Two Months!

Yesterday Anjali and Arian turned 2 months old. Our lives have definitely changed in past two months. It has been more than a month since we are back home and it has taken me this long to update the blog. I used to wonder why some parents (specially of twins) don't update their blogs after the babies birth, and now I understand why! And those of you who used to warn me about not being able to sleep once the babies come, you were not kidding! LOL.
We left Delhi on Sunday October 20th taking direct flight on United to Newark, NJ. We had a pretty smooth flight. The United Airlines crew and passengers were all accommodating and helpful. I definitely recommend that direct flight to other parents. Overall it was a pleasant experience despite the long flight, and we were so relieved once we made it home.

Since then it has been challenging first few weeks, but we are adjusting to our new life as best as we can. My mom stays with us about 4 days a week and helps during day which is very helpful, and we take care of the babies at night and weekends. My mom is not very healthy so we cannot fully rely on her, but just having her around and relying on her expertise is priceless. Babies have been doing well and adjusting to their new life here in Brooklyn. The weather has got cold, but we have been taking them out for a walk at least once a week. Our daughter has been having problem with gas and has a tendency to spit up and we have to make an effort to feed her while sitting up right and also pause a few times during the feed. As a result she hasn't gained as much weight as her baby brother. Last Tuesday they had their 8-week visit to their pediatrician. Anjali was 8 lbs 5 oz (3.8 kg) and Arian was 9 lbs 6 oz (4.3 kg). The doctor seems to be happy with their progress. Despite all the hardship of the past 8 weeks, I have to admit I love being a father and it was all worth the trouble to bring them to this world. Every day I have to pinch myself to make sure this is not a dream!

Here are some pictures of the babies taken professionally in past few weeks:

Arian (left) and Anjali (right) at 3 weeks in Delhi

Arian and Anjali - 3 weeks old in New Delhi

Babies at 3 weeks

Baby Arian whispering something to baby sister! - week 5 at home (Brooklyn)

Baby Anjali yawning! week 5

I highly recommend our wonderful photographers, The Creative Lens in Delhi and our dear friend, Nany, here in New York.

Also I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank a few people here.
• First of all we are forever thankful to Dr Shivani and her wonderful staff at SCI. There were many doctors and nurses and staff involved to make this happen.
• Our beautiful surrogate, Shabana, for carrying our babies for over 34 weeks and going through everything. She's an angel that we will forever be thankful for her sacrifices. In our last week in Delhi, we got to meet her and personally thanked her for everything she has done for us. She briefly held the babies in her arms, and we all took pictures together. It was an emotional moment that we will never forget.
• Our beautiful donor - even though we never got to meet her, without her contribution we couldn't have these babies.
• Meg and Margarida for all their efforts and support specially at the beginning. Those two women were simply amazing.
• Our supportive family for being there as we struggled to find a way to have a family. We are forever thankful for that. I still cannot believe a year ago I wasn't out to my parents. And now they are so happy for us and love their grand children.
• Our dear friend, Stacey (also an SCI parent) who held our hands from the beginning and helped us so much throughout the journey. She's even so helpful now with her advice. She is like a sister to me! 
• My good friend, Marion, for showing me the rope and encouraging me to pursue this journey to fatherhood despite the challenges.
• My amazing coworkers specially Debbie who used to listen to me 10 years ago when we used to work together in Dallas. Also Sherry at my current job in past 3-4 years encouraging me not to give up.
• Our wonderful friends who have always been supportive of us (food team, tennis friends, theater community, etc).
• And last but not the least, the surrogacy community specially all the SCI intended parents of August - October time frame. We all held each other's hands as we were reaching the finish line.
This has been an amazing journey, where we got to meet so many wonderful people that I hope to keep in touch and meet up as our children have something special in common: how they came to this world.

The journey to bring Anjali and Arian to this world had a happy ending, and now the journey to raise them to the best of our ability has started. I would like to keep this blog alive and update everyone with their progress / pictures as they reach milestones. Not sure how frequently I will update it though. And maybe in few years if we are lucky and once India figures out its surrogacy laws, we will go back for a sibling project! Thanks for sharing this amazing journey with us, and may all your dreams come true.