10 Signs You Have Spent Time At A NICU

1. The secretaries know you by your voice.

I call up to the nicu on the parent line a few times each day and night to check on Dot. One night I called and the Secretary, whom I really enjoy having a nighttime conversation with says to me "How you doin' Mrs. Mitchell, I recognized your voice before you even said the room number. I told you I would learn your voice eventually." Oh Lord I need my discharge papers...STAT!

2. You have celebrated multiple holidays within the 4 walls and florescent lighting of a hospital.

So we have now seen Valentine's day, Easter, Mother's day, Memorial day, and are getting ready to see Father's day and 4th of July. 

3. You know terms like Apnea, NBP, CPAP, KCAL, input/output, desat, leads, CBC, etc.

Letters of the alphabet combine to form what seems like nonsense but is really common nicu lingo and I no longer need my nicu dictionary to understand them (and yes I have one that they gave us).

4. Eating out/running through a drive through used to be like YEAH no cooking and now you just long for a home cooked meal at your HOME!

I used to love Friday and Saturday nights cause it meant no cooking...now that's pretty much an every night occurance that we visit the nicu. After so many times fast food really begins to suck.

5. The top Wi-Fi network on your phone is the hospital network.

Yes I want to sign in... Yes I will accept your terms of agreement...

6. The wires and tubes become no big deal.

We used to be so nervous we would pull or misplace a tube or wire, but now I think I might just be able to have a jumpstart if I ever decided to go to nursing school. You know you're good when someone asks you how long you have worked there..ummm.

7. Your child has "earned" some cool baby equipment.

We now have a mobile, a light up fish toy, a CD player, a swing, and a mamaroo. We are living the good life...ha ha!

8. You have seen too many neighbors come and go and your child is the "queen bee" of her area.

So our nicu is divided into gardens. We are in Spring garden. There are 12 rooms. Our family has been in 5 of them. I think we should get an award! But really she is the social butterfly of the garden saying hello to everyone from her swing as they pass by her door. We will see a new nametag with a new baby and then after a little while, no more baby just a "clean" sign on the door cause the baby went home. And then by the next day, at the latest...new nametag and new baby. The names I can remember- Hannah (our nicu buddy), Greyson, Asher, Clark, Jordan, Faith, Hope, Remington, Emma, Ethan, and more I could add if I could remember.

9. Your child has reached the top weight on the weight conversion chart.

We started on one end and now we are to the other. She has gained almost 8 pounds since birth while in the nicu. Makes you realize how far my little fighter has come!

10. You are bringing up the next size in clothing cause she outgrew the last size.

We started with preemie when she was a couple months old (she wasn't even big enough for clothes until that point). Then she went to newborn, and just this week I brought up 0-3 months for my chunky monkey.

The pictures below are Alyx, Luci, and myself from day 1 until the present. It's amazing to see the progress of my babies in photos!