Coming Home

On Tuesday, September 18, Lydia came home from the NICU. She was there for 33 days. I've already received the hospital bill, and it is 25% more than I expected it to be. She is totally worth it!

The day before Lydia came home, she had to do the car seat test where she sits in her car seat hooked up to the monitors for 30 minutes. The test is used to verify that premature babies can breathe normally in the semi-reclined position of the car seat. She slept through the whole thing and passed with flying colors. This challenge was her last hoop to jump through in order to home.

She looks so tiny in the car seat!

Sleeping soundly.

 On Tuesday I was super excited all day. I was taking my baby home. The hours flew by and soon Chip arrived in Tupelo to take us home.

Last photo in the NICU crib.

The trip from the NICU down the elevator to the car was just as eventful to Lydia as the drive home was. Since her birthday she had never been out of the incubator, crib, a chair where we fed her, or a bathtub. She was wide-eyed and alert, taking it all in as nurse Cami pushed her on a cart through the hospital. She was out in the world for the first time.

These hands, I love them.

 The car ride home was another big new experience for Lydia. You could see the wonder and amazement on her face as she heard cars and felt the speed of our car increase and decrease.

"What was that?"

I relished in watching her reactions to it all. Even the way that the sun filtered in through the windows as the road took turns was a new experience for her. It was fascinating. She listened and watched for about 15 minutes then fell asleep. Peacefully drifting off to sleep. Safe. Alone with her parents for the first time since her birth.