Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving has been a wonderful "break" from the usual hussle-and-bussle of our everyday routines. I had to work Thanksgiving day this year, so Chet and the kids went to Gram's for Thanksgiving dinner. Gavin was excited to get dressed up (he adores "lookin' sharp," as he calls it). "Great-Gram" drove in from Illinois for the day and I was so thankful that Gavin and Natalie had another opportunity to spend time with her. What a wonderful gift to be able to meet and know your great-grandmother. Although I was sad to have missed my family's Thanksgiving celebration, my work day really was a beautiful one and I felt blessed to have been a part of so many families "first Thanksigivings" with their new little ones. My primary patient has had a rough go from the start. Over the last 6 weeks, I have really grown to love this wonderful family. On Thanksgiving, their little NICU champion came off of his CPAP breathing machine and trialed Vapotherm. Not only was this a huge milestone for him, but it also meant his face was finally free from the cumbersome tape and tubes and hat that had been covering him 24hrs a day. It was beatiful to see him finally be able to snuggle so closely at his mother's chest. I took their first complete family picture Thursday. The joy on their faces was so genuine and priceless. In the late morning, I was also able to finally hold the little guy myself for a few brief moments. I've definately bonded! It's days like these that make spending a holiday at work worthwhile.

On Friday, Chet and I both had the day off! This hasn't happened in...many, many, many months ?! Seems like forever. The day was beautiful and we enjoyed every minute of it. We had a big breakfast and didn't change out of our pajamas until lunch time at least. Ahhh. Lazy days are so sweet! In the afternoon, we packed up and braved the traffic to go shopping. We didn't buy a single thing, but simply enjoyed walking around and looking. Gavin especially loved scoping out this year's Christmas decorations on display. We ate an early dinner at Charleston's restaurant and played with legos until it was past bedtime. The day is always over too soon, and I'm off to work another 25 hours this weekend. Over Christmas, we should have a couple days off together again. I couldn't ask for a better gift this year.