The NICU

Caleb was in the NICU for ten days, and those ten days were tough. While we weren't being awakened during the night by our crying baby, we would wake up wondering how he was doing. Rather than checking on him in the bassinet next to our bed, we had to call the hospital, give the receptionist our four-digit security code, and then wait for our call to be transferred to Caleb's nurse. We spent the majority of our awake hours by his side. We usually arrived between 8:00 and 9:00am. Our days were spent feeding and changing Caleb, talking with the nurses, and waiting for the doctors to make rounds. Family and friends often brought us lunch, and we would usually leave the hospital to eat dinner at one of the many nearby restaurants. We returned to the hospital in the evenings to feed and change Caleb, read a bedtime Bible story, and pray. "Lather, rinse, repeat"... for ten days.

October 27th was hard for me. That was Caleb's first full day at the NICU and the day I was discharged. I was so glad that I was able to be discharged from my hospital that day, so that I could spend time with Caleb. But after sitting by Caleb's bed in an uncomfortable chair, going out to eat, walking through the hospital and parking lot, and still processing a lot of difficult news, I told Brad "there's a reason new moms stay in the hospital for 2-3 days after having a baby." I was exhausted, but I wouldn't have done that day any differently. I couldn't not spend every possible minute with my little man. A mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do.

Another difficult time was toward the end of Caleb's NICU stay. On November 3rd, he was circumcised, had his first hepatitis B vaccine, and did a car seat study. By that evening, he was completely worn out. He didn't finish a bottle, so the nurse had to put his feeding tube back in. Caleb screamed, I cried, and Brad did his best to keep it together for us. Caleb had to take a full day of bottles before he could go home, and that feeding tube going back in felt like such a setback. I was so mad at the doctors and nurses for doing the circumcision, vaccination, and car seat study in one day. Honestly, the nurse we had that day couldn't do anything right in my eyes. She rubbed me wrong the first time she was Caleb's nurse, and I probably never gave the girl a fair chance. I was a frazzled new mom who just wanted my baby home. She and that stupid feeding tube were standing in my way.

Speaking of nurses, Caleb did have several wonderful nurses during his stay. Our favorite was a sweet lady who cared for Caleb his first four days. She and Brad's parents knew each other from years before, and we felt like she really went the extra mile for our family. One of my favorite memories was on October 30th. She wasn't working the next day but really wanted to see the babies in her "pod" dressed for Halloween, so we did Halloween a day early. She encouraged the parents to get costumes for the babies and even told us that Build-A-Bear was a great place to find costumes for our little kiddos. Brad and I had made a playful bet on the 2012 OU-Tech football game a couple weeks before, and the winner got to choose Caleb's first Halloween costume. OU won the game, so Brad got to pick. How appropriate that Build-A-Bear had an OU football uniform.

During those days, we felt such an outpouring of love and support from friends, family, and our church. We had so many more offers for meals and visits than we could accommodate, and we appreciated that some people were willing to postpone those meal offers until after we got Caleb home... I think I've only cooked one meal in the last 2.5 months!

Caleb received excellent care from the doctors, PAs, and nurses. His PDA closed during his NICU stay. Caleb did not pass his state-issued hearing screening, so we scheduled an appointment with an audiologist for after he was released. We also scheduled an appointment with the cardiologist who had been reading Caleb's EKGs and echos during his hospital stay. My job as Caleb's personal assistant was just beginning!