The end of October held a huge change - I got VERY LARGE VERY QUICKLY! I was ready to explode and crying and begging constantly to GET THEM OUT! My last day of work ended up being about a week earlier because I just couldn't do it anymore. My mom came in Halloween weekend cause she was afraid the boys were going to come early and didn't want to miss it. They didn't come early but thank God my mom was here because I couldn't barely do a thing for myself. It got to the point I wasn't even comfortable to drive (though I could've if I had to). November 5th (our 1 year wedding anniversary) we had a scare and went to the hospital... I really thought "this is it, here they come" but they sent us home with a "false alarm" and orders for me for bed rest (which I, of course, ignored).I was having some nasty skin hanging that was "hard" and painful so I went to my gastric by pass doctor - just to be safe - and it turned out I had an umbilical hernia he was going to repair at the same time as my csection.... lucky me! My in-laws, my dad and my lil sis got here right in time - November 16th. November 18th we woke up bright and early and headed to the hospital for preparation. I was nervous to have two kids AND two surgeries but I was ready. I had the spinal from hell and a lot of the csection is a blur to me. I just remember hearing my boys cry and begging someone to tell me how much the weigh. I only remember seeing Elijah in the operating room but I know I saw them both - Erik told me and there's pictures but I was pretty out of it. I was talking crazy talk in recovery. But finally getting to my room and getting to my boys is an unexplainable feeling. I didn't want to share them with anyone! They were so tiny and beautiful and HEALTHY praise God! They were BOTH born at 9:58am as they were tangled and brought out at the same exact time! Elijah was 5 pounds 15 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long. Ephraim was 6 pounds 2 ounces and 19 1/4 inches long. Recovery for me was HARD! I lost a lot of blood and was in danger of a blood transfusion. My iron was low and my energy was GONE! I couldn't use the restroom by myself and therefore had to be re-catheterized twice out of surgery before I was successful. I was and am so grateful for my mother and my husband. They were such troopers. My poor husband - I've never seen him so tired in my life. But he took to the title "daddy" so quickly. He had to change all the diapers and deal with a LOT very quickly because I could barely move. Seeing him with his boys was one of the most beautiful sights I've ever experienced. I seriously fell in love with him all over again! We came home from the hospital Monday night the 21st. It was rough for me the first few nights but my parents were staying with us and they were very helpful. Thanksgiving was so nice. My parents, both my sisters, my grandma, Erik's parents, his brother Elias and his wife Karrie and our nephew Emmaus were all here. Everyone pitched in and we had a GREAT feast and there was lots of loving on my little men. I could not have been happier, even though I was exhausted and my emotions were so askew I couldn't stop crying. We had an early Christmas with my family that Saturday and our best gift was a recordable book of "The Night Before Christmas" that my dad recorded for the boys. I think I still cry everytime I open the book. Sadly my parents left that Monday and it was so hard for me to let go. I was a complete disaster. But I eventually balanced out and learned to deal with it. Praise God my in laws were still here for the next month to help the transition. I don't know where we'd be without them! Our first REAL Christmas was bittersweet. Erik and I were so grateful to finally have our own little family but we were desperately missing our families we grew up a part of. It was literally just the four of us. We put the blow up mattress in our living room - we went to Christmas Eve Candle light service and came home to watch Hallmark Christmas movies back to back, sleep on the mattress in front of the Christmas tree and make tamales (part of Erik's families tradition). Christmas day was quite sweet - more Christmas movies and snuggling with our boys. I wouldn't have had it any other way! New Years Eve was pretty much the same (minus the blow up mattress). Spent at home, quite, sweet and snuggling in front of the TV, complete with taco salads! YUM! In the month of December we also got a membership with Kiddie Kandids through babies r us to get the boys photographed once a month for the next year so we can document their growth. I'm very excited for that! Their next shoot (2 months) is this Sunday. Two months.... can you believe that? At their one month check up, Elijah was 8 pounds 1 1/2 ounces and Ephraim was 8 pounds even. We've had a bit of trouble with feeding - I've had to stop giving them breast milk and we've changed formulas 4 times. They've been colicky, gassy and just generally very fussy but they seem to be on the other side of it. We'll see what the doctor tells us on the 20th at their 2 month check up. These boys are so sweet and so yummy. They already recognize our voices and they smile so much, I just want to eat them up!! They sleep about 4 hours at the night, which I don't think is bad for 8 weeks old. I am a very blessed lady and I thank God daily for giving me the strength to carry these boys to term and letting them be so healthy. I can't wait to see what the future holds and watch these beautiful baby boys become awesome young men!
