Andrew Comes Home

As soon as I found out I was pregnant and my due date was the day after Thanksgiving I was hoping that people would come to us this year because I knew we were not going to be traveling.  The night after the babies were born prematurely I remember being in the hospital room late with Ryan and I told him my goal was to have everyone home by Thanksgiving, that surely by then we would all be home together.  As Thanksgiving and my original due date got closer it started to look like less of a possibility.  Andrew had several setbacks and after a particularly bad day I talked with one of the pediatricians who said he would not be home for Thanksgiving and maybe not for Christmas.  To say that this was devastating for me is an understatement. I cannot even describe the toll this extended hospital stay was taking on our family by this point and the idea that we had weeks left to endure and that I would be spending the Christmas season in the hospital away from James and Harrison just about broke me.  In order to be discharged Andrew had some very specific criteria to meet and in what can only be described as a miracle from God he proved the doctors wrong and was allowed to come home on Thanksgiving day!  I still can't quite believe it. Up until Thanksgiving morning we were not sure he would be discharged and when I called the nursery that morning I had the biggest pit in my stomach thinking the doctor would have said no.  When I got off the phone with the nurse I looked at Ryan with tears in my eyes and said, "He is coming home. Le'ts go get him!" I think Ryan may have broken the speed limit as we raced to get to the hospital before anyone could change their mind! Best Thanksgiving present ever. Finally after 72 days in the hospital we were all home!!!

So thankful for the great care our kids received at both hospitals they were in 

Our little corner in the nursery 

My sweet thing 

This is what kept him in the hospital so long....a record of all those Bradys...

To be discharged he had to go a full seven days without one which felt impossible 

His name tag

Andrew was discharged on two different monitors that we had to be trained to use. Typically they do not send babies home on these anymore but I am so thankful they made an exception or we would have been in the hospital even longer. 

We stopped to say good bye to the nurses and nursing students. They were all so sweet to him while he was here!

Finally on the way home!

2 big brothers were very excited 

I wish I could have recorded James when I told him Andrew was coming home. "Now you don't have to go to the hospital anymore mom and we can all be together!"  

Back together again 

Two happy and very drained parents 

Holland- party of 6!