Saturday, January 19, 2013

The End and The Beginning

We've been home just over a week now. The flight home turned out to be much better than I had anticipated. From Delhi to Zurich, we were able to get bassinets for the babies. They slept most of the 8+ hours. It was so beautiful landing in Zurich. It had just snowed and everything was lightly dusted in white. Just as I thought we had finally left the menacing "where's the mother?" questions behind, they started again as soon as we landed. A Swiss Polizei stopped me and gave me a minor interrogation for traveling with such young babies. Maybe they thought I was trafficking children, who knows. I've come to the conclusion that twins attract attention period. Two men carrying for two babies even more so. We'll just have to get used to it I guess. The flight from Zurich to Miami was a little more stressful. We didn't have bassinet seats so we turned our tray tables into bassinets. Luckily we were sitting in the middle of a group of Israeli grandmothers on their way to Las Vegas. They took it upon themselves to hold the babies and give us tips for the next 10 hours.

We've slowly settled into a routine, although we can't tell if we're still jet-lagged or are exhausted from getting up every 3 hours with the babies at night. Aiden and Zara had their first check up with the pediatrician this week. They checked out fine. Although Aiden is getting huge and gaining so much weight, I did ask if we should switch his formula to Slim Fast. We have no concept of time these days. The days creep by, all divided in 3 hour feeding increments, and before you know it, a week has passed. I find myself spending most of the day in my pajamas, not remembering when was the last time I brushed my teeth or took a shower. I wouldn't trade any of it for the world. I love being a parent.

I've been reading lately about the changes to surrogacy laws in India. I guess we did this at just the right time as it appears surrogacy in India would no longer be available to us. That is truly unfortunate. The people I met on this surrogacy journey in India will make the most awesome parents. No one embarks on this journey unless you really have the desire, will and capability to be a great parent. Hopefully these laws will one day be reversed. As it stands now, the recent changes exclude most Australians, as reported here, and definitely leaves out homosexuals everywhere, as reported in the Times. Maybe Panama or Thailand are still options, I'm not sure.

I've decided this will be my last blog post. I originally started this blog to be a journal of our journey to have children.  I had hoped this might one day be of interest to our little ones, while also providing a little insight to those contemplating the journey themselves. I hope I've succeeded. I wish my fellow bloggers all the best on your journey. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Signing off,
Ryan

Hindu baby blessing, New Delhi

20 comments:

  1. Best of luck! Thanks for sharing the experience. Cheers!

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  2. Thanks for sharing! All the best!

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  3. Thanks for giving us a peek into your journey. Best wishes, be well!

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  4. Thank you for sharing, and for saying not just disappearing. Your children are and will remain miracles for our world. JOY!!!

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  5. Sad to hear it's your last post, but happy to hear all is going well and your family is settling in nicely. Take care! XO

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  6. Thank you so much for sharing your journey. So many people appreciate and admire your courage and commitment.
    While I am sad this is your last post I am so happy for you both.

    A

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  7. Hey guys thats awesome, I am so glad that you made it home best of luck with your little blessings. Take care

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  8. Thanks for sharing your journey to parenthood with us - we wish you all the best with your new little ones.

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  9. Hi there, sorry just one question on looking at the pic of you both at a Hindu blessing, how did you organise that? We would like to do the same :-) x

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    1. Just ask the concierge in your hotel for the nearest Hindu temple. We just showed up and asked someone to do a baby blessing for us and gave the guy a few hundred rupees.

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  10. Howdy There.....I am going to have withdrawal symptoms if you have no blog! I love how you write. Thank heavens we intend to stay in touch! I totally understand the pj's thing....I dont think I have got dressed much passed midday most days and that can be a struggle! However I managed to make a roast chicken for dinner last night as well as juggling a crabby bub!! Will skype you soon love us xxxx

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  11. "Israeli grandmothers on their way to Las Vegas." HAHAHA. What a riot.

    Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful journey with us. I have loved every minute of it. Should you decide to change your mind, we will be here (but totally understand if you don't).

    Hugs!

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  12. ahh the babies blessing looks beautiful! thanks for sharing your journey guys, so pleased you are home with your little treasures, wishing your family the very best x

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  13. What a gorgeous blessing photo! Love it! Good luck with everything and I promise you WILL be dressed and showered again and sleep more than you do now! It is sad regarding the visa changes that exclude gay couples as we have met so many lovely same sex couples who are wonderful parents!

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  14. Hey guys, so glad you're home and remember this phase of "I don't know when I last showered/changed my clothes/brushed my teeth" passes quickly. but you've got twins so I don't know what I'm talking about. LOL. If you are ever in Hawaii please look us up via our blog. I am going to try to keep mine up and running as long as possible. Go have the time of your lives...you will make awesome parents!

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    1. I'll say that the no showering/no brushing teeth/wearing mismatched socks/ etc. probably does last longer with twins but it has been a while since I fell asleep in the shower or left the house with spit up on my work clothes. After all the chaos it's a blast to watch my twins interact now that they're standing, crawling and babbling. We still get tons of stares and comments wheeling them around town. Twins fascinate people. So enjoy the attention. Enjoy your babies.

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  15. Best of luck with everything and thank you for sharing your journey!

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