The Days Go By....

Hello my handsome,
The last few days have been an exercise in patience for Mommy and Daddy.  Friday morning I was surprised to hear that I was being discharged from the hospital.  I was hoping they might give me an extra day of grace so I could be closer to you, but apparently every room in the post partum area was full and there were more mommies waiting in labor & delivery, so they really needed us to move out.  We were fortunate to have friends that have navigated the NICU experience before us, and they suggested that we ask about "rooming in" where we basically pay for a room just so we can cut out the commute from home.  The nurses told us about a Family Room that they have at the NICU entrance, which was actually free for us to use and is made available on a greatest need basis.  So we packed up and headed out of our room at 11:00 and moved in to the NICU.

To be honest, the daytime hours passed pretty easily.  We weren't able to nap much since it only had a twin bed and a recliner but it did make it simple to pump your milk and just walk it 10 feet to the nurses.  The real struggle was when we tried to sleep later that evening.  We were excited to be able to hold you more and hear that your tests were indicating improvement, but by the end of the day were were just exhausted.  Daddy was happy to sleep on the twin bed since he had been crashing on the futon for the previous two nights.  I did not fare so well in the recliner.  So the next morning, we were feeling a little down and had gotten a bit of a discouraging report from one of your doctors.  There are certainly lots of doctors who have talked with us about your stats (and most of the time I can't remember their names) but some of them are better about putting things in terms we understand and giving us a positive outlook.  Thankfully, we have our sweet friend Dr. Keith who has served as a bit of a translator and encourager when we are confused by the numbers or unsure of certain procedures.  He told us again that you just need time to work things out of your system, but that you are still making great progress eating and gaining weight, so we should not be worried about each little test.  Your overall demeanor is great and we will be happy to wait for each day's changes, even if they are small.

Fortunately, we took the advice of one of your best nurses and we gave ourselves a break on Saturday to head home for a bit.  I was desperate to take a shower and sleep in a real bed for a while.  We were so excited to hear that your Grandpa and Gigi made a special trip from Abilene just to come see you and Cameron.  They brought you a ton of cute outfits and an adorable pair of Sperry's just like Daddy wears.  He was so excited for you to be matching boys!  They also brought you presents from our friends Charles & Judy as well as your Gigi's parents and sister.  You got your first Under Armour outfit, some fun toys and bath towels, and tons of comfy onesies and jammies.  You are going to be so handsome!

Cameron was very excited to have a little time to just focus on her since Grandpa & Gigi brought her a present too.  She got her very first Barbies and a swimming pool for them!  She even got two new necklaces from Daddy since he felt like she hadn't had a lot of time with him lately.  One was a tiny heart with rhinestones all over it (her fancy big sister necklace) and then he got a silly one with a rainbow striped mustache on it.  Cameron thought they were very special and wore the one with the heart right away.  We have been very proud of her for being patient when we have not been home with her much lately.

We know that feeling refreshed and relieved will help us be more attentive and focused on taking the best care of you, so I am going to get a bit more rest and write more later.  We had a very special date that I want to make sure I don't forget.

Love you,
Mama