That is my life right now.
And it will probably describe my life for the next 50 years as well.
Our delivery came yesterday, and I have to admit that it wasn't quite as many boxes as I'd thought. That was a pleasant surprise! I did have a few shocks though: the base for our in-house oxygen tank is HUMONGOUS and the entire thing is quite an eyesore. I did my best to hide it behind the chair in the living room, but it's still ugly. Thankfully, it's okay to be back there because Abby doesn't use oxygen on a regular basis. It would only be in case of an emergency and it is still very accessible from her spot.
Another shock was how looooooooong the suction catheter packaging is. We get three boxes a month (300 catheters total), and one box of 100 filled an entire drawer. Those suckers are 2 feet long! The worst part is that the actual catheter is about 1/2 the size, so I have no idea why the packaging is so big. I only kept one box in the house and the other two are in the garage.
Our storage space is looking pretty good. We have room to grow, and I'm not anxious about filling up the empty spaces because I know they'll naturally fill on their own too soon! I did a lot of labeling yesterday with my new label maker (ooooooh, ahhhhhh!) and it should be really easy for the nurses and us to be able to find whatever we need.
I filled her bedside cart with all of the essentials so that everything we should need is within arm's reach. The stuff in the cabinet is to refill with or things we won't need on a regular basis. I worked hard to make sure that everything was accessible and moved several things around quite a few times before I was happy.
There was also more training to be done yesterday, and I learned about the suction machine, pulse oximeter, apnea moniter, oxygen tanks, and feeding pump. Matt had to go to work, so I spent the evening teaching him....AND had a slight meltdown when he asked if a piece of the suction machine was disposable and I didn't know the answer. There is SO much to learn and I'm SO afraid I'm going to make a mistake!
While I didn't plan on sleeping at home two nights in a row, I realized that it was kind of necessary in order to get done what needed to be done. In addition to getting all of the supplies organized and teaching Matt, we also put together the new Pack-and-Play that Abby will be sleeping in. We had a cheap one, but wanted a really nice one that would support her better since she'll be sleeping in it all of the time. We'll bring the crib down from her bedroom (AKA, the storage room) eventually, but this will be fine for a good while.
And now, it's off to the hospital. I will be taking care of Abby for 6 hours straight without any help from the nurses--unless necessary--to prove my competency. Matt will be doing his on Thursday. I'm really nervous about it, but I'm not sure why...I'm going to be doing it 24 hours a day really soon!!
ONE WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Emotion of the Day: Overwhelmed. I am overwhelmed with the amount of stuff we have to take with us wherever we go. I am overwhelmed at the amount of knowledge my brain is trying to process and retain. I am overwhelmed with the insurance paperwork I do each day. But, I am also overwhelmed with the love and support we have felt through this whole ordeal. We'll get there....one step at a time!
And it will probably describe my life for the next 50 years as well.
Our delivery came yesterday, and I have to admit that it wasn't quite as many boxes as I'd thought. That was a pleasant surprise! I did have a few shocks though: the base for our in-house oxygen tank is HUMONGOUS and the entire thing is quite an eyesore. I did my best to hide it behind the chair in the living room, but it's still ugly. Thankfully, it's okay to be back there because Abby doesn't use oxygen on a regular basis. It would only be in case of an emergency and it is still very accessible from her spot.
Another shock was how looooooooong the suction catheter packaging is. We get three boxes a month (300 catheters total), and one box of 100 filled an entire drawer. Those suckers are 2 feet long! The worst part is that the actual catheter is about 1/2 the size, so I have no idea why the packaging is so big. I only kept one box in the house and the other two are in the garage.
Our storage space is looking pretty good. We have room to grow, and I'm not anxious about filling up the empty spaces because I know they'll naturally fill on their own too soon! I did a lot of labeling yesterday with my new label maker (ooooooh, ahhhhhh!) and it should be really easy for the nurses and us to be able to find whatever we need.
I filled her bedside cart with all of the essentials so that everything we should need is within arm's reach. The stuff in the cabinet is to refill with or things we won't need on a regular basis. I worked hard to make sure that everything was accessible and moved several things around quite a few times before I was happy.
There was also more training to be done yesterday, and I learned about the suction machine, pulse oximeter, apnea moniter, oxygen tanks, and feeding pump. Matt had to go to work, so I spent the evening teaching him....AND had a slight meltdown when he asked if a piece of the suction machine was disposable and I didn't know the answer. There is SO much to learn and I'm SO afraid I'm going to make a mistake!
While I didn't plan on sleeping at home two nights in a row, I realized that it was kind of necessary in order to get done what needed to be done. In addition to getting all of the supplies organized and teaching Matt, we also put together the new Pack-and-Play that Abby will be sleeping in. We had a cheap one, but wanted a really nice one that would support her better since she'll be sleeping in it all of the time. We'll bring the crib down from her bedroom (AKA, the storage room) eventually, but this will be fine for a good while.
And now, it's off to the hospital. I will be taking care of Abby for 6 hours straight without any help from the nurses--unless necessary--to prove my competency. Matt will be doing his on Thursday. I'm really nervous about it, but I'm not sure why...I'm going to be doing it 24 hours a day really soon!!
ONE WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Emotion of the Day: Overwhelmed. I am overwhelmed with the amount of stuff we have to take with us wherever we go. I am overwhelmed at the amount of knowledge my brain is trying to process and retain. I am overwhelmed with the insurance paperwork I do each day. But, I am also overwhelmed with the love and support we have felt through this whole ordeal. We'll get there....one step at a time!
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