Asa + Oliver - 1 Month

I can't believe how time has passed. you know how fast time flies but you never know how fast until you watch your babies grow. A month doesn’t sound like much, but as I take monthly milestone photos, I see my babies changing from infants into little boys into teenagers. Our beautiful boys have been with us an entire month. It was a super challenging first month (I will fill you in on all of that in the birth story). To be honest, it is really a blur. This is partially due to the fact that the first month of life means little to no sleep for the parents. It is also a blur because it was the most challenging time of our life and I think my brain tried to block out the memories of the hardship. For the majority of the first month (3/4 weeks) we lived in a missions apartment at the back of a church in Albuquerque, driving back and forth between the hospital, trying to juggle Oliver's feeding schedule and make it in time to feed and hold Asa.

as challenging as the first month was (the hardest month of my life) it was full of growth and love and bonding.

Asa, in his first month of life, was with a lot of strangers in masks. being whisked 3 hours from his parents in an ambulance at least than 48 hours old, he went through a lot. He was poked, prodded, pricked, and under phototherapy for the majority of his first month. He had to experience separation from mom and dad and his twin brother for 18 days in the NICU, and every moment with mom and dad was precious. We are forever thankful for the nurses that cared for him while he was in the hospital. Asa accomplished So much in month one. He had to learn to eat and gain weight. A simple task for most was a big task for him. He eventually graduated from the NICU with an oxygen tank, and got to go home and finally see his brother again. Asa finally got unlimited mama and dad snuggles. He also began to learn to breastfeed, and as we would find out in a few weeks, he is amazing at! I didn't know if he would ever catch on after only having a bottle for so long, but he learned and I am forever proud of him for it.

Here are some special moments Asa got to experience in the first month of life!

-Took his first ambulance ride to a hospital with a NICU

-Learned how to eat from a bottle

-Graduated from the NICU on oxygen

-Began learning how to breastfeed

-Gained lots of weight

-Came to his house for the first time

-Met his grandparents and aunt and uncles for the first time

-Snuggled with his brother for the first time since the day he was born

-Celebrated his first Christmas!

my Oli had a slightly easier transition into life in the first month. He was a great comfort to my heart. While I missed my Asa,I held Oliver close and breathed in every inch of him. though Oliver was small (4 lbs 12 oz when we left the hospital), he was healthy.

Oliver:

-Took many car rides to the hospital

-learned how to breastfeed

-gained *enough* weight (his lowest was 4 lbs 10 oz).

-snuggled lots with mama and dads

-met his grandparents and aunt and uncles for the first time

-saw his brother for the first time in 18 days

it was a hard first month of life for all of us, but we wouldn’t change anything. I am forever grateful for these two beautiful boys and the joy they bring me. I am completely fulfilled in my place as a mother and love our little family so.