He's Home!
It happened. We were released!
Date: Friday, July 19th, at approximately noon. I was so excited as we were driving, telling Ben that God willing, this would be our last day to make that drive... this would be the last day to scrub our hands for three minutes before getting to hang out with Axel. Last day to hear beeping and maneuver around wires to change his diaper or his outfit... but we of course knew that there is always a chance that things are not going to go our way. It happens.
We got to the hospital and were thrilled to see a bag packed with all of his stuff, and on the table a pile of discharge papers!!! The nurses walked us through the documents, and then the Nurse Practitioner came in to talk to us. She was really excited because she was the same nurse that admitted Axel to the NICU on July 3. So it was nice for her to get to send one of her patients out the door. Ben and I grabbed everything humanly possible and added it to the bag (with the hospital's blessing, I promise), then worked on getting Axel into the car seat. He's on the absolute smallest setting in the car seat and it just dwarfs him!
Walking out of the NICU was a mixed bag of emotions. We had spent so many days there, fretting and stressing and getting to know the nursing staff... we had an unspoken bond with all of these other parents who also had little people waiting to be released. One of the more difficult emotions to tackle is the feeling of walking out of that room after 16 days and trying not to be too happy when other members of our club were still waiting on the same result. We got to the entrance/exit and had to stop and say goodbye to Bonnie, the receptionist. She and Ben had bonded and she was so stoked to see us walking out with our precious cargo in hand.
We got out of the elevator and started walking towards the exit and were stopped by an elderly woman, probably in her late eighties to mid nineties who just started to glow when she met our little fella. She is a very proud grandmother and just loves the itty bitties. Ben made the point that it was a pretty cool thing to be leaving the hospital and to see these completely different generations come together as we left St. Davids. He's right, it was. :)
Ben ran and got the car... luckily our attempt at putting the car seat base in the car passed the nurse's inspection and Axel was put in said car without a hitch. (once Ben was schooled by the nurse that the car seat faces backwards!) I sat in the back with him and he just sat there, completely chill, as it waiting to see where the next stop would take him.
So all is going smooth... on our way to the hospital we had stopped at Petsmart and purchased a toy for Delilah (a stuffed quail, if you must know) and a rawhide for Sebastian. I walk into the house with the toys for the dogs to distract them and enable Ben to walk in with child... and so I wait for Ben to walk in with said child... and I wait... until finally I walk into the garage and DOH! there are technical difficulties getting car seat UNATTACHED from base. At this time, Damma had pulled into the driveway (previous post introduces my mother as Damma) and sees Ben trying to figure out how to dislodge the car seat. He's searching for any and every button possible with little success... I get out there (and, mind you, two nights prior I had to have the nurse show me how to dislodge the car seat from the base after the car seat test) and I completely forgot how to do it. So it's 90+ degrees outside with a 2 week, 2 day old infant in the car seat and we can't remember how to get the seat out. At the point we were going to just go old fashioned and unbuckle him, I found the instructions and AMAZINGLY was able to provide guidance on how to get the car seat out. Now we know.
Car seat fail.
But this is how excited Axel was to be home. He did the happy dance..
A cha cha cha... a cha cha cha... 
Quite a few people have asked me how Delilah is doing with the new addition.
Sebastian doesn't care. At all.
The first night went... well, let's just say that the light switch is officially ON. Axel decided that he was STARVING and his appetite went through the roof! Between this and the fact that I was beyond freaked out that I was officially in charge of keeping this little person alive, I don't think I got any sleep. Ben had given him his midnight feeding and the kiddo took about 60 mls but decided he needed more. Much more. He was fussing and a cussing but we needed to try and keep him on his feeding schedule - plus, when your stomach is that little, you can't give an exponentially higher amount of food because their little stomachs can't handle the volume yet. These factors combined meant zero sleep for Sarah, a tiny bit of sleep for Ben... but you know, I sat there with him in the rocker trying to help him to relax and it was a great solace knowing that little man was now facing a monstrous appetite... the very thing that had him away from him for so long. Best all nighter ever.
More token cute pics:
He met his cousin, Otto, for the first time...
He met Janet and Norah, one of my oldest friends and her daughter...
We have also had grandma visits, uncle and aunt visits, met cousin Ocean, met Timi, Nate and Sally, Lindsay and Travis, Amy, Rachel, and Christie. All have come to meet him with nothing but love and we are so lucky that all of these people will be in his life.
In closing for today, this is probably my favorite picture of Axel so far... and there are many. But it encompasses pure joy in a moment and I know that there are many moments of this joy yet to come. Welcome home, sweet thing. We're happy you're here.
He is so gorgeous! Happy he is home. Hugs.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to hear he is so hungry! And how wonderful for you to have him home. He is one lucky boy to have parents who love him so much. Thank you so much for all the updates. Love to you!
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