On June 8, 2009, after a midnight drive to Oklahoma City, a discharge from the hospital, a readmission to the hospital, and our surrogate suffering through 36+ hours of labor, my wife and I became parents!
 

Lucas Grey Herron Time: 1104 Weight: 6lb 13oz Length: 20.5"

Kyla Rose Herron Time: 1059 Weight: 6lb 2oz Length: 19.5"

That's big for 36 week twins. Kyla came out without a problem. Lucas, on the other hand, decided to go breach once Kyla'd cleared some room and made the doc go in after him. This had less than ideal results...

Kyla was quickly released to our room with mom for her first feeding while Lucas and I stuck it out in the nursery waiting on the above x-ray, its results, and for the doctors to figure out what to do next. We passed the time talking about Kim Jong-Il and other current events. During a lull in the conversation, my sister managed to snap this pic through the nursery glass...

The docs decided to send Lucas to NICU for pain management and a consult with an orthopedic pediatrician. He set his arm in a soft cast and booted him back to the nursery. Shortly thereafter, Lucas (left) and Kyla (right) were finally reunited in our room.

We were overjoyed. Having to split time between the kids was nerve wracking. The kids, however, were nonplussed. Lucas continued to sleep. Kyla found a moment to ham it up for the cameras.

The whole family is back in Texas now with only a quick stop at the border to document their coming home. Niki and I are tired as hell, but are still enamored with the little ones so it feels worth it. We can't wait to see what's next.

And we owe it all to this woman. A woman who suffered through 36 weeks, 4 days of gestation with twice as many kiddos as normal. A woman who braved 36+ hours of labor without an epidural. A woman who almost had a little boy steal Adam's rib back as he came out butt first.

Thank you, LD. From the bottom of our hearts.

Today was the last ultrasound before we become parents...
 
Holy crap! We're about to become parents! Next time we see LaDonna, she'll likely be yelling about my gargantuan size while pushing my son and daughter, also screaming, into this world. I'm gettin' teary just writing about it.
 
The ultrasound was mostly uneventful. There are no pics, as both babies are too big to get anything but pieces into frame. Skull. Spine. Bladder. They're both measuring right on schedule and each look to be about 5.5 lbs. After a bit of cajoling, we got a second ultrasound that might give us an idea of how much time we've got before delivery. The results? LD's cervix is measuring just over three centimeters, which Dr. K thinks will buy us at least a week.
 
Sure, Lucas is trying to throw us a curve-ball by having wiggled his way to a transverse position across the top of LaDonna's belly, but that shouldn't be a problem as long as Kyla stays low and head-down. LD will talk more with Dr. K next week and see if recent developments change any of our plans. With LaDonna's stubbornness, I'd bet on our plans staying put.

Last Saturday was the Dallas Video Festival's 8th Annual 24-Hour Video Race. That means tonight was the world premiere of team SmokingCrayolas' 8th consecutive short film, Rockin' on Rockcrossing.
 
In a heat with seven other "Guerilla Division" racers, the judges found us worthy of joining Curtis Needs a Ride and Monochromatic Productions in the finals next Wednesday.
 
As always, watching the other films solidifies that we've really got to work on our production quality. Maybe this will be the year that we actually practice between races to make that happen.
 
Now, I'm off to sleep. Have to be in OKC at 0830 tomorrow morning for an 0900 ultrasound. G'night folks!

all my free time will be doomed.

As many/most of you know, we had the big "Level 2" ultrasound on Wednesday. All measurements are spot-on schedule and both babies look very healthy. Though perhaps a bit unhappy. They appeared to be kicking each other to jostle for a more comfortable position. If it's a sign of things to come, we may need to rethink this "single crib" thing.

Kyla Rose

Lucas Grey