Child's Birth Year
2023

State/Province/Territory
Texas

NICU Hospital for my journey
HMC

My NICU Graduate's Journey
Ashton is my 3rd preemie, my 2nd NICU baby, but my 1st NICU graduate! My sweet girl spent 41 days waiting to come home. She spent her first holiday (Halloween) in the NICU, she spent her sister’s birthday in the NICU, we were so ready to get her home and and not missing things anymore. My sister, Ashton’s aunt, is a neonatal NP and she took care of her niece when I couldn’t be there. It’s amazing to see how far she has come since being home these past 5 months, you’d never know she was early.🤍

What makes you proud of you NICU graduate?
My tough girl went through so much pain, pokes, and prods immediately from birth. I am so proud of her for fighting through that and being the happiest, chillest, easy-going baby out there even with the rough start she had! I am also proud of her for learning how to breastfeed after 5 weeks of tube feeds and bottles for 3 months, she learned to exclusively breastfeed AND maintain her weight without the extra calories and for that I am extremely proud!

Weight at Birth (lbs. or Grams)
3lbs

Weeks Gestation
32 Weeks

Time spent in the NICU (Specify Day, Month, or Year)
41 Days