A merged photo of Erin (left) and Elisabeth (right)...Elisabeth would want you to know that she is really not that much shorter than Erin...it's just the way the collage turned out! LOL
Erin and Elisabeth At About Age 5
Sixteen years ago today, Chad and I became parents for the very first time when our sweet little twin girls, Erin and Elisabeth were born. They were a month early and weighed in at 4 lbs. 11 oz. (Erin) and 4 lbs. 3 oz. (Elisabeth). Boy, were they itty bitty! If we'd had any sense, I think we would've been scared to death! LOL
They had to be on sleep apnea monitors for the first six months of their lives, and it was 'round the clock' feeding for quite a while. Of course, they had to stay in the hospital for some time after they were born, and Erin got to come home several days before Elisabeth did. We were back and forth between the hospital and home until Elisabeth was finally 'released'...weighing in then at a whopping 5 pounds! We've never known what it was like to have just one child!
I have to laugh when I think about the day they were born. I had been on medication to stop contractions and premature labor from about five months, and even then I was in and out of the hospital several times. I was allowed to teach school from a chair, and I was finally put on bed rest in April. But on June 4th around 11 pm, I stopped taking the medication. When I woke up on June 5th, I was pretty sure I was in labor.
But here's the funny (or not-so funny) part...depending on who you talk to. I had braces for TMJ, and I was scheduled to get those braces off that morning. I decided to go in the opposite direction from the hospital to my orthodontist in another town about an hour away to get those braces off! I didn't want to go through labor with a mouth full of metal! (See note above about having no sense! LOL) I told my orthodontist that if he didn't want to deliver twins, he'd better get busy! Needless to say, they had me in and out in record time, then Mama and I headed back towards our neck of the woods. I even stopped at my school to turn in my classroom key, as I was planning on staying home from that time on. I think we even stopped at Wal-Mart. And BTW, my orthodontist's office staff sent a nice plant to the hospital! I sort of think it was their way of saying thank-you to me for not giving birth in their office! LOL And they were still teasing me about it when the doc put braces on Erin's and Elisabeth's teeth eleven and a half years later!
After our errands, we ran by my home, grabbed my suitcase, and headed to the hospital...thirty minutes in the other direction. When it was determined that yes, I was in labor (duh!), we called Chad at work and he came to the hospital.
The girls were born that evening (nine minutes apart), and they have been a joy and blessing ever since. I enjoy their company immensely, and I can't think of anyone else I'd rather spend my days with than these children (and their brothers and sister as well)! We laugh and cut up a lot, and we have our own 'brand' of humor. They are so much help, and I know that we couldn't manage without them! They are talented in many areas, and we thank the Lord each and every day that he saw fit to bless us twice on that special day sixteen years ago!
Erin and Elisabeth are 'mirror image' twins...Erin is right-handed and Elisabeth is left-handed, and their teeth even came in (and out) on the corresponding sides. Erin is a photographer/writer and Elisabeth is an artist/baker in addition to other interests.
1997
TWINS There's two to wash, there's two to dry, There's two who argue, there's two who cry. One's in the mud having a ball, The other holds a crayon, another marked wall. Some days seem endless, my patience grows thin. Why was I chosen to be a mother of twins? The answer comes clear at the end of each day, As I tuck them in bed and to myself I say, There's two to kiss, there's two to hug, And best of all there's two to love. ~Anonymous
The days of marked walls and mud are gone now (at least for Erin and Elisabeth), and it seems as though the years have passed so quickly. But we have many wonderful memories to treasure...and Lord willing, we'll have many more memories to make and cherish in the years to come!
So...Happy Sweet Sixteenth Birthday, Erin and Elisabeth! You have become lovely young ladies, and we appreciate all you are and all you do! We love you both so very much!
The Whole Gang in November 2006
PS...Hopefully, my scanner will cooperate and I'll be able to add more pictures later.
Happy Sweet 16 Erin and Elisabeth! From everything I've seen and read you two are not only lovely young ladies on the outside, but more importantly on the inside, as well! Have a wonderful day! Susan P. (your Mom's blogging "buddy;o)
I am so totally crying now. It seems like just yesterday I met two pretty 9 year old little girls and now here you are 16 years old. You have both grown into beautiful and talented young women! It is a privilege to know the two of you. Hope you have a day as special as you both are! We love you very much!
Jun. 5, 2007 - Happy Birthday Erin and Elisabeth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by Anonymous
Happy Birthday to you! You will never know how very much Pop and I love and thank God for you.....You have always been a big blessing to us and to all who know you....
We know you will succeed in whatever you do because you have determination and that coupled with God's guidance just cannot fail.........
Love and Prayers,
Mam and Pop (Betty at Country Charm)
Happy Birthday to Erin and Elisabeth!! They truly are beautiful young women:-) I came to wish them birthday greetings via their grandmother Betty:-)
PEA xox
Happy Birthday Erin and Elizabeth! You are both so special, and we are thankful for the wonderful example ya'll set for the younger ones.
Love,
The Lord's
What a sweet birthday post for you girls! It was fun to hear the story behind it-especially the dentist part! For a first time mother-that WAS very brave of you-especially with twins!
I don't HAVE twins but my husband IS a twin. They were born in the 70's prematurely. Matt was born at 2 pounds. His brother was 2.13 My MIL didn't even know she was having twins until a week before they were born-and then, she thought she had MORE TIME to plan. I am always amazed at how the Lord forms His children in the womb...and how my Mattie could be so perfect even though he was born so little and during a time when medicine wasn't as advanced as today.
I hope someday to have twins. But I have ALWAYS thought having twins right off the bat would be perfect, because you wouldn't have the 'easyness' of one baby to compare it too. :-)
Happy birthday to two VERY beautiful and amazingly talented girls!
I'm a very happily married pastor's wife, former schoolteacher-turned-homeschool mom of six wonderful blessings, and freelance writer--and we live in the great state of Georgia! I'm a southern girl through and through...but most importantly, I'm a child of the King! We have just finished up our twelfth year of homeschooling, and our two oldest have now graduated! This is my place to record thoughts about homemaking, Classical-Charlotte Mason based homeschooling, writing around the fringes of family life, and more...so welcome to my little corner of the world!
A merged photo of Erin (left) and Elisabeth (right)...Elisabeth would want you to know that she is really not that much shorter than Erin...it's just the way the collage turned out! LOL 
Erin and Elisabeth At About Age 5 
1997
The Whole Gang in November 2006
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