Our sons, who were due in August, decided to be born.  They could not wait; guess they were claustrophobic or something.  Anyway, they're now here and they continue to battle with every fibre of their being in order to survive.

Happily, both boys are gaining needed weight, although too slowly for Eve's or my liking.  Nicholas, who weighed 2 pounds even at birth, now weighs 3 pounds and 2 ounces; he's turning into a little chunky monkey.  His brother, Nathaniel, meanwhile, is still tiny at 2 pounds even; looks like he has a longer way to go.

They have both suffered numerous spells of apnea (stoppage of breathing), which sends the medical staff scurrying to their bedsides; all the while, all Eve and I can do is bow our heads and pray a desperate prayer to God to let Him spare our sons' lives (His will be done!).  So far He's heard our prayers.

I pray this continues.  If Eve or I were to lose one (or both) children, I don't know what we would do!

We don't know how long it will take for either twin to reach that magic number (4.5 pounds), but one thing IS certain: you can't rush these babies.  They're gonna do what they are gonna do, WHEN they want to do it.  It will take time, and above all, patience.  A whole LOT of patience!

Surprisingly, neither Nathaniel or Nicholas have had none of the more serious complications that can arise with premature babies: brain bleeds, intestinal or abdominal blockages, jaundice, eye or hearing issues (so far their vision and hearing have checked out perfectly!), or any sign of defect or disability.  The only thing hindering their recovery now is their breathing: they sometimes "forget" to breathe and the alarms then go off, where the staff quickly flick the bottoms of their feet or rub their chests vigorously to stimulate their lungs into working again.

It's been nothing short of a miracle from God.

Both Eve and I are exhausted.  Eve has since been released from the hospital; it's only been in the last week where she's been strong enough to come and spend some time with the boys.  Meanwhile, I have been here, camped out in the NICU waiting room with other parents, and I am not leaving until I know for certain that Nicholas and Nathaniel are going to be okay.

Well, I am going to go to the cafeteria with my wife and get something to eat; we're both starving to death.  Then we are going to take a walk and clear the cobwebs from our minds a little bit before we return to the NICU to see our precious twin boys, who are one month old TODAY!

Who would have ever thought this would happen? We certainly couldn't, that's for darn sure!  I just thank God He has spared our babies' lives; we are indeed blessed, two times over!

~To be continued.~