Babies

Kim is a friend of mine from my home ward. She's actually a few years older than me, so we didn't know each other really well growing up. But, she got married a couple of years after me and just started having babies. In May, she delivered twin girls (they were numbers 5&6), so now she has 6 kids under the age of 7. When the girls were born, they were diagnosed with Downs Syndrome. They didn't know before they were born, which is actually a good thing. Both girls are very healthy. I guess heart problems are extremely common in babies with Downs Syndrome, and it is usually detected on the ultrasound because the heart is not normal. Many Downs Syndrome babies begin a series of heart surgeries as soon as they are born. Both of these girls are very healthy - although small. They were both around 5 pounds at birth. Their cheek muscles do not work correctly (which is incredibly common in Downs babies), so they cannot nurse. Kim pumps at scheduled times during the day, and people from the ward volunteer to come and feed them. They are getting much better, and Kim still holds out hope that they will nurse eventually.

Kim actually lives in Michigan while her husband is attending Law School. When the babies were born, her mother flew out and helped her drive back to Utah to stay for a month or so. So, they are staying with her parents. I asked if I could take pictures of the babies to get some practice. Kim was extremely laid back, and just so open talking about the whole experience the entire time. I guess she got a blessing shortly after they were born in which she was told that this was all part of The Plan, and that she and these two girls worked it all out before they were born.

Photographing these two babies was much more difficult than I ever could have imagined. First of all, Kim's parent's house wasn't exactly ideal. The lighting was terrible and the decor was her mother's, not hers. There was one small, circular skylight that let in about a 2-foot area of light. But, that was difficult to work around because the shadows got real tricky. Eventually, we went around the block to my parent's house. Secondly, two babies is hard! Abigail was extremely content and slept beautifully. We could move her anywhere and she didn't budge. Natasha was a bit more tricky. She was quite restless and never really went to sleep. She also doesn't close her eyes all the way when she is asleep (Kim said one of her older boys is the same way). Natasha was also still a little hungry. Kim actually gave her a binkie for the first time, and she just went to town. But, since they don't nurse, and because Kim has to keep them on the same schedule, we were out of luck. I also left some of my props in the car (which Greg took), and I had a hard time figuring out how to photograph them together. I did the best I could, and I learned a ton about how to do it differently the next time. I think we got a few fun ones though. To tell them apart, Abigail is the pink flower and Natasha is the purple one.

It was so much fun though. They are absolutely beautiful babies, and for identical twins, they each have very distinct looks. Kim said she has been scouring the Internet for newborn pictures of Downs babies and she can't find anything. It's a shame, because they are gorgeous. Thank you, Kim, for giving me this much needed practice. Thank you also for sharing your story and your amazing, faithful spirit with me. Your attitude toward your situation and motherhood in general is truly

inspiring. I walked away from this experience uplifted and inspired to be more faithful in my life, and try to understand that no matter what happens, it is all in our Heavenly Father's hands. I have a feeling that Abigail and Natasha will leave many, many people feeling uplifted and inspired throughout their lives.

My Favorite:Abigail:

Natasha: