Joe and Theo have arrived!

Joseph Jacob and Theodore Patrick were born Sunday night at 9:51 and 9:54, at 37 weeks. They are doing great!

I spent Friday in L&D with contractions that weren't doing anything, so they sent me home. Sunday night, my water broke! Four hours later, I was the proud mama of two beautiful little boys! Its been a crazy 48 hours, but I wanted to thank the twin mamas who have been so generous with their knowledge these last months! Below is a letter my husband sent out to our friends and family. It tells our story, and makes me wanna cry I love him so much!

The boys are great. I am hurting quite a bit still, but have finally passed gas a few times, so there is improvement. I had some issues with the c-section. Mainly, I felt really lonely. I had these beautiful boys, then they were taken away, with my husband, to be cleaned, before I got to see them. No one really talked to me about what was going on. I felt like a slab of meat on a cold table.

The boys have not needed any NICU time, and are already latching on for bits of time (though my milk supply is starting slowly). They are the most beautiful little things I have ever seen. I see them and everythig else in the world stops. Its ridiculous! I love these boys!!

Anyway, thank you all for the support during these pretty uncomfortable 8 months, and I will see you in the First Year!

------------
Snipets:

Completely without warning (besides, you know, the previous 37 weeks of pregnancy) Melissa's water broke at about ten minutes to 6pm. We were at the hospital by 6:15. Melissa's labor progressed quickly, and if not for an emergency parking lot birth that took a bit of precedence over us, Melissa would have had the babies by 9pm. As we had long known, neither baby was in a suitable position for the birth to precede the old-fashioned way, one being completely breech and the other being vertex, but faced in the wrong direction. Our preferred doctor, the exceedingly competent but highly Muppetlike doctor was available to perform the Caesarian Section, and it went off without a hitch.

The first baby (aka. Baby A, Ziggy) was born at 9:51pm, weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces and 16 inches long. He's a little guy, but he's strong and alert with a ton of light brown hair and big, dark eyes. His name is Joseph Jacob.

Joseph's younger brother (Baby B or Zuzu) was born three minutes later at 9:54pm. He is a bit bigger, at 6 pounds even and 17.5 inches long. Baby B's interests include sleeping soundly, reflexive sucking and burrowing. Like his brother, he's got a mess of hair and big eyes, though he's more hesitant to show them. His name is Theodore Patrick Burke. We call him Ted or Theo.

Theo and Joe are both as healthy as you could want a baby to be. They've got a combined 40 digits, though we'll leave the type and distribution of them up to your imagination. Joe scored a 9/9 on his Apgar test, and Ted got a 8/9, so obviously they're destined for greatness.

Melissa is recovering well. The past few months have not been easy on her by any stretch of the imagination, and there were times over the past few weeks when we considered sending her into High School health classes to demonstrate to children the potential consequences of having sex. She has been an absolute champ throughout, enduring the seemingly unendurable with humor, optimism and love for the instant family she was growing. The recovery from this operation is a tough one but she's defying the expectations of her doctors and nurses and she was up on her feet, walking the halls of the hospital half a day ahead of schedule. She's great.

As for the most common question that we've heard: Are the boys identical or fraternal twins? The unsatisfying answer is that we don't know. I've been staring at them almost nonstop for almost a day now and I can catalog a hundred and a half little similarities and differences, both in looks and in demeanor. The type of twins that they are is just the answer to a question anyhow. We will probably find out or figure out the definitive answer at some point, but that answer won't change the fact Joe and Theo are two completely distinct individuals who just happen to be two of the handsomest, smartest guys you'd ever want to meet.

A few quick pictures of our new family, with many more to come:
Shutterfly
(http://share.shutterfly.com/share/received/welcome.sfly?fid=1b24d9a73cb41b139a16dcf07a6807f9&sid=8CaN2jNm1aqIlY)

 

Wow. Congratulations!!! :birthday:

I'm crying tears of joy for you guys!

 

Congratulations and welcome to Joe and Theo!!!

 

Congratulations!!! May they always be healthy and bring you guys joy. They are so cute, very nice story also. Good luck with the recovery!!!

 

:Clap: Congrats on your boys!!

 

COngrtas!

 

What little shorties! Congratulations My 4 lb 15 oz baby was 19 inches!

Your husband is very humorous and that will come in handy at 3:00 in the morning a few weeks from now. It's tough in the beginning but so worth it.

 

:wub: Awwwwww!! :babyflips: Welcome to the world Joe and Theo!! :babyflips: Congratulations!! :yahoo:

 

congratulations to you and your family! what a great guy your husband sounds like, i think you will have lots of support!

 

Congrats on the new ones! Sounds like everyone is doing well!

 

:yahoo: Congratulations on beautiful boys!

 

Congratulations! What a great letter!

 

Congratulations!!!!!!

 

Congratulations on your boys!! I love the letter from your husband- it sounds like he's so proud and happy!! Best wishes!

 

Congrats!!! Come join us in the FY and buckle your belts, its one heck of a ride!

 

Congratulations and welcome Theo and Joe!!!!! I love your hubby's story. It was really lovely and funny.

 

Congratulations! Love their names!