Rooming In

I can't believe we've had Sadie Ann here at home for over two weeks. I wanted to share some pictures from our first night together with her. Sure, it was spent in the hospital and I slept a combines 12 minutes, but it was the best night ever. Plus, we've had a lot of practice at living in a hospital. 

A couple weeks into her NICU stay, a nurse mentioned to me that prior to Sadie Ann coming home, we'd have to spend the night with her to help ease into taking her home. Since I knew very little about the NICU, this came as a surprise. We'd spend the night with her? Looking down at her only a couple weeks old, with so many tubes, leads, and IVs, the thought of us taking care of her was nothing less than frightening. However, as time passed and she continuously improved, we began to long for the day our daughter wasn't hooked up to a monitor and we could hold her without having to strategically place our hands in order to avoid setting off alarms. 

Then that day finally came. 115 days behind us. 

This hallway is so significant to her journey. We started all the way on the other end in Room 1. She spent the majority of her NICU stay in Room 1 because of her critical condition, but as she improved and eventually became "the best baby in the room" (medically speaking), she was able to move down the hall. We eventually found ourselves in Room 2. Then Room 3. And, lastly, Room 4. 

Room 4! The room babies graduate from! 

Below, Room 4 is the closest door on the left. This picture is taken right in front of the room we stayed in. We had finally made it all the way to the other end of the hall. 

The rest of the pictures are my attempt to document that special, long-anticipated, and slightly frightening night on Thursday, April 9. 

This picture below is so special and significant to her journey. I wanted to focus in on her ID tag. It's something she has worn since December 16. Most babies are in and out of the hospital within a couple days. I image their ID tag hardly has a bend on it. Sadie Ann's is crinkled, the edges are folding up, and a lot of the ink has faded and even worn off. A true sign of how long and wearing her time in the NICU was. 

Nothing but smiles at 2 o'clock in the morning! 

After a long night, the morning seemed to (thankfully) fly by! Shortly after shift change, we spoke with the nurse practitioner and the doctor and heard the word discharge. 

Discharge. A word we honestly did not know if we would ever hear. 

After we got word that we would be leaving soon, we dressed her up in her going home romper and bonnet. 

And then we left the hospital. Just the way we would have if things had gone normally. 

Sadie Ann was welcomed home with decorations inside and out (courtesy of a sweet friend and neighbor) and a sign from Footprints Ministry. Katie was ecstatic (and a bit confused) to finally meet her little sister. Our little girl is finally home and everything feels right in the world. 

We give God all the glory that this little girl was able to come home. She had all odds and statistics against her, but we know from the beginning He was in control and had a plan for this little girl. So thankful His plan invoked us bringing her home. We could not be more amazing and thankful for the miracles and blessings performed in the past four months.