5 Years Home

At 8:00 pm last night, February 25th, 2019, I left the house, drove across town, and played in a soccer game. I drove home, took a shower, got in bed and slept all night. I woke up at 5:00 am, made myself breakfast and coffee while listening to an audiobook, and then I made my to-do list for the day.

Five years ago, at 8:00 pm on February 25th, 2014, we had JUST arrived home from the NICU/ICN after 78 days. They were born 9 weeks early and were just over 11 weeks old when we took them out of the hospital and home for the first time. I hadn’t exercised in 8 months, I’m sure I hadn’t showered that day, I turned off our overhead lights and turned the lamp on in our room. We put Neala in her papasan chair to sleep because her reflux was so bad, and we put Rylan, with a pillow under the mattress to prop him up because of mild reflux, in his bassinet. The bottle warmer was next to Patrick’s side of the bed, the pump next to mine. We had one changing table in our room and one in the room that would become the kids room. We did not sleep all night. Not even close. And we wouldn’t, not for a long, long time. For months (years?), our meals would be sporadic, our house would be a disaster, the weeds in our yard would grow so tall we couldn’t see through them, the dogs would be ignored, the dishes would pile up, the laundry would go unfolded for weeks (ok, this still happens), but our babies would be OK.

I still spend a lot of time reflecting on my pregnancy and the first year of our kid’s lives. I’m not sure how we did it. Like, I’m REALLY not sure. Patrick is on the verge of graduating from residency and someone asked me about his medical school graduation a month after we brought the babies home. I had no recollection, I couldn’t even recall WHERE the graduation ceremony was. Luckily, we have photos.

All that’s to say, we’ve come a very, very long way. This day 5 years ago was more challenging and scary than I’d ever imagined and I’m amazed at how different today is…today today, February 26th, 2019. The kids woke up, bathed, ate, and went off to school. I didn’t have to check to make sure they were breathing, I didn’t have to worry that their blood pressure was too high, I didn’t have to worry that they’d choke on milk that my body had worked so hard to make for them. They’re now just “normal” kids!

In two days I’ll be speaking at the 2019 Albuquerque March for Babies kickoff event to motivate fundraising team captains. I’m so thankful that our experience, even if I don’t really remember those early days, of having a traumatic birth, and two preemies that struggled in their first days of life, has given me the tools I need to motivate our community and impact moms and babies in a meaningful way.

I’m kicking off my own fundraising efforts today in hopes of blowing last year’s fundraising out of the water. I was the top individual fundraiser for the 2018 Albuquerque March for Babies event, raising a total of $3,907, and my fundraising team was the top family team and 5th overall team raising a total of $4,667!

This year my personal goal is $4,500 and my team goal is $6,000. Click the giant purple square below to visit my fundraising page and make a donation or join my team and rally your own community to help reach my goal!

Two years ago, we were the ambassador for the Northern New Mexico chapter of the March of Dimes. I can’t help but share this video about our journey. It’s old but it still makes me cry every time. Seriously, every time.