Jessica Omvig

It was 10 a. m. on a crisp October morning in 2004 when Jessica and Val Omvig walked out of Immanuel St. Joseph's Hospital in Mankato, Minn., with their two-week-old twins. They strapped the babies into matching car seats, settled them into the backseat of their pickup, and pulled onto Highway 169 for the hour-long drive to their home in Sherburn, Minn.

Val turned on a Baby Einstein tape and Jessica sat in the back, keeping a close watch on their son, Raef, and daughter, Emma. The babies slept, and after visiting a few relatives, the Omvigs went home where, for the first time, they were finally able to see themselves as the family of four they had become.

"We brought them into bed with us and just laid there and looked at them," Jessica recalls. "They were home with us, and that's what mattered."

The family's route home had a few detours. Raef and Emma spent their first four days of life in the Level Two Nursery at Mayo Clinic's Rochester Methodist Hospital then another 10 days in transitional hospital care at Immanuel St. Joseph's, part of Mayo Health System, in Mankato.

Their arrival six weeks ahead of their due date made the detours necessary. But receiving care within Mayo Health System, with its local health care services and connection to more specialized care at Mayo Clinic, allowed for a smooth path.

It's, um, twins

Val and Jessica had been married for three years when they decided to start a family. Two months later, in March 2004, they rejoiced to discover Jessica was pregnant and due to deliver in November.

Weeks later, Jessica went to Mayo Health System's Fairmont Medical Center in nearby Fairmont, Minn. , for her standard 16-week doctor's visit. Expecting a routine appointment, she urged Val to go to work as usual and went to her appointment alone.

Denise Schavey, M.D.

Denise Schavey, M.D., a family practice physician, measured Jessica's stomach, then listened for the baby's heartbeat.

"She said, 'Here's one heartbeat, and I think this is another one,'" Jessica recalls. That second statement caught Jessica more than a little off guard. "My face was as red as the red sweatshirt I was wearing."

Jessica hadn't taken any fertility medications, and only later learned that twins had been born in her family during a previous generation.

She called Val at work and asked him to meet her at the medical center. When he arrived, she told him they might be expecting twins, and the two set off for an ultrasound where it was confirmed Jessica was carrying a boy and girl. "We were in shock trying to figure out how we could be having twins," Jessica says.

The discovery prompted many changes for the Omvigs, including changes in Jessica's career. She'd planned to continue to work full time in her job as an appointment scheduler at Fairmont Medical Center after a maternity leave, but the cost of putting two infants in day care seemed staggering.

She made plans to return to work on a limited basis and embraced the notion of having twins. "I always wanted to be a mom and be home with my kids," she says.

Bumps in the road

Jessica is an easygoing, optimistic person, so she didn't fret much about her pregnancy. Her mother, Carol Hammond, an X-ray technician at Fairmont Medical Center's hospital, kept careful watch.

Jessica's due date was Nov. 18. But as with anyone expecting twins, she knew it was likely her babies would be born before the full 40 weeks'gestation. She focused on keeping healthy and carrying them as many weeks as possible.

Jessica took comfort in knowing she was being cared for by expert physicians at Fairmont Medical Center. Having Mayo Clinic's deep resources and expertise at their disposal as they started their new family was calming, Jessica says.

She continued to work and, aside from bouts of morning sickness, felt well until August. Then, feeling rundown, she asked Dr. Schavey to see her a day ahead of her scheduled appointment and was given a slot later that afternoon.

Dr. Schavey found Jessica was already dilating, indicating her body was in the early stages of labor. She put Jessica on bed rest for the duration of her pregnancy, a common prescription for women carrying multiples.

Jessica passed the time with a handheld solitaire game and episodes of Oprah and Dr. Phil. Bed rest was made easier by her mom, who cleaned the Omvigs' house and made their meals while Jessica was bedridden. Exciting days were when Val would drive her to Carol's house, 20 minutes away, so Jessica could have a companion while resting.

At an appointment on Sept. 3, Jessica was dilated to 3 centimeters, prompting Dr. Schavey to admit her to Fairmont Medical Center's hospital. She also reassured Jessica that if her contractions progressed, she'd be transferred to Mayo Clinic in Rochester so specialists there could stave off labor or, if necessary, care for the preterm babies.

"It was a relief to know that if anything did happen, we had quick access to Rochester," Jessica says. "We all kind of hoped I'd deliver in Rochester because you know all the specialists are there if you need them."

A few days later, on Labor Day, Jessica went into labor. Twenty-nine weeks pregnant, she was transferred to Mayo via ambulance, receiving medication en route to halt labor, while Val and Carol drove to Rochester to meet her.

At Rochester Methodist Hospital, one of the Mayo hospitals in Rochester, Jessica was observed in the labor and delivery unit until the next day, when her medical care team was certain she was no longer in danger of delivering the babies. She was then transferred to an antepartum unit to continue with bed rest.

It was the beginning of a lonely five weeks. Val visited twice a week, and Carol came weekly, stocking the refrigerator with home-cooked meals.

True to her nature, Jessica didn't let herself get frustrated with being away from home. She wanted to remain calm for the well-being of her babies. It wasn't easy, but Jessica had big, and growing, sources of motivation.

"Every day, you pray and thank God you made it another day," Jessica says. "It was so important for them to have time to grow."

Getting ready

Melanie Dixon, M.D.

During her five weeks on bed rest at Rochester Methodist Hospital, Jessica met the Mayo specialists who would care for the babies if necessary and toured the Level Two Nursery. Melanie Dixon, M. D. , a chief resident at the hospital, says women carrying multiples often find this education comforting.

"It gives them a sense of security to have met the specialists early on in their care," Dr. Dixon says. "It's comforting to them to know that they're in an institution where everything is covered if there is a problem."

For Jessica, there weren't many complications. And when her water broke at 4:15 a.m. on Oct. 10, she was 34 weeks pregnant, a point in her pregnancy where it was considered safe to deliver the babies.

Val was visiting the night when Jessica went into labor. She was taken to an operating room, in case a Caesarean section was required, but she delivered the babies naturally and medication-free just two hours later.

Raef Valdin came first, weighing in at 4 pounds, 15.8 ounces. Thirteen minutes later came Emma Mary, weighing 4 pounds, 15.4 ounces. Both were healthy.

Jessica saw the babies briefly before they were taken for observation and she returned to her room to recover. Later, she was wheeled into the nursery to find Raef and Emma, in separate bassinets, waiting for her.

"It was such a relief to see them and know they were safe," Jessica says. "It was emotional because they're our first kids, but everything went okay."

Closer to home

Raef and Emma stayed at Rochester Methodist Hospital for four days. They then were given clearance to be transferred closer to home. Immanuel St. Joseph's Hospital in Mankato, Minn. , is part of Mayo Health System, so Val and Jessica elected to have the babies moved there to make visiting them more convenient.

Now just an hour's drive away, Jessica saw the twins daily and often stayed overnight at the hospital. She was pleased to find two nurses on the hospital's staff who were caring for Raef and Emma were young women she knew from her high school days.

One former acquaintance, Christina Dahl, found Jessica to be a devoted mother, staying awake at night to tend to her babies. "She was such a good mom and hated to miss a single feeding," Christina says.

All the twins had to do was eat well and grow, and they could soon leave the hospital. Jessica and Val counted the days and, at day 10 of their Mankato stay, Raef and Emma were ready to go home.

The Omvigs dressed them in their going-home outfits, put on their hospital hats, and headed out the door. It was Oct. 23, a date that sticks out in Jessica's head as a close favorite to the twins' birth date.

"It was kind of scary at first, not having a nurse to tell us what to do with them," she says. "But it all fell into place."

Soon the family settled into a routine. Raef was more demanding than Emma, so he would eat first, then his sister. He likes activity and loves sitting in his "bouncy seat" and catching glimpses of TV. Emma, nick-named "peanut," takes after Jessica, and is good-natured, content and willing to wait her turn.

They sleep in the same crib, sometimes forming the letter V, according to Jessica. And they have two chairs in their room, so Val and Jessica can rock the twins at the same time when necessary.

Carol continues to give the family steady support, making meals for them, arriving to baby-sit without request so Jessica can do errands, and doting on the twins with a constant supply of hugs and kisses.

Dr. Schavey now cares for Raef and Emma, as she did Jessica during her pregnancy, and says the babies are healthy and growing well. She describes Jessica as "calm and cool for a first-time mom with twins, very attentive."

Jessica returned to work one day a week in December 2004, with her mom watching the twins. The arrangement provides her with a balance between work and home life, Jessica says. She treasures her time with co-workers, as well as the opportunity to witness the hard work of Dr. Schavey and other health care workers from an insider's view, and is thrilled to be home nearly full time with Raef and Emma.

"My life is so amazing," Jessica says. "You walk in their room in the morning, and if they're awake, they give you the biggest smiles. It melts my heart."