settling in....

It's been almost a full week since we have all been home from the hospital together and we are slowly getting settled in and figuring out our "new normal." Since Everly is home on oxygen that makes our "new normal" a little bit different than it will be permanently. We still have the oxygen tube and monitor cord to be cautious and aware of so getting her up and down stairs takes some planning to make sure we don't get tangled in any cords, leave one of the oxygen tanks open, and unplug the monitor before trying to go in the opposite direction. Everly has been an awesome baby so far at home. She has stayed on the NICU schedule so far so she is up every 3-4 hours to eat, stays awake for 20-30 minutes, and then falls back asleep. She rarely cries and only fusses when she's hungry so she's pretty easy going...I think she could snuggle all day if Jordan and I let her! Actually, I'd love to snuggle with her all day but get nervous if I start falling asleep or if Jordan starts falling asleep because I'm paranoid like that and don't want something to happen to her. Jordan has stepped up into his new role as Mr. Dad and helps with diaper changes without being asked and does the nightly bottle feeding so I can sneak in some extra sleep! The past week has been quite the whirlwind and I'm so sad that it's Jordan's last night home with us before he goes back to teaching this week...time has flown by!!

And in other exciting news, my parents are officially back in Iowa for good! They got here on Friday and have made themselves welcome in our home and will be living with us until they find a house of their own. I'm pretty excited to have my mom around to help me out with Everly, organizing and decorating our house, and she'll be here to give me more advice and support as I navigate my way into motherhood. Definitely feeling pretty thankful that my parents were able to sell their house in Texas and my dad got his new job when he did! I'm so happy they are back in the midwest and especially happy that they are so close to us!

home.

   

We are all.... HOME!!! Finally, after 16 of the longest most emotionally challenging days of my life, we are all home and happy. My heart and mind can rest easy now with Jordan by my side, Everly in my arms, and Paisley by my feet because we are all together. There's nothing like relaxing in the comforts of our own home on the couch with a movie on and no nurses coming and going and no alarms always going off! Everly is home on oxygen for now and we have an appointment the first week of October to see if she can get it taken off but we are okay with that because the most important thing is we got to bring our baby home. Ahhh finally, I can breathe a huge sigh of relief.... home sweet home!