From Tessa...
Did you know that I have a little brother named Nolan? My mommy and daddy talk about him all of the time to me but he isn't able to come home quite yet. He needs a little more medicine to make him better. Today I got to go see him for the second time. Before we went to the hospital we went to the zoo. I was kind of disappointed that there weren't any giraffes or hippos there but I giggled and smiled at all of the other animals that we looked at. My mommy and daddy wanted to stay at the zoo a little longer but I was getting tired and wanted to go see Nolan. I kept asking, "Go see Nolan?" until finally they said yes. I've told my mommy and daddy how much I love Nolan several times over the course of this past week. Mommy almost cries every time I say it...not sure why?
Mommy and Daddy told me before we went to the hospital today that Nolan was going to have his sunglasses back on but when we got there he didn't have them on. It was kind of nice for me because it wasn't as bright in there as it was last time. I wished last time that I had my sunglasses too! Mommy and daddy kept saying how happy they were that he wasn't under the lights because this morning when Mommy talked to Nolan's nurse she thought he would be back under them. I love tickling his toes. His toes are so little and cute and today I even tickled his cheek. He smiled at me a few times too. He was in a deep, comfortable sleep. I love talking about Nolan and get excited to go visit him but as soon as Mommy or Daddy say anything about him coming home with us, I pretend not to hear them. :) He's cute and I love him...but does he really have to come home with us? I'm still getting used to mommy being back at home and now they want to bring this little guy home to?
I do love having mommy back home but it's still kind of strange. I often look at her and say "Mommy, you home? You here with me?". Another one of those things that she starts to cry over...again, not sure why? Daddy has been the best daddy in the world. I can just tell how much he's helping mommy out with everything and still spends time to snuggle with me. Even though he is the best daddy, I'm sure glad mommy is back home to do my hair. My crazy hair needed mommy! Another bummer is that daddy and I can't wear our crocs around the house anymore...we enjoyed it while it lasted! Daddy's having a more difficult time adjusting to it than I am.
Gotta go take a nap! Maybe I'll try to wiggle my way out of it this afternoon. I'm too excited about baby Nolan.
Love, Tessa
I love your posts Tessa. You are so smart and well read for a two year old:) Your Mommy just loves you so much, those are happy tears. You are a very lovable girl you know..... You are going to be such a great big sister too!
ReplyDeleteHope to see you soon!'
Love Megan
XOXO
What a wonderful couple of days you guys are having!
ReplyDeleteHi, my name is Erin Curran. I'm Jamie Barclay's daughter. She told me about your family and this blog because I, too, had a son prematurely. It was just last Christmas so what you describe sounds very, very familiar! My heart goes out to you all as you move through the NICU/preemie experience! It can be so challenging but it sounds like you all are doing great!!
I'm reaching out today because I wanted to ask if his nurses have told you about "Kangaroo Care"? If not, I'd encourage you to ask them if he's stable enough for you to start doing it with him. Kangaroo Care is sooooo great for baby and mom (dad too!)! BTW, in case you aren't familiar with it, Kangaroo Care is when you place the baby directly on your chest, skin to skin, and just hold him very quietly for a period of time. (We were allowed to do it for 2 hours a day once he was stable.) It has wonderful benefits for the baby, more than I can mention here so see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_care if you'd like to read more. We started with Gus when he was about 11 days old and still less than 2 lbs (he was a 26 weeker, doing fantastic now, btw!) He was off CPAP by then and just on the high flow nasal cannula. He still had a couple of lines and wasn't thermoregulating on his own yet so we discovered early on that he was a lot less fragile than we thought!
Anyway, I just wanted to share this idea with you in case it hadn't already been discussed.
It sounds like Nolan's making some nice progress and day by day will get stronger and closer to coming home!!!
You all will be in my thoughts.
Erin
PS - If you ever need to connect with other preemie parents for advice, venting, whatever, check out PreemiesToday.org. I have found the online organization to be really helpful when I have questions or concerns. Plus they are really positive and supportive!
PPS - We had a blog too. If your curious to read our story, check out http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/augustuscurran