The Journey to Love

Chapter 5

NICU Day 4: Amanda and Diana are Four Days Old... Andy woke up around six in the morning to pump which she does every two to three hours. After she pumped, she wanted to see her daughters. So, Andy woke up Vic and they went to the NICU.

When they got there, Hannah met them outside of the girl's room. Conversation... Andy: How's Amanda? Hannah: Good. Her vent settings are the same as last night. These are the best oxygen levels I've ever seen from her. Luke fell asleep and refused to leave. Andy: Thank you. (Andy holds Vic's hand and they walk into the room with Hannah and go over to Amanda.) Andy: She looks so peaceful. Hannah: Right now she's sedated to help keep her calm. Andy: Can I touch her? Hannah: Yes. (Andy touches her head.) Andy: Hey, baby girl. I love you so much, and I'm glad you're doing better. Andy: How's Diana? Hannah: Look for yourself. (Andy looks at Diana, and her eyes are open.) Hannah: She's doing that every time she hears someone's voice that she knows. She'll keep them open for as long as she can, but she gets tired easily.

Andy: Hey, Diana. It's mommy. You have really pretty eyes. (Vic gets a picture while Andy wakes up Luke.) Lucas: What time is it? Andy: It's six-thirty. Lucas: I have to be at 19 soon to introduce Jack as captain. Andy: Go get some coffee. Lucas: What about Amanda? Andy: Hannah can watch her, and Maggie will be here soon. She's in good hands, so, go get some coffee. Lucas: Fine. (Andy goes up to Amanda's incubator and stares at her daughter.) Vic: You made the right decision. She needed it and you can tell by her stats. Andy: Thank you for that. I don't want to leave without them. Vic: It sucks. It does, but they're alive. You gotta remember that. Andy: I'm looking forward to sleeping in my bed tonight. I haven't slept in it in about eleven weeks. Vic: That's good to look forward to. (Andy says goodnight to her girls. When she gets back to her room Lucas is there and Robert is awake.) Andy: What's wrong? Robert: We got a page. There's a three-alarm fire, it will likely be a five-alarm fire. We gotta go. Vic don't leave Andy. Vic: Yes, sir. Andy: You better not leave your family. Robert: I would never leave my three favorite girls. Especially since I just had my two little girls. (Robert kisses Andy, and Lucas kisses Vic goodbye. After they leave, Madeline comes into the room.) Madeline: Hey, Andy. How are you? Andy: Amanda is on a vent, I'm worried and sore. Plus my husband is at a three-alarm fire, and it may go higher.

Madeline: I'm sorry. We're going to discharge you. I have some instructions for you like, no driving for a month, don't lift anything heavy, rest as much as you can, try and take it easy, and ask for help if you need it. If there are any signs of infection call. Remember to pump every three hours for breastfeeding to help your milk come in.

Andy: Okay. Madeline: Your papers will come through in the next couple of hours. Andy: You'll find me in the NICU. Madeline: Good to know. (Madeline looks at Andy's incision, and then she leaves. Andy packs her things, Vic takes them to her car, and they head to the NICU.) Maggie: Hey, guys. How are you? Andy: Sore. Have you done their checks yet? Maggie: No, I waited for you. Andy: Thank you.: End of Conversation After that, they do the baby's checks and do everything they need to do.

After a couple of hours, the discharge nurse finds Andy. They hang out at the NICU until three in the afternoon, and then Vic takes Andy home. When they get home, Vic unloads everything and takes it upstairs. When they go upstairs, Andy shows Vic around.

When they went into the nursery, they found the girl's furniture in their boxes, paint colors on the wall to choose from, and a ton of other items that they had gotten from their gender reveal party. Plus, a ton of other stuff. In her room, she found a pump set up beside her bed with a mini freezer as a nightstand, plus snacks and water. She also found her second pump downstairs by the front door ready to go. Vic was surprised that Robert did that, but Andy expected it. They ate dinner and then went and laid down in bed. They watched TV and fell asleep.