Prematurity

Hello fellow preemie parents, family, and friends! Welcome to our site!

 

Andrew and I are parents to ex 29-weekers, and our girls graduated the NICU after 98 days! After a long awaited three months, our girls are growing, thriving, and developing wonderfully at home! This page is specifically for you. There are resources below that I hope will help you along this journey as a NICU/ preemie parent, or a friend/ relative of a preemie(s).

On July 3, 2013, Andrew and I were informed that I was carrying mono-amniotic twins. I remember sitting in my physician’s office and hearing the inevitable. Only 50% of mono-mono twins make it to viability. High-Risk pregnancy. Bed-Rest. Hospitalization beginning at 24 weeks. Constant Monitoring. We’re lucky if you carry to 30 weeks. And then, the word: NICU.

Prior to this pregnancy, I wasn’t familiar with a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit or premature babies. Therefore, I was terrified of what was to come and what this journey would entail. Will we make it? Will my babies survive? What does a NICU look like? How will I be able to leave my babies? How small will they be? Will they be okay? There were so many thoughts that filled my head after that meeting. Beginning at 24 weeks, I received weekly ultrasounds. At 26.5 weeks, I was admitted to UNC- Chapel Hill where I was monitored three times a day. At 29 weeks and 3 days, our girls arrived. You can read more about our NICU journey through the posts below:

The One With… “The Plan”
The Spooks Come Out for “Heel-O-Ween”
Daddy’s Hands
Every Good Thing, Every Heart Beat
Welcome to the World, Baby Girls!
Never Say Never
Happy Thanksgiving, Sunshine!
The Heart of Christmas
A Bon Jovi Kind of Day
While I’m Waiting
3rd & Goal
Keep Your Head Up, Mama. You’re Gonna Turn Out Fine!
Shake It Like A Polaroid Picture? Not in Pod D. 
85 and Counting
Weekly Forecast: Leah is on the Radar Map for Thursday!
A Simply Divine Homecoming

Online-Resources for NICU/ preemie parents:
Tommy’s
Hand to Hold
March of Dimes
Preemie Babies 101
Life After NICU
Peek-A-Boo ICU

Book-Resources for NICU/ preemie parents:
PREEMIES- Second Edition: The Essential Guide for Parents of Premature Babies

This was the only book we purchased about preemies because it literally provides everything. What to expect, a NICU glossary of terms, feeding, how to care, sleep patterns, everything. This book was extremely helpful for us during our time in the NICU, and even in the first few months home!

Blog-Resources for NICU/ preemie parents:

Now What? A Guide to Families with Preemies
Two Peas in Pod D: Lessons from a NICU Mom
Gift Giving Ideas for a Bedridden/ NICU Mom