You know you're a preemie parent when... - Page 5

[Khourtniey]

Originally Posted by OGirlieMama

Ugh, yes to all of the above! I always laugh (bitterly) to myself on other boards when people are asking "is this a good list for my hospital bag?" Because I realize my only answer could be "All I had when I was admitted straight from the OB was my purse, and somehow I managed..." which really just doesn't take the conversation anywhere productive, ya know?

Which leads me to another "you know you're a preemie mama..." It's when you find yourself opening and closing reply windows on pregnancy boards, because you realize your experience just doesn't relate to the normal experience and isn't really helpful. All those "Can I eat lunchmeat?" posts are out of my league. If I say "Yeah, I ate lunchmeat and I was fine" who is going to accept that? Yeah, you ate lunchmeat and your babies were born at 29 friggin' weeks. Nevermind that the two are totally unrelated. I just feel like anything I could possibly weigh in on is warped, so it's not worth answering.

Kind of related to hospital bags since most people pack a coming home outfit..

My mother asked me what outfit I wanted her to pack for the baby to come home.. Mind you I was only 27 weeks and at the hospital because my water had broken and had not even delivered yet.. She just did not understand that when he was born that he would not come home.

My bag that I packed for the baby to come home was ridiculous.. I mean.. who takes their baby straight from the NICU to somewhere that they will need 4 or 5 bottles and a million diapers??

[Khourtniey]

Originally Posted by intorainbowz

Your child is a year old and 3-6months clothes fit her fine, as well as size 2 diapers.

This is us too. But my son is almost 2 and can wear 0-3 month in shorts because his bottom is so small.

[Le Bec]

Originally Posted by intorainbowz

Your child is a year old and 3-6months clothes fit her fine, as well as size 2 diapers.

You look back at the "newborn" sized clothes you bought while you were pregnant in awe at how big they are, when at the time you bought them you weren't sure if they were going to be big enough because the babies in your family tend to be big.

[Zan&Zav]

Originally Posted by ksera05

I'm not even sure I had my purse...

My mom had to go to Target for me 2 days after she was born and get me stuff because we were so woefully unprepared.

I had my 2 year olds diaper bag, and I was wearing my best friends HUSBANDS shorts and teeshirt because it got warm out that day and I was in sweats.

[ksera05]

Originally Posted by Zan&Zav

I had my 2 year olds diaper bag, and I was wearing my best friends HUSBANDS shorts and teeshirt because it got warm out that day and I was in sweats.

:

I wouldn't go to the hospital until I got a shower that evening. Of course I show up there and the instant they find out what my bp was, I'm flat on my back in bed with a hospital gown on. Fat lot of good that shower did me :

although considering my next shower was 3 days later and I'm an every day type gal it probably did help some.

[celtic_mommy0307]

I got lucky. Since I was just there for a NST, I at least had a blanket I was knitting for the baby with me, so I had something to do while I laid around. :

We had to go to the store before we went to get her so we could get a coming home outfit for her. We had told everyone to not get us any newborn clothes because she was expected to be around 9 lbs at birth.

[celtic_mommy0307]

Originally Posted by ksera05

:

I wouldn't go to the hospital until I got a shower that evening. Of course I show up there and the instant they find out what my bp was, I'm flat on my back in bed with a hospital gown on. Fat lot of good that shower did me :

although considering my next shower was 3 days later and I'm an every day type gal it probably did help some.

I made DH bring me my toiletries because I was planning on taking a shower the next morning since I was only admitted for observation - I was still in denial that I was in labor.

[sehbub]

The first time I was admitted for PTL, I came straight from the office, so all I had was the outfit I'd worn to work, and my purse.

I asked DH to go home and get a bag for me since they were admitting me for an unknown period of time. I told him which drawers I kept all of my clothes in (he keeps his in the guest room downstairs, so we don't share a dresser) and asked him to get me a few outfits since I was allowed to wear my own clothes in the hospital (apparently). I also asked him to grab me a book or two.

So when he showed up with my bag, I opened it to find 1 shirt, 11 pairs of socks, 8 pairs of underwear, 4 bras, 3 pairs of pants, 7 pairs of shorts, and 13 books. He had to use two bags 'cause he packed so many books.

No toiletries...not even a toothbrush. When I asked him if he had a separate toiletry bag, the look on his face was priceless. "Um, oh. I guess you needed those, huh? Crud. Well, uh, I can go home again?" No honey, I'm about to get loaded in to an ambulance and taken 90 miles away. Don't go home again.

[sarah1972]

I have two to add:

When you're the last one due in your lamaze class and the first one to deliver (yes, this happened to me).

While all other mamas cling to their babies staying small, we wait in frustration for ours to grow!

[ksera05]

Originally Posted by sarah1972

I have two to add:

When you're the last one due in your lamaze class and the first one to deliver (yes, this happened to me).

While all other mamas cling to their babies staying small, we wait in frustration for ours to grow!

My Bradley class started two weeks AFTER she was born. We lost our $50 deposit. Sigh.

[celtic_mommy0307]

Originally Posted by ksera05

My Bradley class started two weeks AFTER she was born. We lost our $50 deposit. Sigh.

That sucks that you lost your deposit. It's not like you didn't go just because you didn't feel like it...

[OGirlieMama]

Originally Posted by sehbub

So when he showed up with my bag, I opened it to find 1 shirt, 11 pairs of socks, 8 pairs of underwear, 4 bras, 3 pairs of pants, 7 pairs of shorts, and 13 books. He had to use two bags 'cause he packed so many books.

No toiletries...not even a toothbrush. When I asked him if he had a separate toiletry bag, the look on his face was priceless. "Um, oh. I guess you needed those, huh? Crud. Well, uh, I can go home again?" No honey, I'm about to get loaded in to an ambulance and taken 90 miles away. Don't go home again.

LMAO! Boys are silly.

Ryan was working on a freelance project with a serious deadline when I went to my OB appointment, wihch was the only reason he didn't go with me - I figured since my contractions had stopped the day before, it'd be no big deal. I ended up sitting in the hospital from about 3pm to 7 or 8pm all alone because he had to finish this project or he wouldn't get paid. The TV show he'd been working on (Little Einsteins - he's an animator) went on hiatus the day before, so we really needed the money. Anyway, I spent the whole time working on a detailed list of all the stuff I needed and exactly where it was in the house. Every once in a while I find it when I use that purse. I somehow can't bear to toss it.

[sarah1972]

Originally Posted by sehbub

The first time I was admitted for PTL, I came straight from the office, so all I had was the outfit I'd worn to work, and my purse.

I asked DH to go home and get a bag for me since they were admitting me for an unknown period of time. I told him which drawers I kept all of my clothes in (he keeps his in the guest room downstairs, so we don't share a dresser) and asked him to get me a few outfits since I was allowed to wear my own clothes in the hospital (apparently). I also asked him to grab me a book or two.

So when he showed up with my bag, I opened it to find 1 shirt, 11 pairs of socks, 8 pairs of underwear, 4 bras, 3 pairs of pants, 7 pairs of shorts, and 13 books. He had to use two bags 'cause he packed so many books.

No toiletries...not even a toothbrush. When I asked him if he had a separate toiletry bag, the look on his face was priceless. "Um, oh. I guess you needed those, huh? Crud. Well, uh, I can go home again?" No honey, I'm about to get loaded in to an ambulance and taken 90 miles away. Don't go home again.

:

Originally Posted by ksera05

My Bradley class started two weeks AFTER she was born. We lost our $50 deposit. Sigh.

I can't believe they didn't give you the deposit back! As I was being wheeled on the gurney out of my hospital room to the ambulance, I looked at my OB and said "boy I sure am glad I toured this new birthing unit 3 times and never got to use it." I think if I ever get pregnant again I'll just ask to tour the local NICU.

[ksera05]

Originally Posted by celtic_mommy0307

That sucks that you lost your deposit. It's not like you didn't go just because you didn't feel like it...

I'm sure if I had thrown a fit I would have gotten it back...but I didn't have the emotional energy, KWIM? I also lost our deposit on the birth assistant...that one I didn't mind though because if we ever have another baby I want her to be my doula and so I want to stay on her good side. Haha!

Sarah - Next pregnancy we're doing a tour of the birthing floor of the hospital Sydney was born at (because I was too loopy to remember any part of it besides the NICU and the perinatal floor) and we're touring our local hospital's birthing floor and NICU. At, like, 12 weeks.

[Sheal]

nicu

You have a photo of a favorite nurse holding your baby the day you go home while holding another nicu baby and yourself and the other nicu mom in the picture!!!

This happened when the two crib mates left the same day!

Sheal

[Khourtniey]

Originally Posted by sarah1972

I have two to add:

When you're the last one due in your lamaze class and the first one to deliver (yes, this happened to me).

While all other mamas cling to their babies staying small, we wait in frustration for ours to grow!

Or you get pregnant after all of the others (like weeks, months after) and deliver first

[Amys1st]

You have an emergency c section at 6pm on Wed and go home by 4pm on Friday because your dc is at another hospital and you want to see her.
Or you just leave the hospital after the birth once you're "stable" to follow your child.

[Shenjall]

.....when extended members of your family save every picture/article from any paper about preemies. And show you while asking, "hey, remember when he was this small?".
Yes. I do. Everyday. I dont need an article to remind me thankyouverymuch.

[mamadawg]

Originally Posted by Amys1st

You have an emergency c section at 6pm on Wed and go home by 4pm on Friday because your dc is at another hospital and you want to see her.
Or you just leave the hospital after the birth once you're "stable" to follow your child.

I can so relate to this. Mine weren't in another hospital--luckily they put me in the room just across the NICU. But I also had an emergency c-section and I was in the NICU all the time and I gave myself no time to recover. In fact, I kept forgetting that I had just major surgery. I was more concerned about being with my babies than anything. I do think it helped me heal faster, in some odd way.

[aradia]

Being a a different hospital was terrible, I escaped about 36 hours later too. I tried to rest up and was inundated with hospital staff, our family all went to see the babe.

My determination to be with and hold my dd far outweighed my desire to recover, of course stairs and bumps and potholes and well, pretty much sucked. I think I healed pretty fast too because I had no time, no other choice. I was lucky that my mil made us lots of yummy food and I continued with my nutrtional supplements and teas too.