Blood is thicker than water...

Well, the boys are just over 2 weeks old now. Rich just started to go back to work (part-time) today. I go back to teaching my classes next week (Labor Day...so aptly named). The past two weeks have been amazing! We started out looking at each other often asking ourselves if this is really happening! Now we just look at our boys and rejoice that they are indeed finally here and healthy.

We are also so grateful to be surrounded by such an awesome group of friends who are so consistently offering their love and support. There has been a steady stream of friends who have come over to meet Aiden and Austin, and we welcome them all with open arms. The pediatricians have said that having visitors is no problem as long as everyone washes their hands and/or sanitizes them before handling the babies. So, we are not being overly protective, we are just following doctors' orders! They also advise against having too many children visit just yet as they often are "carriers" to a vast array of germs and bacteria.

This week, we are also fortunate enough to have Rich's mom and her fiance visit us from Chicago. There is nothing like having a grandparent to help take a crying baby and have them gently rock them to sleep. Rich's dad and stepmom are also coming to visit in a couple of weeks!

But having Rich's family so far away, and having my family not accepting of my life, makes us realize that the oft said phrase is so true: family is what you make it. And here in Los Angeles, Rich and I are so fortunate and grateful to have some of the most amazing and supportive friends in the world and all of whom we consider family. Aiden and Austin will definitely benefit from such a strong network of loving and supportive uncles and aunts and grandmas!

So here are some more pictures and videos from this past week:

Austin, Tommy, Rich, Aiden



Aiden, Soon-to-be-Step-Granddaddy Fred, Grandmommy Judy, Austin



Aiden chillin' in the swing...



Austin ready to eat...yummy, yummy!



Aiden just swingin'...


Austin just swingin'...

7 days makes one weak...and tired...

Well, the boys are now more than 1 week old. I have to say, at times it has been trying to say the least, but for the most part, the past 7 days have been an amazing experience. From seeing them delivered from the surrogate's womb to the warming table there in the operating room, to spending our first 3 days with them in the hospital, to now having spent the last several days in our home with our two little miracles, Rich and I often look at each other and ask if this is really happening. It still seems somewhat surreal, but then a gurgle or a cry or a poop reminds us that, yes, indeed, it is all real.

I think that we have already happened upon a sort of system that seems to be working amazingly well. We have actually gotten a full night's sleep for the past 4 nights! We put the boys down to sleep around midnight, they wake up for a feeding around 4 or 5am, and then they go back to sleep for about 3 or 4 more hours! With both us off from work right now, we have been getting more sleep than we usually do! Of course, we realize that this could change any day, but for now, we are so thankful for their current schedule and able to enjoy every waking minute with them even more! We also know that there are differing opinions out there in regards to putting newborns on schedules, but for now, this is working for us and we have been assured by nurses and pediatricians that there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. We attribute our surprisingly sleepful nights to feeding breast milk during the day and formula at night, activity during the day, and warm and tight swaddling at night. So far so good!

Well, here are some pictures and even a video of our little bundles of joy. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

They're here!

Well, the twins finally arrived! We can't believe after all of the years of researching the process, beginning the process and going through the process, that the process is actually over and our new lives as dads of beautiful, healthy twin boys has begun! Wow!

Aiden Taylor and Austin Riley Vaughn Woelfel were born on Saturday, August 9, 2008 at 11:05pm and 11:06pm, respectively. Rich and I were lucky enough to be present at the delivery. We tried to deliver "naturally" at first, but after two hours of "pushing" (God bless our surrogate - she is amazing!), the doctor finally decided to deliver by c-section.

The hospital staff was awesome. We couldn't have asked for better. Rich and I were allowed to cut the umbilical cord on each of the twins. We were taken into the baby recovery room where the staff gave them their first baths and we were able to give them their first bottles. We watched them make their footprints. We watched them (with a wince!) receive their first immunization and vitamin shots. Then, they took us to our room where we spent our first night together as a family of four!

As you may have read in our first post, the process was a long one. It is an expensive process, so one doesn't enter into it lightly. So I think we probably spent a good 4 years just researching the process and getting our finances in order so that we would be able to do this. We don't recommend anyone trying this without seriously - very, very seriously - wanting to be parents! With that being said, I don't think anyone would ever be able to argue that children brought into a family through this process would not be surrounded by love and raised by parents that would truly want to be parents and give their all to provide the best possible environment to raise a family.

Here are a few pictures of our amazing boys!