Our 1st Week Home

That first week home was such a blur.  We were greeted by a mixture of emotions that only one who has experienced bringing a child(ren) home for the first time can understand.  We felt unbelievably happy and in love.  We were terrified...how were we supposed to know how to raise these two small babies!?  We were exhausted...not from our girls waking US up but from us waking THEM up every 3 hours (apparently preemie babies tend to want to sleep more than they do eat at first...which may have caused their momma to have a heart attack that first morning when they didn't wake her up and her alarm clock failed to go off...or did I turn it off?).  We also, as I'm sure most parents do, felt defeated at times...but very encouraged and hopeful at others.

And then there is the me, instead of the we.  I had a whole other set of "feelings" at the time....ya know, the ones that only directly affect the momma, the ones that come along with being pregnant for 8 months and then birthing your babies?!  I, like most women, had a crazy amount of hormones being overly active in my body.  I cried.  I cried a lot.  It's not that I wasn't happy, I truly was (and still am) but nonetheless, the tears still came.  In a way, I didn't feel like myself.  It was all so surreal, so beautiful, so HARD!  Please don't mistake my honesty for ungratefulness.  I feel INCREDIBLY blessed that at the end of an extremely difficult journey, I have TWO beautiful baby girls who I love more than life itself.  But I won't lie.  This is the most BEAUTIFUL and the most DIFFICULT thing I've ever done in my entire life!  So, yes...I felt an array of emotions that first week.  Heck, I still have many of the same emotions now that I did then.

Like, I miss being pregnant.  Yes, you heard right.  I MISS it!  I know that some people don't enjoy being pregnant and I respect that.  However, I LOVED being pregnant and actually felt better then than I do now (yes, all my problems are back-yay!).  Oh, I'm more than thrilled to have my sweet angels here on the outside with me but there is just something about having them be apart of you that is just so special.  I miss that.  For a while, I couldn't look at a picture of me pregnant without crying.  Even going to a place that I frequented while pregnant would bring the tears racing back to the surface.

And man, there are just some things that people fail to tell you about that comes with having a baby.  My body was acting something strange...I will spare you the gory details but let me just say one thing, GROSS!  Y'all know what I'm talking about...don't lie ;)

I also felt honored and unworthy all at the same time.  I mean, I am in charge of these small beings?  God has trusted me to make the most wise and healthy decisions that will affect their tiny little bodies?  That is CARAAAZAAAYYYY!

Despite all of the mixed emotions that I experienced, it was a wonderful first week home with my sweet angels and I wouldn't trade it for the world!  It was filled with Nana, Papa, and Nannie helping out (thank you!), a 3.5 hour newborn photo shoot (pictures to come), a first time visit to the girls pediatrician (we love Dr. Ecroyd), a post hospital (1st time) sponge bath, 1st time trying out our bouncers, 1st time doing tummy time, several sweet friends stopping by to visit, and most importantly, lots and LOTS of sweet snuggle time spent with my girls!

So, here it goes...our first week in a nutshell!

*Please excuse the quality of some of these pictures...and the way we look (in our defense, we are sleep deprived ;)*

*And also, as a reminder, PLEASE ignore the way I sound on these videos....I hate to hear myself but love capturing these special moments!  Oh, and sorry for the jumpiness...I hope I'm getting better in some of the later videos :)*

Hanging w/ Mom

Sweet Snuggles w/ Dad

I LOVE My Sister

Jealous Much?

Aww, she DOES love them ;)

First Trip to see Dr. Ecroyd

Our 1st Nights Were Spent in the Bassinets in Mom & Dad's Room

She's a Smiler :)

And She's Miss Muscles :)

2nd Trip Out of the House...to get blood drawn :(

Everyone is SO Tired (even the dogs)!

Avari's 1st Sponge Bath (at home)

Emeri's 1st Sponge Bath (at home)

The Pups Watching Bath Time...and Being SO Thankful that it's NOT Them ;)

1st Tummy Time

1st Time in our Bouncers

1st Time Alone w/ the Dad (mommy enjoyed her pedi :) but sure did miss her girls! )

These Boppies sure are Comfortable!

I thank God every day for these two tiny, precious little miracles whom I love more than life itself!  And I will forever cherish these wonderful memories!