[2curlygirls]

After a wonderful 6 months maternity leave home with my girls, I'm headed back to the NICU and I need some encouragement. Help me remember WHY I love my job despite the horrendous hours.

OH, and my fridge died so 3/4 of my frozen milk supply was thawed and therefore ruined

Need funny NICU moments to cheer me up! Thanks!

[Sweeper933]

Some things off the top of my head...
-Seeing a kid totally perpindicular in their isolette - their heads pressed up against the portholes
-When they sneeze and make that cute little noise at the end, not to mention their faces after they sneeze - "what was that?!?!?"
-When you're pouring their feeding into the syringe, and realize that you forgot to clamp the tubing... and that their feeding is now pouring onto your shoes...
-The way their hair looks all fluffy/spikey after their baths

Hope this helps!

[TiffyRN]

Having that little 4 pound kid totally melt as you rub their head while burping then they let loose the biggest baddest truck driver burp that makes the whole room look your way.

[2curlygirls]

I'll add my own off the top of my head.
-chronic kiddo put in swing falls asleep ON his pacifier (it's in his left nare!)
-preemie who puts his hand down his pants, Al Bundy style

[Gompers]

My heart melts for baby toes. I love it when you've got one of their feet in your hands and they press it into you and curl their toes. The smaller the foot, the more I melt.

Wrapping a wet baby in a warm blanket after a tub bath. They are just so content and pink, and my gosh do they ever smell good...

I love walking into work after being off for a few days and seeing the PPHN kids who had been on Pavulon and nitric oxide the last time I worked looking like different babies - extubated, swaddled, and their parents' arms. The resiliance of these particular NICU babies never ceases to amaze me.

The holiday season is always so bittersweet. Yes, we've got lots of sick babies who won't be home in time for Christmas - but we've also got a wall filled with HUNDREDS of pictures and cards from former patients, most of them completely unrecognizable. We put these out in a place where all the parents can see them - it's like a great big wall of hope. It helps us all realize why we're doing this.

[prmenrs]

Little boys that stick their hands down my scrubs.

[RainDreamer]

Awwww these are all so great!!

One of the greatest things that will stay with me: had this kid that was on ECMO due to mec aspiration/PPHN, which also had a silo reduction for gastroschisis .... had a bunch of issues and problems to overcome and was given very little chance to survive. The last time I took care of him he was nippling all his feeds and on his way to discharge. I still remember those big blue eyes of his looking up at me while he was learning to nipple his feeds ..... the taste of something new.

Seeing the picture last week of a little 23 weeker we had in our unit for many months ..... parents sent in a 6 month picture of their perfect little baby ..... smiling and happy as can be. These things don't happen often, but seeing his face on that picture ...... priceless.

Having a mother say to me "thank you for taking care of my baby". Gives me the chills EVERY DANG TIME and makes my night, no matter how bad, 100 times better.

[Gompers]

Originally Posted by RainDreamer

Having a mother say to me "thank you for taking care of my baby". Gives me the chills EVERY DANG TIME and makes my night, no matter how bad, 100 times better.

Oooh, definitely a high point!!! I love when they say that. Another one is when they ask if you'll be taking care of their baby the next day, or when you come on and they see you again they get all excited that you're their baby's nurse again. I once had a mom tell me, years after her baby was in our NICU, that she always slept well on the nights I cared for him because she knew he was in the hands of someone that loved him and would be his advocate.

We have the awesome responsibility of caring for these babies, and it is truly an honor.

[anniesong]

Having the time to hold and cuddle a feeder/grower still on NG/OG feeds instead of just hooking them up, giving them the pacifier (that you know won't stay in more than a minute) and having to run off to handle the next challenge of the night.

"Competetive twins" - when you got them in isolettes next to each other and they act as if they are having a competition. "Hey look at me, I'm going off CPAP." "Oh yeah, well I'm going off CPAP and my NC oxygen is weaned lower than yours." "Oh YEAH? Well NOW I'm on room air, beat that." "Oh yeah, well I'm POing ALL of my feeds" and on and on until they've gone home to bigger and better things

[TeachEmNursing]

It's funny how little boys hands always seem to find their way to their crotch. I noticed it really doesn't change as they get older.

I'm always tickled when you take the feeder/growers (like the 1500gm or so)kids and put them on the scale. The way some of them give you that angry holler/cry/curse is sooooo cute. Thank goodness they can't speak because I'm certain they would be saying a few choice words to us.