Home From The NICU

 

Caris Noelle is home from the NICU!

 

After 104 days at the hospital, Caris and I came home to her daddy on December 29th.

 

Oh, that last week was a struggle for Colin and me. Caris had been learning to take her bottle since the middle of November, and it was a much longer process than we had anticipated. That last week, they took her feeding tube out of her nose, and was strictly bottle fed--hoping she would feel her hunger and start taking in more by mouth. She did pretty great, but a couple of the days her feedings were lower than the doctors liked, and they threatened to put her feeding tube back in if she didn't do better. Thankfully, she always did better the next day.

 

I broke down at the hospital on Christmas, because I was tired. Tired of fighting so hard to get Caris home. Stressed out. Worn from living 3+ hours away from Colin and not having our family together.

 

Towards the end of that week, I had the nurses' support to convince the doctors that we could do better at home. We knew the consistency of just Colin and I feeding Caris, and being in a home environment would be so much better for her. Finally, a doctor agreed to discharge her.

 

The first two days home, I was so nervous with fear that she would end up back in the hospital because of dehydration from not taking in enough.

 

But, each day we did a little bit better together! A nurse has been weighing Caris in our home twice a week to ensure she is drinking enough and gaining weight, and she is! Praise God!

 

For a little while, Caris will be on caffeine (to help mature her lungs) and be on an apnea monitor (to alarm us if she does not take a breath within 20 seconds or if her heartrate drops). It is really comforting for us to have her on the monitor, or otherwise I think we may not have been able to sleep at night out of worry.

 

Colin and I are in love with having her home in our care 24/7 and snuggled up in our arms as often as we can. We waited over 6 years to become parents! We are savoring each moment.

 

God has been so good to us. Our little 1 lb. 13.6 oz. miracle is home! She is a sweetheart.

 

Our little fighter...now 9 lb. 11 oz.!