Mom, 44, is charged with murder after her four-year-old twin sons are found dead by their father who arrived at the home to take the boys over the weekend

A North Carolina mother has been charged with killing her four-year-old twins sons after they were found dead by their father when he came to the home for a custody exchange.

Genevieve Ellen Springer, 44, was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder after her estranged husband found their sons' bodies on Saturday morning.

The father, who was not named by authorities, called 911 after having arrived at her home in Murphy and found both boys deceased. He said he last saw his sons alive on February 26.

Authorities are still working to determine the cause and date of the boys death, but Cherokee County Sheriff Dustin Smith told ABC 13 it appears the children drowned in a 'bathtub full of water'. An autopsy will be performed later this week.

Springer appeared in court Monday and was denied bond.

Genevieve Ellen Springer, 44, (pictured) was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder over the apparent drowning of her four-year-old twin sons

The boys were found dead at their mother's Murphy home (pictured) by their father who had come to the home for a custody exchange. He said he last saw his sons alive on February 26

Authorities are still working to determine the cause and date of the boys death, but Cherokee County Sheriff Dustin Smith said it appears the children drowned in a 'bathtub full of water'. An autopsy will be performed later this week. Pictured: The home where the twins were found

Springer was briefly hospitalized in north Georgia and taken into custody by officials in Union County after being discharged.

She waived extradition and was transported to the Cherokee County Detention Center in North Carolina on Sunday. 

Authorities are trying to determine when the children died. Springer's arrest warrant lists the offenses as a range of Feb. 26 to March 2.

During her initial hearing on Monday, Springer was denied bond and transferred to the Haywood County jail, 'a facility that has no ties to this situation', the sheriff said. She was also assigned an attorney.

Springer, who does not have a criminal history, according to authorities, is scheduled to appear in court in Murphy on April 15.

In the statement about the slayings, Sheriff Smith asked for prayers for the victims' family, friends and the first responders involved in the incident.

'Our children are our most precious resource and our hope for the future. We all must stand united for their protection and for justice,' the statement added.