If you could relive one thing

If you could relive one moment from the first year (as foggy and exhausting as it was!) what would that moment be?

If you could get a do-over on one thing from that year, what would it be?

I'll start:

I wish I could have one more evening with my girls both sleeping on my chest. They were so tiny and I miss those little bodies curled against me.

I wish I had taken my full maternity leave. I caved to pressure from my office to return three weeks early. I deserved that time. My kids did. The office could have waited.

Now it's your turn!

 

I was going to say what you said. I would give anything for them to curl up and sleep on my chest again. And the first time I saw them. :wub:

 

As for a do-over, I wish I could do-over and enjoy my twins as babies more. I was young and they were an "oops" pregnancy so I spent more time resenting being a mom than loving it.

 

I wish I would have taken a picture of myself on the day they were born before my C/s.

As far as re-living a moment? I loved it when mine slept on my husband while he played video games. They were so tiny and now I cant get them to stop moving for a picture!

 

My relive moment would be when I found out it was twins, I would have loved to have had some special way to tell my husband but I just blurted it out.
My do over had me feeling guilty for years as we were put on sex restriction and one night, I gave in because I couldn't help myself anymore, it had been 3 mos. I was 33 wks 3 days and went into labor and delivered within 8 hours of doing the deed. Those 11 days they were in the NICU were made worse as I blamed myself, even when my OB said not to they were ready. I would still do it over if it meant that they would have stayed in longer.

 

Yeah, that sleeping on my chest thing is always one of my favorites with babies! And I'm always sad when they stop doing it.

Do-over would probably be something about advocating better for Sabrina. I didn't realize the extent of her vision problems and I trusted the Dr's too much when they thought it was a minor thing. I also would have worked harder at figuring out how to have her have better nutrition... but maybe there wasn't something else. Breastfeeding, pumping and supplementing with formula wasn't enough somehow. She genuinely seems a year or more younger than Sydney physically (Sydney is 4 inches and 22 lbs bigger, has lost 8 teeth and Sabrina none, etc.) and I still worry sometimes that I didn't do enough when she was a baby.

 

Awwww me too! Those were the best times! I want them to be little again... sniff... sniff.

 

I would also take a pic of myself!! The last pic we have of me pregnant is from a month before I gave birth, and I was already a whale then. Would love to see how I looked right before!

 

My do-over would be to try longer to breastfeed both of them. By 6 wks, I just wasn't making enough milk, and I was so exhausted I got overwhelmed with nursing constantly and still having to supplement that I gave it up. I wish I had looked into meds to help milk production, or herbal remedies, and got us over that growth spurt hump.

 

Man, I don't think I could pick one thing! Hmmm...this is tough!

I did get the photo the morning of my c/s, as my mom works at the hospital and greeted us outdoors when we arrived. I for sure rolled my eyes at her, but I'm glad I have the photo. I didn't think Iooked *that* big! :laughing:

I know I wish I had them cosleep more. I really regret that. But dh did the first night shift(8-2), and he did whatever he could to have them sleep, and that was in their carseats. I will say every now and then though, I find Nicholas has snuck into Anthonys bed in the middle of the night! :wub:

As for reliving it, I would say honestly, all of it. It just goes by way too fast. I look at their pictures from their infancy and just wonder where the time went. I would certainly enjoy it a lot more, not to say I didn't enjoy it, I would just savor it that much more.

 

Definitely have to agree with the boys sleeping on my chest! Boy, if I knew how fast that would go, I would have had them sleeping on me 24/7!! When I think of those times, I feel so sad it just came & went so quickly!

 

I think my one regret is about breastfeeding. I was exhausted and I pumped as much as I could, and I kept drinking water like crazy and oatmeal and stuff, but between my full time job and the twins, my supply just went downhill at 5 months. I wish I could have done it longer, and maybe I should have pushed myself more in the beginning, but between the constant flow of guests in the first weeks and screaming infants... I did the best I could.

Also, babies sleeping on me - priceless . And I didn't realize how fast they would grow , that took me by surprise also.

 

Just one thing...too many to list.

1) the moment they were born, I was so stressed and worried about Jake I don't think I was fully present
2) the mornings when Becca was around 4 months old and I would come around the crib and she would smile and kick her legs
3) breast feeding, I took one picture and deleted it ;(
4) babies sleeping on my chest
5) cooing - love cooing, I think we have some of it on video

now i'm going to

 

I would cuddle babies more. I sort of felt I was robbed of that time as I fed one, burped him, had to feed the other. Then diaper time, then this, that, whatever, and never any cuddle time.

I also would have taken the picture the day I delivered and a picture of them just delivered, on the scale to see their official weights - I did with my first born.

I also would have tried harder to breastfeed. I did breastfeed for 11 months but had to supplment - part of it was for my sanity.

 

There is one particular day that I will never forget. The first day we took the girls outside and sat them on the ground to feel the grass. That day, Allison sat in one spot just feeling of the grass and leaves, while Sarah took off crawling all over the yard. Funny, but that is exactly the way they are to this day. I would love to just go back to that day and experience that one moment all over again.

I wish that I hadn't stressed so much over breastfeeding and would have just enjoyed the moments with them, breastfeeding or not. I'm glad that I did breastfeed for the time that I did, but my do over would have been to just enjoy them and just let everything else be what it was.

 

I would go back to the day they started laughing. We were all laying on the bed on a rainy day and I sneezed and they both busted out in giggles so I fake sneezed all day. In general, I would have been kinder to myself and trusted my instincts more.

 

Oh so many things! I would definitley love to hold them and cuddle them together as babies again. I wish I would have enjoyed them more as tiny babies and not been so caught up in a "schedule" and I wish I would have taken them out sooner than I did bc I was nervous.

 

I would have enjoyed them more when they were little. So cuddly and sweet smelling. I was so hung up on schedules, proving I didn't need help, that I really had no time to enjoy them. Sure they were both feed and burped and changed, but no real cuddly time. I would change the first four months.

 

This exactly! I was so hung up on the enormity of taking care of them that I think I missed out on just being in the moment with them.

 

I don't think there is anything about the first year that is worth re-living...it was the absolute year from hell, and I'm constantly surprised to this day that they are still alive!

I did not enjoy the infant stage AT ALL - there I said it...it wasn't until they were closer to 6 months old that they were able to play and self soothe - prior to that it was just feed, change, feed, change...

although the day that Ian learned to roll back to front and front to back and barrel rolled himself across the living room and under the coffee table while his sister giggled at him was fairly priceless!

 

I agree. I feel like I missed out on their first six months b/c I was worried about one thing or another and didn't fully enjoy it.

 

Ditto on the relive sleeping on my chest. Those few quiet moments were bliss. I am SUPER lucky and have a photo taken by a professional photographer (he was doing an assignment for the NICU and we volunteered to be his "models") of me kangaroo caring the girls the day before they left the NICU. It was a long hard fight to get them together, and then get them both with me. That picture caputres a moment I will cherish forever. It was when I knew that our little family was going to be just fine.

My do over, I would have stressed about their development less. Because the girls were preemie and had NICU time, I was assigned a community health nurse by the state. The nurse led me to believe my girls were way behind on every milestone. It wasn't until they were nearly a year (the maximum time she was allowed to monitor a family without a "diagnosis") that I realized she was just keeping herself in a job. Now, I wish she could see my girls. They're brilliant - or at least their humble mom thinks so.

 

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I wish I had taken my full maternity leave. I caved to pressure from my office to return three weeks early. I deserved that time. My kids did. The office could have waited.

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Ditto, I went back to work a month early and wish I stayed home with my kids.

The first year was very challenging, :drown:, but the firsts were very special. (smile, teeth,steps,words.....)

 

Well, since you asked. I would go back to the day I answered the door naked for the FedEx guy. I was delirious and thought the dog was scratching at the door. Well on second thought I guess it has made for great conversation for me and I am sure for him too!

Oops, that day was 2 days before they were born so I guess the infamous first year had not even began and iwas already delirious so my kiddos are lucky to be alive and well 5 years later LOL!!

From the first year, I would go back and relax and realize that things were perfect. I had healthy babies.

 

I only have 5 weeks until mine turn one and I am wondering where the time has gone. In the begining I did a lot of obsessing over a schedule and setting up good sleep habits. I wish I had relaxed more and spent more time snuggling them. However, I will say they are great sleepers and on great schedules so maybe it was worth it. Hahaha.

The feeling I get each morning I go to get them out of their cribs and they bust into the biggest smiles makes it all worth it.