When I arrived in the room Becky was sedated and they had started cutting her lower abdomen. The doctors were listening to the Beatles via Pandora and humming along to the tunes.  It was just another day at the office for them.  Doctor Palitz is a true master of his craft, and he operated quickly with precision.  All I could think is, we are about to become a Mommy and Daddy and that feeling was overwhelming. I looked at my wife's beautiful face to assure her that all was well, and she sweetly asked me two questions before she passed completely into a state of unconsciousness: 1) Can you see them in there?, and 2) Are they curled up together?. Aww! How sweet. The truth was, I could see one, but I couldn't tell if they were curled up or not, so I said, they are curled up babe, and they are going to be alright.

The next few minutes went by so rapidly I hardly had time for the photo shoot. The doctor pulled out two little lads within two minutes of each other. Liam Ryan was born at 11:16 am and weight a hefty 3 pounds 4 ounces and was 15.25 inches long. Doctor Palitz delivered him from his hips with his two index fingers because he was breached.  I wasn't exactly sure what that meant in medical terminology.  In my mind, I was thinking of a rock fortified castle wall that had been pounded by an army of germanic nomads wielding a battering ram, but that doesn't really apply to pregnancy.  He came out bottom first, and he wasn't breathing or moving much, so he was immediately passed through an open window in the operating room that led into the NICU. Collin Patrick was born at 11:18 am and weighed 2 pounds 14 ounces and was 15.50 inches long.  What he lacked in weight he gained in size.  He will be a tall kid someday.  He received the same fate as brother and quickly made his way through the NICU window. Doctor Palitz informed us that Becky had an abrupted placenta and a large blood clot, which was causing the excruciating pains. He said. "these kids needed to be born today". The next few hours were tough because it took the doctors nearly three hours to inform us that our lovely little boys were responding to the treatments, and that we could spend time with them. Seeing their faces for the first time was one of the greatest experiences of our lives and a true milestone for us.

I love you Rebecca Langum, and welcome to the world Collin Patrick and Liam Ryan.  More to come about the little lads soon... Stay tuned.

Yarrgh!

Ahoy me maties!  Here is a peek at the bedding we chose for you lily-livered land lubbers to see.  Can you dig it?

Our Week 16 Ultrasound

We went in for our week 16 ultrasound today and discovered we are having twin boys.  Now, we can focus on planning for them to arrive.  If you can't view the video directly from the posting, you can click the title above.  It is hyperlinked to the YouTube video.  Enjoy the ultrasound!

Twin Boys

Today, the doctor confirmed that we are having boys. We have narrowed our list to the following name choices (at least for now):

First Names:

• Liam - Unwavering Protection
• Declan - Full of Goodness, Irish Saint
• Liam Patrick, Liam Reilly, Liam Finn
• Declan Patrick, Declan Ryan, Declan Finn, Declan Reilly

Middle Names:

• Patrick - Patrician, Noble
• Ryan - Little King
• Reilly - Valiant, Courageous
• Finn - Fair Skinned

Previous Names:
Jackson, Griffin, Ethan, Dylan/Dillon, Miles, Grant, Owen, Grayson, Van, Vaughn, Macklin, Jack, Sam, Kyle, Killian, Brendon, Gavin, Nolan, Quinn, Carson, Caleb, Logan, Finlay, Aiden, Brennan, (grudgingly); Finn, Collin, Connor, Elliott, Everett, Finnegan

Mommy's Belly at Week 15

We created a photo scrapbook of Becky's beautiful tummy at week 15 to keep it interesting.  We hope you enjoy the album. Cheers!

Rub the Buddha: Week 14

Alright, so it is week 15 now, and we are just getting around to posting the week 14 photograph of Becky's belly upon the requests of our family that have been eagerly awaiting an update.  Tate and Smith, our niece and nephew, asked just last night, "how are the babies doing?".  So anyway, here is a picture at week 14.  I promise not to slack so much with the updates, but it has been an eventful week for all of us.  We are going in for our week 16 ultrasound next Thursday, and we will have an initial 3-D glimpse of the twins on Monday, February 15th so stay tuned for the video and pictures to come.  Also, their gender will be confirmed and revealed on Monday, which will make planning, naming, buying, registering, and organizing much easier. 

Cheers!
Sean and Becky

Belly Bands and Stretchy Pants

Belly Bands!  Alright, so aside from belly bands and stretchy jeans, the first 13 weeks has been an exhaustive, emotional roller coaster ride filled with waves of nausea, frequent trips to the bathroom, and heightened senses that would put Spiderman to shame.  And when we say frequent trips to the bathroom that is what we mean; the urge washes over Becky and in that very instant she must find a restroom immediately. 

At 13 weeks, the tummy is slightly protruding, and her breasts are beginning to enlarge, which we are both overjoyed about.  Becky said, "Sean thinks pregnancy is sexy, and the best part of my day is feeling his hand cradled over my growing belly".  We cannot wait until the bump has become more obvious, and the little Irish lads begin to kick their pods. 

The initial fear about the volatility of our pregnancy has been replaced with hormonal emotions and excitement.  We cannot wait to meet our little wee lads face-to-face, hold their miniature hands, and kiss their chubby cheeks.  We took a few pictures of the tummy at 13 weeks to share with everyone and to track the growth and progress of our pregnancy.  By the way, do people ever quit reminding you about how hard it is going to be to raise twins? 

Warmest Regards!

Franks and Beans!

On guard! Raise and ready your plastic swords and halberds... for today we will march onto the battlefield in victory! Alright, so we have exciting news, and we wanted to practice for the epic battles that are sure to grace the backyard of Fort Timmons.  Our week 12 ultrasound confirmed that we are having one little Irish lad and possibly a second as well. The twins looked marvelous; the doctor described them as "perfect to perfect plus". We love it when he uses technical terminology with us by the way. The twins were actively moving about in the womb, both jockeying for position and space within the uterus.

The twins appeared startled initially; perhaps the foreign, goo-covered, plastic ultrasound wand gliding its way across mom's tummy was a bit too much to handle without their morning coffee. You can witness them swatting and actively kicking; perhaps we disturbed their mid-morning slumber.  I like to imagine that they are practicing their kung-fu moves.  Muhahha!  At any rate, they look healthy and their spinal columns are aligning perfectly. Additionally, their cardiac activity is normal, and their height and weight are above average for this stage of development.  Being that most of the men from my family are 6'0 tall or greater that wasn't too shocking. 

Be sure to look closely... You can see one of their packages clearly. And, we think we can see two now that we are becoming more tuned-in to our hawk-like optical reflexes; I can honestly say I never thought I would be excited at the sight of a penis, but there you have it.  I am elated.  We haven't elevated our title and status to ultrasound master ninja just yet, but we are advancing well in our ancient training. We hope you enjoy the footage of our ultrasound at 12 weeks.



If you have any trouble viewing the embedded video, use the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHUoMAVLEv8

Cheers!

Alive and Kicking

Earlier today we had the opportunity to visit our doctor and check on the babies and their development.  We were fortunate enough to catch them in action paddling and kicking in their liquid-filled, temporary homes.  They both look extremely healthy and active according to the doctor and they measured nearly 1 inch in length.  It is still too early to determine the sex at this time (even though the doctor said he may have seen a penis).  Wouldn't it be terrific to get one of each?  They were moving about and we could clearly see their hands, legs, and feet.  Becky couldn't help but burst into laughter at the video of the little ones' activity.  I have to admit, I was even overly excited too!  We couldn't believe how active they have gotten in such a short period of time.  They are actually starting to resemble babies versus pulsating blotches. 

Check out the video of the Sonogram.  We had some trouble downloading editing software without watermarks, so we made the best out of the dated program we have.  We apologize about the poor editing and looping of the audio track, but the audio track will definitely make you smile (especially if you were an 80s nerd or loved John Hughes movies).  Anyway, the little ones are alive and well.  If you can't see the embedded video, I provided the link below to copy into your browser.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kw85dtJB6pE

Cheers!

The Crib and Nursery Furniture

Today grandma came up to visit; And, since Tammy's Baby Shoppe in Manteca were offering great bargains on baby furniture we elected to shop for the nursery.  We found an adorable crib that converts into a day bed initially, and later into a twin-sized bed. We purchased the cribs and a matching 6-drawer chest, but it won't actually be delivered or shipped until later in the pregnancy.   I am not sure if we are sold on the conversion into a twin idea; on one hand, that would save us a lot of money, but if we had two boys an elaborate bunk bed set-up would be almost too tough to pass up.  And quite honestly, that makes sense space wise, not to mention some of the bunk beds we have seen would be perfect for fort building, storming the beaches of Normandy, or capturing a broken vessel from aboard the Jolly Roger, or else One-eyed Willie's long lost pirate ship.  Not that we would be partaking in such shenanigans... I am just saying.  Nonetheless, here is a photo of the crib taken from the website.  Try and block out the pinkish Disney decor from the picture.

Showered with Gifts

Christmas was great, and thanks to Mom and Frank, and Pam and Bob, we received cute new outfits and other assorted goodies; we took a picture of a few of the gifts we received for everyone to "Awww!" over.  We are greatly appreciative of all the thoughtful gifts we received this Christmas.  The little shoes and hats are most adorable. 

Spencer and Molly are having a difficult time adjusting to all the new goodies; they are so used to stuffed toys being treats for them, so they are a bit confused at the moment.  They think I am being a cruel Dad and holding out on them since all they got for Christmas were a couple of Snuggies and assorted dog treats. 

Anyway, thanks again to everyone that gave us gifts and wished us happy thoughts on Christmas.  Merry Christmas to all of you, and we wish you all a very happy New Year as well. 

Cheers from the six of us!

Website Assistance Required

Alright, we need a little help with website research from everyone.  Are there any websites that you know about, have used, or found particularly useful with respect to little ones?  Any help would be absolutely brilliant.  Could you drop the web address in the comments area beneath this posting so we can do a little leisurely reading?  I wanted to thank everyone that posted name comments; you are terrific!  We revised the list and removed a few names so check it out.  Thanks again for your support!

Cheers!

Our First Outfits

Thanks to some dear friends we have our first baby outfits; they assured us that "they don't have to be all matchy, matchy".  It is funny, my thoughts weren't about their likedness, I was initially thinking, "they are so small!".   Aren't they cute?

I know many of you are probably thinking, it is a bit premature for baby clothing.  Initially, I was of a similar mindset, but then I thought, "we created this site for our dearest friends and family to share with us".  I figured, it is important to take some risks from time to time, especially right now.  It is important to enjoy every minute of this process considering all we have endured.  We love all of you, and thank you for your comments and happy thoughts.  Cheers!

A Billion Names

Alright, so one could search for names for years and still never uncover all the possibilities. Not to mention made-up names and creative spellings (phonetic license misused). Therefore, we chose more than a fair share of names to dwindle away at while we get ready for two newborn children.  Please comment freely; we will keep a running total of your favorite names.  
Here is the most recent name list:

Girls First or Middle	Boys First	Boys Middle Only
Paige - Youthful Ellie - Noble, Shining Light Grace - Love, Irish Warrior Princess Meghan - Pearl; Strong, Able Sydney - Wide Meadow Riley - Valiant, Courageous Erin - Poetic Name for Ireland; peace Reagan - Regal	1.  Liam - Unwavering Protection 2.  Declan - Strong, Irish Saint 2.  Colin/Collin - Young Creature, Victor 3.  Connor - Lover of Hounds 4.  Brennan -  Little Raven	Patrick - Patrician, Noble Ryan - Little King Reilly - Valiant, Courageous Everett - Brave, Strong Finnegan - Fair Skinned, Light Haired Finlay - Fair Skinned

We have removed many of our names due to commonality or recent memories.

Twins!

"Two Hearts Beat As One."  Today we discovered that we were pregnant with dizygotic or fraternal twins.  We were able to see the beating hearts of the two children as well as listen to their heartbeats.  Initially, it was overwhelming, but now we are excited about the prospect of two little children.  Although, two little girls might just be too much girl power for one household.

Day Five: The Beginning of the Pregnancies

Initially, we had 10 fertilized eggs on day one.  Of these ten, these two blastocysts were selected to be transferred after 5 days of incubation; they were the most healthy and developed.  We had the opportunity to view them under a microscope prior to their transfer.  It is said that blastocysts have a 50% success rate once they have been transferred.  Little did we know that both would become viable pregnancies.