When your baby is in the NICU....

There have been so many helpful recommendations to make these days easier while Isaac's been in the NICU these last 7 weeks. We are looking at another 3 or 4 week and are in the homestretch! Praise the Lord for his grace. When we first began this journey, it seemed impossible. Stephen and I determined to just take it one day at a time. It has been some good lessons for me especially in not planning too much but has made us more dependant than ever on our Savior who has been carrying us through. I hope these resources will be helpful to other parents who may find themselves in the same situation. I'm thinking especially of my friend, Ruth, who is expecting triplets this summer!

Take-them-a-meal.com - this website has been invaluable to us several times. A friend of mine, coordinated the meals through this site and communicated with us what would be helpful. It has been so helpful not to have to worry about cooking when we get home from the hospital every afternoon at supper time. Plus, with my pumping around the clock, makes even planning for grocery shopping a challenge. We also used this website for cleaning/laundry help. Most of this was because we were still in boxes when I went into labor, so it's helped to get the basics done so Stephen and I could work on unpacking.

Grocery shopping helper- a lady in our church that leaves nearby graciously offered to pick up anything I needed at the store. This has been helpful too. We do live near the store, but with meals provided, I rarely need a bunch of things from the store. And it seems like we are always running from one thing to the next with Isaac, and taking care of Jonas and Esther.

Babysitting - we have a friend in the church who has watched our kids since before Jonas was born. She has been a blessing and is using her 'single days' right now to serve others in the church. We are immensely blessed for her investment in us. She has kids carseats in her car to transport them and take them to do special things so they don't feel left out. We have tried to keep things as 'normal' as possible at home so they don't feel misplaced through this. It's been helpful to have the same person, so she already has a working knowledge of where everything is and what their routine is. Not having family in town, this has been the most helpful for our family. We have had an overwhelming amount of people volunteer to help which has been a blessing.

Books- a friend's cousin sent this book to us, I have referred to it many times in this new stage. There are so many aspects of the NICU that we have learned these last few weeks, which helps when we get doctors and nurses reports. I have enjoyed reading these books also to encourage my heart spiritually...

• Choosing Gratitude



• Running Scared



• A Shelter in the time of Storm. There are also several links a friend sent me on fear...maybe I'll include those in another post. Fighting those fears with right thinking has been so essential...and continues to be. :)

Mp3- I admit we haven't yet done this, but keep meaning to, personalize Isaac's isolette by recording our family singing and talking.

Personal items- we brought in Isaac's baby crib blanket (which they keep on top to protect his eyes from bright lights), put a family picture up in the isolette, and Esther has drawn pictures for him that they tape up. It's a way for us to feel like it's his home away from home. :)

Preemie clothes- several people have given Isaac little preemie outfits which is helpful especially now for when they put a shirt on him for his feeds.

Carseat! - we were advised to get a preemie carseat but had a very hard time finding one made by Graco and considering most carseats aren't called 'preemie' carseats, we were thrilled to find one! This seat starts at 4 lb and up and we received it last week. Thank goodness for Amazon prime because our town doesn't really carry them!

Feeding helps- if you choose to breastfeed/pump, these things have been invaluable for maintaining supply. We chose this route because the nutrition of milk is especially more important for preemies. So even though it's a bit more of a commitment, I felt it was something I could do for him even when away.

• Professional pump - a friend actually took care of the renting of this for us. The Medela Lactina pump has turned out to be really helpful- it's portable and lightweight and is very efficient. I got a car adapter so I can have it on the go also.



• Extra set of pumping equipment- this has been helpful because there is equipment at the hospital and I leave in case I'm there over a feeding.



• Mother's Milk Tea- was very helpful in the first few days to get my supply going.



• Lansinoh storage bags - this has gotten to be quite the investment over time, because if we were home we would just have bottles and wash out but the hospital uses bags...which we go through 56 a week!

Hope these things are helpful!