Ronald McDonald House Charities

On June 10, 2013 my wife and I both went to work on what seemed like a normal Monday morning. She was 27 weeks pregnant. It was the first day of summer vacation for our oldest daughter, who had just turned 9 the week before. Everything was fine, until my wife called around 9 a.m., hysterical. Her water broke, and an ambulance was on its way to take her to the hospital. I was almost 45 minutes away, but made it to the hospital in about 15 minutes. Our world was turned upside down. We were informed that the baby was breach and we would have to have an emergency C-section. At 12 noon our daughter was born at 27 weeks. She weighed 2 lbs 5 ounces. The hospital where we delivered was new and did not have a NICU that was equipped for a preemie so small. Within an hour our baby was taken by ambulance to another hospital 30 minutes away. She would spend the next 67 days there. This was the beginning of our NICU journey and our relationship with the Ronald McDonald House Charities.

After the emergency C-section my wife could not leave the hospital. She couldn’t walk and was in a lot of pain. I had spent the past two nights in the NICU with our baby. My wife willed herself out of that hospital in a couple of days. She still couldn’t really walk, but our baby was in the NICU, and needed her parents. Once my wife was released, we immediately went to the NICU. I had to push her around in a wheelchair, because she could not get around. My wife had not really been able to see our baby, since she was transported so quickly to another hospital.

We didn’t know what we were going to do. We lived 30 minutes away, in a 3rd story apartment. My wife couldn’t walk. This was our first day as a family in the NICU and I needed to get things figured out. Then a miracle happened. One of our nurses told us about some sleep rooms at the end of the hall just outside of the NICU. The Ronald McDonald House Charities had a couple of sleep rooms just outside the NICU. These rooms have a nice big bed and some other things that make you feel at home. The room was available and we got to spend our first night together in that room, just a few feet away from our baby. IT WAS INCREDIBLE!!! My wife was beginning to pump, and it gave us more time and privacy to do so. And we all know how important breast milk is for a NICU baby! We didn’t have to leave the hospital at all. The Ronald McDonald House was across the parking lot of the hospital. The house was full at this time, but they still do not turn anyone away. We lived 30 minutes away and did not want to take a room away from a family. Some of these families live hundreds of miles away. Our problem was physically we couldn’t go home. My wife could not make it up the stairs. As luck would have it, we were able to get one of the sleep rooms every night for an entire week. I cannot express to you what that meant. My wife healed. We were right down the hall from our baby and were available for the doctors and nurses. We had all of the NICU staff there to help, like our lactation consultant, who without her, we might not have been successful breast feeders.

The Ronald McDonald House Charities also had a Family Room right outside of the NICU. The Family Rooms are like a slice of home. They have kitchens, bathrooms, showers, and a living area with couches and a big tv. It’s an area where you can clean up, relax, take a break, eat, or even meet with family. Not everyone is allowed in the NICU, so it is nice to have an area that family can come and visit with NICU parents . Parents can take a break from hours of being in the NICU, have a meal, watch some tv, and exhale a little. And it’s ok, because you are just down the hall from your baby.

After we were in the NICU for a few weeks, we still utilized the Ronald McDonald House Charities Family Room every day. Along with the Family Room we were also taken care of by the Ronald McDonald House and everyone that helps and donates to that organization. There were so many times that we would leave the NICU late at night, exhausted from working and rushing to spend the rest of the day at the NICU. We would walk out with our oldest daughter and step into the Family Room on our way out. We would open the refrigerator and there would be some BBQ sandwiches or some other meals that someone donated for all of the families in the NICU. It was incredible! Now we didn’t have to worry about feeding our daughter or ourselves. We could just go home and sleep or take care of some of the other things we had been too exhausted to even think about. It was those small things that made huge impacts in our lives and helped us get through our NICU stay. We did 67 days in the NICU, and I’m not sure if we could have made it without the help of the Ronald McDonald House Charities. We have since become an Ambassador Family for the Ronald McDonald House Charities. If you get a chance, please donate, volunteer, or just spread the word of the good that this organization is doing for families in the NICU and more!

If you have a Ronald McDonald House Charities experience, please share in the comments, we would love to hear it!

And once again, thank you for your support, and please don’t forget to subscribe and spread the word!