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by Jeanette Trompeter
Fargo, N.D. (WCCO) ― Jesse Carlsen is inspecting the last bridge of the day.

"This isn't all that old," he said, pointing up toward the bottom of a bridge. "And you already have that seeping through already?"

Heading home toward Fargo, N.D., Jesse passes a billboard on the side of the road, which read "Be Grateful."

Jesse doesn't need a billboard to remind him of all he's got. He's reminded every time he walks in the door of his family's home.

"Hey girls," Jesse calls up the steps toward his daughters, Abby and Belle. The girls stand on the other side of the baby gate and shake with excitement.

Jesse never gets tired of this ritual. "It's the most amazing thing in the world," he said with a smile.

Now that dad's home, it's playtime.

"I'm gonna get you, I'm gonna get you," he said teasingly to Belle. Meanwhile, Jesse's wife Amy plays peek-a-boo with Abby.

"Boo!" she said, making her daughter laugh.

Abby and Belle have come a long way since last Thanksgiving. A year ago, they were waiting to be born still connected to Amy and to each other.

"Just getting the girls born was such a giant step. We didn't know how big of a step that was," explained Jesse.

Amy added, "Which was a good thing."

The Carlsens didn't realize how hard it would be for doctors to separate conjoined twins. They were given a one-in-five chance that one of the girls wouldn't survive.

"When most people see 80 percent chance of anything, they're pretty happy," said Jesse.

"But not when it's your daughters (making it through surgery)," said Amy.

These days, the biggest question facing the Carlsens is, "What's for supper?" Tonight, it's mandarin oranges and takeout pizza.

Jesse can't feed Belle fast enough. As she squawks for more, he laughs and says, "More, more." Abby and Belle have graduated to table food. They now eat the same stuff as their parents.

Amy laughs about tonight's no-cook meal.

"Cheese and bread and tomato sauce. It's good for them."

There's a lightness in this home now. The tumbles and tears are nothing compared to the trauma of the first year.

"Feels good to have all the worries gone, that's for sure," said Amy. "I was just a big worrywart, that's all I was, it was awful. Yeah. Feels good not to worry."

Now, life is pretty routine. Next to life-and-death surgery, it's kind of dull. Wonderfully dull. Every night is the same.

After supper, Amy explained, it's, "Play, play, take a bath, play. So they sleep good."

Amy and Jesse don't get out alone very often, but that's fine with Jesse. "It's (all) about the girls," he said.

The family is busy getting ready for the girls' first birthday party. The party will have a "Hello Kitty" theme. Abby and Belle will each have her own cake.

The Carlsens are celebrating the Saturday after Thanksgiving when family will be in town. The twins' actual birthday is the following Wednesday, Nov. 29.

Abby and Belle are both walking now, though their balance isn't so steady. When Abby bumps Belle, they both fall to the floor.

Later, Abby starts hitting her sister, just whacking her on the head over and over again. They are like other kids on the verge of turning one. If anything, they're farther along.

Both girls started walking around the 10-month mark. They can already say "Mama" and "Dada."

While Belle reads a book before bedtime with Jesse, she does a pretty good imitation of a cow.

"What sound does a cow make?" Jesse asks her. Belle's response: "Mmmmmm."

After months in the hospital, the Carlsens treasure how normal their lives have become.

Jesse said, "Our girls are now no different from any set of twins, in the world."

"Except their special scars," said Amy. "When they're 11, all this bumps and stuff are going to be gone."

Soon it's time for the last bottle of the day. The twins can barely stay awake to drink their milk. As they sit, Abby in Jesse's arms, Belle in Amy's, there is one sound in the room -- the slurping and swallowing of milk.

The story of Abby and Belle may seem like a fairy tale. It isn't quite so wonderful when the girls wake their parents at 1, 1:20, 4:20 and 4:40 in the morning.

"Everybody's telling us, my 4-month is sleeping through the night," said Jesse. "Are you kidding me? We have 10 month olds, and they won't."

It used to be worse. "About a month ago, oh my gosh, we were up like 10 times a night," said Amy.

Maybe next year the Carlsens will have something else to be thankful for -- babies who play all day and sleep all night.

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