A - Z Challenge 2023 - U is for Unexpected Surprise

Please check out the April Blogging from A to Z Challenge
#AtoZChallenge
a-to-zchallenge.com

This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

I'm being creative here with the letter.  Some of you may have wondered why Nathan wasn't included with Noah for the letter N.  Well I didn't want to have 2 grandchildren on the same post, especially when the others all have their own letter.  So Nathan is here because he was our Unexpected Surprise.

In two ways really.  Regular readers will know he is the son of my daughter Rebecca and her wife Vicky.  Of course that meant a clinic being involved etc etc.  We had no idea they were going through the process (although I knew that they wanted children) so the first surprise was when they announced Rebecca was pregnant.  At only 6 weeks!  Vicky is particularly bad at keeping things secret.  Of course we were delighted.  We looked forward to a long wait for the baby's arrival.

That wasn't to be.  The day before Hubby and I were due to go on a cruise I got a frantic phone call from my daughter.  She was heading for the hospital as she thought she was going into labour - at 29 weeks.

Well she was in labour and the following day will be etched on my brain forever I think.  There was a bit of dithering initially as the hospital didn't have a NICU space available so they were suggesting that Rebecca would have to be moved to another hospital before baby arrived.  She and Vicky were not happy about that as the hospital they were at is one of the best in the country for NICU facilities.  However when a doctor came to check on her to see what was happening it was a case of "You're not going anywhere - the baby is coming!"  It was 31st March 2017.

I don't think the Mummies even had a birth plan at that point but it would have been torn up and thrown away.  I never intended being in the delivery room for starters.  Hovering outside in a waiting area maybe but not in the room trying to support both of them but that's just the way it happened.  So many staff poured into the delivery room once it was apparent birth was imminent I don't think I could have escaped if I'd wanted to.

Nathan was born fairly soon after but of course quickly put in an incubator and transferred straight through to the NCIU where they somehow managed to find a cot. He weighed just over 2lb.

Those first few weeks that he spent in the NICU were challenging although he actually did really well.  He didn't have to be intubated  which was great but it did feel sometimes that it was 2 steps forward and then 1 step back.  And of course his Mummies had to leave him there every night as there were no facilities to stay.

Eventually, on 21st May I got my first cuddle - the day before he was allowed to go home.

Of course even though he was home there were still hurdles to overcome.  Initially he still had a feeding tube but thankfully he transitioned to breast feeding but of course there were lots of check ups to monitor his development, including eye tests because of his prematurity.

But now....he's just like any other 6 year old.

Who loves his sister - most of the time lol.