Sunday, November 24, 2013

You Know You've Raised a Meidcally-Fragile Baby If...

     Today I'm happy to report that our son, Silas, had his feeding tube removed last week. Silas now eats all the calories he needs by mouth and is doing so well the doctor decided we could ditch the tube.

     Some people ask me what it was like raising Silas as a baby, when we had to suction out his throat several times an hour and dump milk down his tube round the clock. So, if you're curious what it's like to care for a baby like Silas, I present to you today's list:

You know you've raised a medically-fragile baby if:

    You have your pediatrician's personal cell phone number on speed dial.

    You know all the staff at the medical supply company by their voice.

    You have rated each and every 24-hour care clinic within a 15-mile radius of your home.

    You schedule your son's radiology appointments around your monthly cycle (just to be safe).

    You know what day of the week it is by your child's therapy schedule.

    You use years when referring to your next date night.

    You use decades when referring to your next vacation.

    You've woken up to an apnea monitor more times than you can count.

    You've rated the local hospital cafeterias.

    You understand the glory and beauty of Germ-X.

    Your friends complain about their newborns waking up every three hours, and you feel murderously jealous.

    You've never been offered an honorary nursing degree, but you know you deserve one.


         Wishing love and strength to my friends who are daily loving their blessed little miracles! May God keep on giving you the strength and stamina you need to endure. As for the rest of you, pass this list on to someone you know. I bet they could add a few items of their own!

    What about you? Do you have anything to add to this list?

    Random fact: Silas has spent a total of 65 days in the hospital over three total visits.

    Blog love: This post appears in the Christian Home Magazine, brought to you by Laura O.


    3 comments:

    1. Yes, I can actually relate to this now; we are fostering a little man who has appointments around the clock and a feeding tube which has taken on this daunting presence in our home. I have about 15 professionals' numbers in my phone and we have outgrown the red folder that OCS gave us in which to keep track of all his paperwork, etc. Nonetheless, we are utterly crazy about him. Seeing his slow but steady progress as he works so hard just to do the smallest things is a precious gift. Thanks for sharing the list. :-) Also, I loved "The Beloved Daughter"! I read it last week while traveling, perched on the edge of my seat the whole time!!

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      1. Mindy, many blessings to you for opening your home and lives to care for your new little one! Feel free to email or message or call or something if you need to bounce ideas around or anything. Regi has all my info. :)

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      2. O yeah, so glad you liked Beloved Daughter! It's up for vote for book of the year at bookfun.org if you have a minute to go vote!

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