100 Days

One Hundred Days...2,400 hours....144,000 minutes...8,640,000 seconds. Approximately 8,000 miles driving to the hospital from Parker's House twice a day.


It's been 100 days since Carter was born and in that short amount of time, Carter's accomplished so much. In that 100 days, he's taught us about love, patience, faith, friendship, resilience, and life. (although Brad still needs to work on his road rage--haha!) We've grown to love something more than we ever thought possible. He's filled holes in our hearts. He's endured more surgeries, medical procedures, xrays, and blood transfusions than most of us will in our entire lives. He taught us to enjoy each day and don't take a single one for granted. He's taught us what's really important and what's not so important. He's taught us how to function on 2 hours of sleep and how exciting a poopie can be!


When we first started this journey, we were prepared for the wires, machines, nurses, doctors, IVs, tubes, etc. because we'd seen it on other families' blogs and read every story we could find. We knew we'd be looking at a hospital stay that, on average, was 1-2 months. We knew we'd go home some nights so upset that we just couldn't say a word and we would ride home in silence. We knew we'd be desperately begging God to save Carter's life. We knew we'd be Googling medical terms, medications, doctors....when we weren't sure what/who they were.


What we weren't prepared for was the feeding frenzy and how slooooooow it can be. The Doctors warned us and we didn't listen. I am not writing this to complain, because we know how lucky we are. We know that there are families out there who just wish they still had their angel, even if he/she won't eat. We know families who have been in the NICU for 5-6 months and wish they were already home. I am writing this for us to always remember the journey and remain grateful and also to prepare other families facing the same fight. I just don't think we were prepared to still be in the hospital working on getting Carter to eat at 100 days. Looking back at everything he's endured and how strong and healthy his is now, it's hard to wrap my brain around the fact that we're still here because he won't eat. I thought he'd be born, have surgery in a few days, recover, start taking a bottle, and we'd be home in a month. It certainly tests your patience, but it's more than worth it. When we finally do see Carter drinking from a bottle (even if it's a beer bottle when he's in college) I know we'll probably cry tears of joy....and then we'll immediately start packing his things in anticipation of discharge! We just have to remember that we're on "Carter Time" and let him lead us. One step at a time.


We also weren't prepared for the friendships we've found in the nurses and doctors. They are not just individuals who come to work, do their jobs, and go home. They are people who truly care about their patients AND the parents. They go above and beyond to find solutions to the many puzzles Carter throws their way. They listen, offer advice, fight for Carter, offer support, check on Carter when they are not at work, worry about us when we don't visit at our usual time, and most importantly, have saved Carter's life. When you are far from home, family and friends, having our Duke "family" (and the Souzas) is comforting and has helped us through this roller coaster ride. Yes, I know they read this blog and I'm not just writing this to kiss booty. I want everyone who reads this blog to know of the compassion and skills the medical team at Duke has. I want every parent who chooses Duke to care for their child to know they've made a wonderful decision.


So, Happy 100 Days John Carter! Thank you for the gifts you have given us. Mommy & Daddy love you.