Our NICU had their yearly reunion yesterday, & even though the guys are only 5 weeks (I think my math is right) out of the hospital, we thought it would be fun to go see the guys' former nurses & docs. & it was cool to see the people who had taken such good care of our little dudes, & show off how huge they're gotten, but it also reminded me how incredibly blessed we were with our NICU stay.
We met 2 other parents of preemie twins (identical girls born at 30 weeks & boy/girl twins born at 28 weeks), & they had 60 day & 80 days stays respectively. The girls, who were absolutely darling, have struggled with delays in growth & development, & at 9 mos were barely larger than our boys. (One of the nurses actually thought the boys were older.) & the little boy half of the boy/girl twins was hearing impaired. Now, I'm not trying to say these kids are doing "worse" or are somehow less well-off than our guys-- each of them was absolutely beautiful & perfectly happy & busy little kids, just as they should be. It's just that the extra struggles they've faced highlighted for me how incredibly lucky we were (& are) that reflux & adjusted development milestones are thus far (& hopefully the only) legacies of our boys' early birth.
As difficult as our time in the NICU was, (& it had its terrifying moments-- I don't think I knew what fear was before those early days with the guys), at least it is now something we can say with some level of confidence is in our past. With every passing month, the boys get closer to catching up to their actual age, & aside from a few more tests on their hips & the continued battle against reflux, we're moving closer & closer to leaving the preemie issues in the past. The same is not true for a dear computer friend whose perfect little boy still has hurdles to cross (& I have no doubt that he will come up aces-- the kid is amazing!) & the sweet little ones we met yesterday. These kids are so amazing. After having had just a taste of the challenges they face, I am in respectful awe of them & their parents. I don't have much of a point here, I just wanted to send some love out to my fellow NICU families, & a special prayer for those who continue to fight the preemie battles with their little ones.
You are too sweet!
ReplyDeleteAfter our short NICU stay, my who outlook on life in the NICU has changed (as I'm sure your's has in some way too) and I always pray for those babies that faced NICU time and their families! I never in a million years understood what it was like...until it was me and my baby!
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