Editor's note: This article first appeared on The War Horse, an award-winning nonprofit news organization educating the public on military service .

When Payton Kinnison found out she was pregnant with twins, she didn’t waste a moment. Eight weeks into her pregnancy, she put her unborn children on the waitlist for on-base child care at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, where her toddler Ronan was already enrolled.

The staff assured Kinnison that since her husband was on active duty and she worked full-time, the twins’ priority level was high enough to ensure them spots by summertime.

The plan seemed solid. And all throughout her pregnancy and until the twins were 10 weeks old, Kinnison wasn’t worried. There was no reason to be. She received no notices or updates —

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