3 Weeks Old!!

Can you believe it?  The girls turned 3 weeks old this past Saturday!  

(Gestational age would have been 37 weeks + 1 day.) 

After the girls extended stay in the NICU at Prentice Women's Hospital of Northwestern (Vivi stayed 11 days and Charlie spent 18 days), both girls are now home!  We are so happy they are both home and healthy.  It's nice not spending our days and late nights in the NICU anymore!

A few pics from our stay in the NICU...

Both girls started in isolates:

Learning to change diapers and check temperatures in an isolate made us experts!



Once the doctors were sure the girls were able to continuously regulate their own temperatures, they were moved to cribs.

 

 

Last picture of us sans babies!

Taking Vivi Home!  

As wonderful as it was to take Vivi home, it was incredibly difficult to leave Charlie behind.  

 

 

 

 

Having one child in the NICU and having the other at home was incredibly emotional.  No matter what you do, you feel like you aren't doing enough for one of them -- by focusing on one, you are neglecting the other.  We did our best to find a balance though.

Vivi went to the NICU (almost) everyday to visit her sister.  The two girls would spent time snuggling, which we feel was really good for both of them (in particular Charlie).  Also, our daily NICU visits were great learning experiences for us.  We basically had medical advice and assistance for both girls around the clock to help with everything from silly new parent questions to breast feeding (silver lining to the NICU).  We were taught how to juggle two under the watchful eye of the nurses.

 

 

 

 

 

Then the hashtag #FreeCharlie was born...

 

The girls were also so excited to meet their Grandma!  

Marsha was able to come in visit the girls while Charlie was in the NICU through the day we were able to bring Charlie home.  The girls loved getting some lovin' from their Grandma!

Finally, Charlie was given the all clear to leave the hospital!  Vivi, Daddy, and Mommy all came to the hospital to get her ... and we were finally able to leave all together as a family.  

 

First family selfie!

Charlie is so excited to be home!

 

Bath time!  Although the pictures say otherwise, Charlie didn't mind it too much.  She's a sucker for the warm water and was cool with a little water in her face.  This was Vivi's second bath, so she told her sister to play it cool.  Vivi is not a fan of bath time.  She tolerates it though (that said, she actually screamed her way through the first bath but with bath two she is quickly becoming a pro).

Here is some more cuteness...

 

I've been truly amazed by human body through this whole process -- it's ability to expand and contract is a biological wonder.  Three weeks postpartum.