So yesterday they weaned her liter flow down to 1 liter and put her on 100% oxygen. They rounded late in the afternoon and the doctor just casually says, so we can do Care By Parent tomorrow if you want. Care By Parent is when the baby boards with you in the room and you take care of her for several days by yourself before they release you from the hospital. Usually Care By Parent is 2 days and then you go home. That meant Amelia could go home as soon as Thursday of this week!
My head began to reel and I am sure I was sputtering out everything my mind was thinking...a jumbled mess of thoughts. Then I started crying and then the nurse gave me a pile of gauze to wipe my nose with and then my nose started bleeding. Then someone made an ice pack for my nose with a cloth diaper full of ice.
Then everybody started tearing up including Grandad and the nurses and the nutritionist and I think maybe even the doctor. Amelia was blissfully unaware of all the drama. She had been having a good visit with grandad, talking and smiling at him. She was just waving her little arms and legs around enjoying her attention.
I talked to Todd and we both agreed that doing care by parent so soon would not be good. We still need to do CPR training, learn her meds, learn how to clean her G-tube, how to feed her through the pump, get all our insurance stuff straightened out, board the dogs, come out of shock, etc. Sp we are doing it starting Friday and will stay through the weekend and be released on Monday!
We thought we had about two weeks...turns out we have 1 week now. This is what we have been waiting for but it kind of got sprung on us all of a sudden.
So much to do and so little time. My brain is mush!
5 comments:
I can just picture that happy bedlam with everyone around and your nose bleeding!
This is what you've dreamed about and prayed for, but I imagine it always seemed SO far away; now it's HERE! Time to cram for the parent exam! You're more than up to it. Enjoy this wonderful weekend with her; what a Christmas season this will be. Marie Grip
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!!! That is amazing!! I can only imagine the joy and slight anxiety of waiting for 8 months and then being told you can go ASAP! Good luck with the upcoming days of preparation, and BRING THAT BABY HOME!!! God is GOOD!
Kathy
What a joy for you and Todd....plus all of us that love you. Our new miracle, will be home for Christmas! WOW! GDad said she was smiling a lot...can't wait for that pleasure! She must have know all along about the decision! GDad and I are here to do your bidding, so don't forget to give us the orders! (wait a minute...you two are good at that...aren't you.) All my friends are so thrilled and send their love and best to you three.
You guys will be great - when I brought my first home from the NICU I found the things I thought would be hard were the easiest and the stuff I thought would be a non-issue the hardest. For example the happy baby that wanted to sleep through all his night feedings screamed all day long and woke up every hour at night to eat! You guys will be great, so excited for you to start the next phase.
awww (((((((((((Christina)))))), I teared up too just reading this! You guys are gonna be so great with her, what a lucky baby she is to have you two! And what a wonderful, loving family you have. It's got to be scary and wonderful all at once. So happy for you all, this is what we've all waited and hoped for for you! K
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