Stick.

We are famous in this hospital.  People I have never heard of in departments we have nothing to do with know who we are.  I know I keep talking about this, but being a medical anomaly is very weird and hard to process, so bear with me while I work it out.  This is a self-serving blog, I gave you fair warning, remember?

Anyway, my mom met a new neighbor, whose daughter is a nurse here.  Her name is Liz, and she knows who we are, and she talked to her mom about us.  Her mom knew all about us, and when my mom mentioned it, she was like, "Oh! That's YOUR daughter?"  The thing is, there are no nurses named Liz in OB, Peds, or the Outpatient Infusion Center.  Now I'm all paranoid walking down the hall, thinking that every person in a lab coat or scrubs knows who I am and are smiling at me because they want to contribute positive energy to my plight.  When in fact, they are probably just being friendly and/or adhering to hospital CRM standards. 

Seriously, I need to get over myself. 

It's Rhys' due date today.   Also the 2 week mark in his treatment.  Strange.  It feels both like he was born yesterday and like we have been here forever. 

Last night his IV finally failed.  It lasted a week, which is far longer than the average 3-4 days for newborns.  We knew it would be soon.  The very capable nurses then tried to put another line in, but couldn't make it work.  Three different NICU nurses tried.  It was awful.  However, we did learn that Rhys is an unusually strong 3 week-old baby.  It took two nurses to hold him down while one tried to stick him.  "Stick" is an insider medical term for employing any sort of needle-related procedure, great or small.  I'm totally knowledgeable. 

So, the neo-natalogist came in this morning to start an IV in some other vein, a bigger one or something.  It took him a couple tries, too, but he got it done (I almost gave him a High Five, Jamie), and said he thinks that this one will last awhile as well, providing we take good care of it.  For awhile I thought that a PICC line would be in order, after all.  But then we got the good news.  Barring any unforeseen complications, Rhys' treatment is shortened by a week!  We get to go home next Tuesday!!  This is indescribably awesome. I see the light!

Remember: Don't forget to check yourself and your loved ones for ticks everyday!