267 Days

267 Days. That's how long we called Cardinal Glennon home.  For 267 days we walked down this hallway. 

These room brought us so many firsts. First bath, first diaper change, first sneeze, first shots, first bottle, first Christmas. 

It also brought us a lot of firsts that terrified us. First fever, first cold, first ventilator, first desat, first heart rate drop. 

But on January 28th, we left everything we'd become comfortable with and headed to Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital. You might think, "Yes! This is wonderful news!" And yes, it is wonderful for him. This means that Joseph is healthy enough to get out of the hospital. It means that we are closer to home then we have ever been. It means that he's basically been a rockstar since the tracheotomy. 

But, it doesn't mean that I wasn't scared. 

For 267 days we have developed relationships with doctors and nurses. Those doctors and nurses loved Joseph like their own and became a part of our family. I am not sure I will ever be able to thank them enough. 

This journey has been long and at times rough. We couldn't be there every single minute of every single day, but these women were. They were there to answer our phone calls at any hour and put up with my momma bear attidtude when worry and stress had taken over me. These nurses listened to me vent, cry, laugh, and hold me up when I lost hope. 

I have watched them cuddle Joseph and love him, and I have also seen them save his life when he decided to stop breathing. These women mean more to me then they will ever know. They gave Joseph a better life and never gave up on him. They never gave up on us. 

Leaving that day was incredibly hard, but so rewarding. It took a small village to pack us up (you accumulate a lot of stuff in 8.5 months!), but Joseph was ready. In fact, he loved the attention, the ambulance ride, and his first breath of fresh air. 

We have been at Ranken for a few weeks now and his progress has been incredible. He received his helmet a few days before discharge to help reshape his head. He spent too many days checking out the cute nurses and has developed a right side preference. Doctors predict he will only need it for a few months, but as always things could change. 

Right now, Joseph is receiving amazing daily speech, phsychial, and occupational therapy at Ranken.  He also has enjoyed new visitors, meeting friends for the first time, and amazing activities the hospital puts on for their patients.  He is able to move about in a stroller and we can roam around the facility as we please. Just to see him in a stroller is such a joy.

And he's getting special perks like puppy grams. Yes, that's right, it's a real thing.

He is still not sure about his little sister, but we're pretty confident they are going to love each other.

 

We don't know how long we will be at Ranken. We do know that we are closer to home then we've ever been and it feels really good. There is always a chance if he gets sick he could end up back at Cardinal Glennon for awhile, but for now, this is our new home. We are so proud of Joseph and we could not be more thankful. 

January was a busy month. With the transfer of Joseph and the birth of our daughter Eliza, Jerod and I are incredibly thankful. One year during a bible study I chose to focus on the word JOY. I cannot believe how much joy has come from just in one year's time.  This year has been a roller coaster and unpredictable, but worth every single moment. God is so good. 

Lots of love, 

Ashlie