The events of the first week after our boy-girl twins were born.
After finishing infertility treatments, my wife gave birth to twins—a boy and a girl.
Both are big babies, weighing around 2800g each.
[Day of Birth]
The surgery started at 10 AM. The female doctor told me,
"Your wife is now on the delivery table. If nothing goes wrong, it should take about one to one and a half hours."
The time spent waiting in the lobby felt incredibly long.
I couldn't even bring myself to casually scroll through social media like I do on ordinary days.
It was a time of prayer.
"Please let mother and children be born safely."
That was all I could wish for during those endless moments.
Finally, 11:30 arrived.
But no one came out of the operating room.
I was restless, pacing back and forth down the long hallway.
Even reading the flyers posted there, the words didn't enter my mind.
Then, past 12:00, thirty minutes after the scheduled time, a nurse came out and reported that they had been born safely.
There were several reasons why the surgery took longer, including heavy bleeding from my wife.
Seeing it with my own eyes, I felt a respect for her that I had never felt for anyone before in my life—she risked her life on that operating table.
When I met them while hearing their cries, tears nearly spilled over.
But because my mother-in-law and several nurses were in the room, I desperately held back my tears and said thank you.
Later, my wife teased me,
"You weren't crying then, haha."
But truly, I wanted to cry so hard, I was happy, I couldn't believe it, and I was grateful.
As the eldest son, I just swallowed my tears down my throat.
[After Birth]
The week following the birth was a huge learning experience for me.
Family members could visit from 1 PM to 8 PM daily, and I went every day until discharge.
Together with my wife, we breastfed and bathed the babies, touching both children.
From admission to birth to discharge, my wife really did her best.
Newborns need feeding every three hours, so sleep is almost impossible.
And since they are twins, feeding both takes about an hour.
So, she got less than an hour of sleep per night, dealing with this with her battered body and mind after childbirth.
My wife casually mentioned during her hospital stay,
"Right now, just being hugged makes me cry."
She was holding on by a thread.
Therefore, I resolved to do everything I could.
A phrase came to mind:
I must not leave this person alone right now.
Not physically, but psychologically.
I must not let her feel lonely, thinking "I gave birth, I'm doing all the childcare, I am alone."
With that thought, I visited every day.
Near discharge, she said,
"Having you here is reassuring. I didn't think you'd work this hard (← well, obviously)."
I felt a bit relieved.
I will continue raising our children with the resolve to never leave my wife alone.
The two children are truly cute.
When showing photos to friends and family, they often mistake which one is the boy and which is the girl—they look that similar.
But as parents, we can tell them apart.
On the bus home, I looked at the photos, and at night before sleeping, I listened to their cries.
Here was happiness enough to blow away fatigue.
We returned home safely after discharge.
While my mother-in-law and wife cared for the twins, I went for a walk with our dog, Tatsuro.
The sky was orange, slightly chilly, and pleasantly cool. When I told my wife later,
"It's such nice weather, I want everyone to go outside,"
she burst into tears and said,
"We can't go outside. Taro has passed away."
Taro was a pug kept at my wife's parents' home.
Of course, I had met him many times and walked him too.
He was a black pug with a cute smile who waddled sideways, pulling with unbelievable strength despite his small size during walks, yet gentle enough to sit on my wife's lap when she was sad.
He had actually died a little while ago, but my mother-in-law had kept it secret until after my wife gave birth, so she wouldn't be stressed.
My wife and I hadn't sensed a thing.
My mother-in-law is truly a strong person. There is great love there.
Taro, we will go offer incense together soon.
While celebrating the addition of family members, a very painful farewell also arrived simultaneously.
I cannot immediately accept that this is life.
I plan to face this sadness and gradually sublimate it.
Thus, the whirlwind week ended. Now, writing this beside the bed where our two children sleep, watching over them.
Thank you for reading to the end.
Please continue to support us.
ps.
To all my friends:
For baby shower gifts, please give diapers, milk, and wipes.
Those are the most appreciated.
