Big Girls

Kacie and Karli were pretty excited when they heard they would have not one, but two new cousins, a boy and girl. They reminded me several times during my pregnancy. Before the twins were even born, Kacie was dreaming about babysitting them when she gets old enough.

When Emma and Ethan were born seven weeks early, Kacie and Karli weren't old enough to get inside the NICU. Children must be 14 years old to enter unless they are a sibling of a patient. One of the girls said,

"LeeAnn's not gonna let us see the babies until we're fourteen!!"

It made me laugh so hard, but it was also a little sad. It was an accurate perception of my hyper-protection mode and also of the alienation they were feeling. I had to be cautious with the girls and the babies, but the last thing I ever wanted was to hurt their feelings.

Having preemie twins is not a normal bring-home-baby experience where everyone comes over and takes turns holding them. Once they do come home, they have to be strictly protected from visitor contact or any exposure to the public directly or indirectly. Children who attend school or daycare, grocery stores, and church were at the top of the list of things to avoid, according to our doctor. If they must be in contact, the doctor advised that the visitors should change clothes and take a shower before visiting.

Kacie and Karli visited every time they had a chance, freshly showered and they did their very best to comply with crazy Aunt LeeAnn's house rules and ritualistic hand washing and sanitizing.

As the babies got bigger and stronger, Kacie and Karli were able to hold the babies more and help feed them, even change their diapers. I am so proud of how good they are with them. They are very big girls at 9 and 11, the sweetest cousins ever.

The twinks recently spent their first day at The Ashings by themselves.

It sounds like they pretty much made themselves at home. :) Amy said Uncle Michael and Ethan relaxed and read the newspaper on the couch for a while. They both loved hanging out in the house and playing with all of the toys in the bedrooms. The big girls even let the two little monkeys jump on Kacie's bed!

The weather was perfect! They played outside, bouncing balls in the cul-de-sac. Then, Kacie, Karli and Aunt Amy took them for a wagon ride. Amy said her girls felt very big and did an awesome job of entertaining and helping.

They say they can't wait for the next visit!

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