Home at last!

We finally made it home with our little miracle on Wednesday, January 5th, late in the afternoon.  Our departure from the NICU was emotional... many of the nurses gathered around to wish us well.  Here is a picture from our departure and the car ride home.

 The happy family (boy, I sure do look sleepy)

 Ryder's first ride in a car!

Since coming home, we have been very busy (thus, the late post about coming home) establishing some sort of rhythm to our day.  Between feeding Ryder, me pumping, washing dishes, and us trying to squeeze in a few hours sleep, there is very little time.  Gone are my dreams of a maternity leave filled with reading books and taking walks with my little baby.  Ryder is only awake for about 5-10 minutes after he eats (which is 8 times a day)... his sleep is so important in helping him grow that we keep him very well rested.  His pediatrician assured us yesterday that once he is full term (early Feb), we should have more awake time. He weighed in at 4 lb 15 oz this morning!  We are only about 1 day away from hitting the 5 lb mark... exciting!  He goes back to the doctor on Tuesday to continue to monitor his weight. 

 Eric and Ryder after a feeding... he loves to snuggle (or at least we love snuggling with him!)

This is how our dishwasher looks now... check out Eric's creative way to wash the bottle nipples... grilling basket and a strainer.  The dishes keep Eric very busy.