Welcome, Baby A!

My friends had their baby on Tuesday night. Congratulations, new Mommy and Daddy! E’s water broke at 31w6d and little baby A was born at 3 lbs 9 oz and 16.25in, which is really good for his gestational age. Erin was a trooper and had a completely natural birth—go Mama!—and baby A is by all accounts doing REALLY well in the NICU. He is expected to be there 4-6 weeks. (A general guideline is that baby will be in the NICU until his due date, give or take). The last I knew, A had a CPAP and a NG tube and was having his oxygen lowered. He is getting his Mama’s colostrum and lots of kangaroo care. He is in an isolette rather than an incubator and the neonatologist says A looks good. He is a very very loved and prayed for little boy. And of course he’s beautiful and perfect and I’m so excited to be Aunt Alesha! We are all looking forward to seeing our two little boys roughhousing together.

We went to see D and E in the hospital when I got out of work on Wednesday and I made up a little care package for her. I’m going to share it here just in case any of you (all eight readers! Lol) ever know a mom with a baby in the NICU.

NICU CARE PACKAGE

A DISPOSABLE CAMERA--got this idea off someone's blog. You can leave it in the isolette and the nurses will take pictures for you when you're not there.

A JOURNAL AND PENS--so you can keep a little record of what happens each day, and the ups and downs and improvements and expressions and etc that you forget in your mommy fog. Great little book for the baby to look back on when he’s older. Got this off Google.

STICKERS--so Mommy can make baby a cute little name sign for his isolette.

PREEMIE OUTFITS--so she has something to wash and fold and stroke and sigh over and look at and anticipate dressing him in when he is ready. "Hope" in cloth form.

TISSUES--for the postpartum and NICU tears

TRAVEL DEODORANT--cause lets face it, your BO smells really weird after you give birth

HAND SANITIZER--cause you have a preemie! I wanted some with aloe because it’s so drying, but I couldn’t find any.

UNSCENTED LUBRIDERM LOTION--because the wash every time you go in the NICU and all the hand sanitizer is hard on your skin. And preemies don't need strong scents.

CHAPSTICK--because hospitals dry you out

TRAIL MIX--WITH CHOCOLATE--because mommies need protein to keep going when they're in the NICU all day and sheesh, who doesn't need some chonklit in their day