“Today is not a good day to have babies.”

Yup. That’s what my husband told me as my humongous belly contracted underneath my own hand every … oh … few minutes. Though I didn’t really know that’s what they were at the time because baby #1 was a stubborn boy and had to be forcefully removed. 😉 So, babies #2 and #3 were going to be removed by the same method, but not until July 1, 2004. It wasn’t supposed to be June 11, 2004.

No … not a good day to have babies.

That Friday morning, I woke feeling … ‘icky’. The night before I’d eaten nothing but Kentucky Fried Chicken Mashed Potatoes. Yup. That was my dinner. And my snack. Probably even my breakfast that morning. Who knew? I was craving those non-fluffy, non-lumpy mashed taters.

And then came the cramps. I promise, I thought it was the mashed taters. Or the gravy. I mean, c’mon. I’d eaten them all day long the day before.

Apparently, not. That’s not what it was. It was those two babies in my humongous belly. One of them was ready (the other was not) and neither was Daddy.

My girls (Abby left, Emily right)

Off I hobbled from my office across the street from my Doc’s office. Then from the Doc’s office to the hospital across one more street. Unbeknownst to me, those babies were prepping me … and fast. By the time I went from eating my mashed taters to having babies, less than twenty-four hours had passed.

Emily Suzanne: 4lbs 12oz, 17in on June 11, 2004 at 1:04pm

Abigail (Abby) Jyne: 5lbs 12oz, 19in on June 11, 2004 at 1:05pm

Today though? Well, they aren’t those teeny tiny bundles that a doc once said I wouldn’t have. Nope. They are the two girls their daddy never expected when we declined fertility medicine because Daddy stated: “I don’t want to have more than once at once.”

So, we didn’t. But we did. Daddy really ought not answer any questions when it comes to his girls.

A very happy, happy, happy birthday to my girls!

Emily (top), Abby (bottom)