Chapter 6: Hospital visits and Bonding Time
Alex had been home from the hospital for a week and since she had been home right after school she and Mitchie would go over to the hospital and spend a couple hours with Ariana before heading home for the night. Now, Alex had always been a little scared of hospitals, when she was only 5 and trying to learn how to ride a two wheeler with her dad in the park she turned too sharp and ended up breaking her arm from the fall she had. Ever since then she had hated going to the hospital. But she had sucked it up for Ariana and made sure she didn't miss a day going to the hospital. The first Friday she was home was a big day for her. That was the day she would finally be able to hold Ariana. Since Ariana had had quite a few wires it was hard to hold her without moving them and tampering with them. But now about half of the wires had been taken away and Ariana was doing a lot better. She was around four pounds and Dr. Robbins said that she would be able to go home in about 2 weeks. When Alex arrived at the hospital (Mitchie was away for the weekend visiting Family in Boston so she wasn't able to be there) she got to the NICU and saw standing by Ariana's incubator.
"Hey Alex, how are you?" asked as Alex walked in.
"Great, how about you?" Alex asked
"I'm good, and Ari's doing really well also. She's about 4 pounds now and thankfully isn't having any major complications." reported.
"Would you like to hold her now?"
"Yeah." Alex smiled as she took a seat. opened the incubator and slowly took Ariana out and put her into her mother's arms.
"I'll let you two be." said as she left the mother and daughter by themselves. Alex looked down at her daughter and her eyes filled with tears.
"Hey baby girl." Alex cooed as she stroked Ariana's cheek. Ariana's eyes opened and she looked up at her mom as she let out a little whimper. Alex smiled brightly and giggled. For the next hour or so Alex just sat in the chair with Ariana in her arms, happy to finally be holding her. While Alex was sitting in her seat with Ariana A couple, probably in their late twenties or early thirties, came in to sit with their baby and saw Alex. The mother looked and gave Alex an odd look.
"They're having kids so young now a days." The mother commented to her husband as quietly as she could. Alex had just managed to hear the woman's comment and wanted to say something but she decided it wouldn't be good to try and get into a fight with a stranger. It still hurt a little that people criticized Alex for having a baby so young, sure she knew that there would be some criticism but it had been worse than she had thought it would be. A few other couples had come in while she was there and said basically the same thing but like the couple now Alex tried not to pay attention to it. A little while later Alex had to head home and After Ariana had been put back in her incubator Alex drove home for the night. For the rest of the weekend after Alex was finished her shift in the shop she headed over to the hospital for a couple hours to see Ariana. As much as she loved having Mitchie there with her when she visited it was really nice just her and Ariana sometimes. The weekend passed too quickly and soon Monday morning had arrived. Mitchie and Alex headed to school as usual and their first class was Health. Their topic of discussion: Sex Education and pregnancy.
"Okay so now that we've looked into what it takes to financially take care of a baby; let's talk about what it takes emotionally. Can anyone give me some examples?" the teacher, Ms. Beckham asked. A few people put up their hands.
"Hannah." Ms. Beckham asked.
"You can pretty much say goodbye to sleep, because a baby will keep you up all night when it cries." Hannah Carlson commented.
"Yes, babies tend to save a great portion of their sleeping hours for the day time." Ms. Beckham joked.
"Anything else?"
"If you get pregnant as a teen, you probably won't have a social life anymore because you'll be taking care of your baby." Nichole Jenson piped up.
"And you could experience postpartum depression" Victoria Richards added. The list went on for a while.
"Great guys. Okay so how many of you want to have kids when you're older and married?" Ms. Beckham asked. Quite a few girls raised their hands.
"Okay then you might enjoy this next exercise." She said handing everyone a piece of paper with the instructions.
Write a letter to your future son or daughter, tell them what life is like now as a teen and what you've experienced in your life so far. It doesn't have to be detailed just a small letter they can read when they're older if you decide to keep it for them
"Whenever you're ready you can start." Ms. Beckham instructed. Alex thought for a moment and finally started to write.
Ariana
Well today you are 2 weeks old and still in the NICU, but said you should be out soon. When I found out I was going to have you I freaked out beyond belief, I was only seventeen, going to be eighteen when I had you, I didn't feel like I was ready at first. But grandma reminded me that things always happen for a reason. And then I met Mitchie who stuck up for me when I needed it most. Being pregnant with you was…an adventure to say the least. You kicked a lot and I'm pretty sure if it was possible you would have bruised the inside of my abdomen. The day you were born was both the best and scariest day of my life, you were nearly a month and a half early and the doctors couldn't stop you from arriving. At 7:42pm on May 3rd 2010 you were born weighing 3lbs 13 oz and 17 inches long.
I wasn't able to see you for 2 almost 3 days but finally I was able to see you after recovering from surgery. You had to be the most gorgeous baby I'd ever seen. And the tiniest. It took me a little while to think of the perfect name for you but the second I was finally able to see you I knew Ariana Ryan Faith Russo fit you perfectly. I made Mitchie wait 2 days before I told her your name and she instantly loved it. She had wanted me to name you Ryan after her cousin who she was really close with up until he passed away in a car accident when she was 12 so she loved your name from the start. And 2 days ago I finally got to hold you for the first time, when you looked at me with your chocolate brown eyes I had never been happier in my life.
Before I go on let me tell you about our family. Mitchie (who's already been mentioned once or twice) is the most amazing person I've ever known, I met her just after I realized I was pregnant with you and when I told your dad about you(which is a whole other story I'll tell you when the time is right) she supported me and stuck with me the entire time. The first time she saw you I knew you had her wrapped around your finger; heck so far anyone who's met you has been wrapped around your little finger, the Russo charm I guess.Your grandpa didn't want me to have you at first because I was so young, but now he's accepted the fact that you are now part of the family. Your grandma was the most supportive out of the family; she did everything possible to make my pregnancy with you as easy as it could be. But as hard as she tried there were some things she couldn't help (like so many people criticizing me for having you when I was so young).Your Uncle Justin is in College right now so he doesn't know as much about you as everyone here does. We get along really well and you're lucky to have him as your uncle. As for Uncle Max, well let's just say he's not the sharpest crayon in the box but you'll learn to love him, he's a great brother and he'll have no problem trying to get you involved with his schemes.
The first time I held you I started thinking about all the other babies born in the world, about how each one is born and put here on earth for different reasons. And looking back at what had happened in order for me to have you in my life now, sure it was a little surprising but I would change a thing about what happened. I promise that I will do everything I can to prepare you for what you will face in your life. I promise that I will never desert you, that I will always be here for you, no matter what hardships you face. I may not always give you what you want but I will always do my best to give you what you need. I may not always be the best mother but know I will always try my best. Above all else Ari, I promise that I will love you and do my best to make sure that you have everything you need. I finally realized that my life is no longer my own; it belongs to you now. You are my treasure. Never forget that.
Love you baby girl
Mom
" Okay everyone times up." Ms. Beckham called out. Alex checked the time to see how long she had been writing. 20 minutes. Never had she written something so long in such a short she was quite proud of her letter. Somehow the day passed by fairly quickly and soon Mitchie and Alex were going to the hospital for their daily trip to see Ariana.
"Do you wanna take a turn holding her today?" Alex asked on their way.
"You haven't had your turn yet."
"Sure, I'd love to." Mitchie answered, a smile creeping on her face. When they arrived at the hospital they waited for to greet them outside the NICU.
"Hey Alex, Mitchie nice to see you again." Dr. Robbins greeted.
"How are we doing today?"
"Great, Mitchie was wondering if she could have a turn holding Ari today." Alex asked.
"Sure, I don't see why not." Dr. Robbins replied. After washing their hands well the three girls headed in. The girls sat down and Dr. Robbins opened Ariana's incubator and slowly picked her up and placed her in Mitchie's arms.
"She's so little." Mitchie commented stroking Ariana's hand. Ariana looked up at Mitchie and the look on her face made both Alex and Mitchie giggle.
"Lex she looks so much like you its crazy." Mitchie said looking at the little girl.
"I know, thank god the only thing she got from Jacob was his straight hair, and that might not even stay." Alex replied.
After holding her for a little bit longer Ariana was passed over to her mother.
"I'll be right back lex." Mitchie said as she gave Alex a quick kiss and walked out to use the bathroom.
"Hey baby girl." Alex said looking at her baby girl. Ari let out a little whimper in response.
"Awe, what's the matter baby?" Alex asked as she stroked Ari's hand. She whimpered a bit more until Mitchie got back into the room.
"Back." Mitchie said as she sat by Alex.
"Look at that, two weeks old and she's already picked her favourite." Alex joked.
"What do you mean?" Mitchie asked.
"She was whining a bit up until you got back. You've turned her against me." Alex teased. Mitchie just giggled and gave Alex a kiss.
"I'm sorry; I swear I'll never to do it again." Mitchie promised. Alex just rolled her eyes and giggled. After staying a while longer the girls headed home for the night. Hoping that soon, Ariana would finally be able to leave the hospital and come home for good.
After 4 and a half weeks in the hospital and now weighing 5 pounds 8 ounces Ariana Ryan Faith Russo was released from Leonix Hill Hospital on June 6th 2010. As Alex got ready to head up to the hospital with Mitchie she was both excited and nervous. Excited because she was finally bringing her baby girl home but nervous because bringing her home meant it was all up to her now, no doctors, no nothing. After having a shower and changing into a pair of Skinny jeans and her dark blue raglan shirt Alex and Mitchie headed up to the hospital one last time to pick up Ari. Alex was relieved that today was the last day she'd ever have to walk down the hall and into the NICU. As per usual when the girls got there Dr. Robbins was there to greet them.
"Hey girls, ready to take Ariana home?" Dr. Robbins asked. Both girls anxiously nodded. Walking into the NICU Alex opened the Incubator and gently took Ariana out.
"Hey baby, you coming home today?" Alex asked. Ariana slightly opened her eyes before dozing off again. Alex giggled and got Ariana changed into a dark pink onesie with a baby lion on the front. Once Ari was put into her car seat and covered with a blanket and Dr. Robbins had gone over a couple things with Alex about things to watch out for since Ariana was a preemie, the three girls headed home.
"Finally, she's out of there." Alex said as she sat in the back seat of Mitchie's car with Ariana.
"It feels like she was in there forever."
"It did, isn't it crazy she's already a month old?" Mitchie asked as she drove.
"It is, hopefully time doesn't keep going by this fast, I want to enjoy her being a baby while it lasts." Alex replied. Within a few minutes Alex and Mitchie had arrived home and everyone was there to greet Ariana. Since Theresa and Jerry had only really seen their granddaughter through pictures they were excited to finally see her in person.
"Oh my god honey she's gorgeous." Theresa commented finally getting a glimpse of her granddaughter.
"She really is Alex." Jerry agreed. Alex looked at her parents and smiled. Just then Ariana began to whimper which eventually turned into crying. Alex quickly got Ariana out of the car seat while Mitchie heated up a bottle. Dr. Robbins said Ariana hadn't eaten much that morning so they figured that was probably the reason she was crying.
"Shhhh its okay baby girl." Alex cooed as she rocked Ariana back and forth. A couple minutes later Mitchie came back with a bottle and as soon as Alex gave it to Ari she finished it like nothing. The girls headed down to Alex's room and put Ariana in her Bassinet while she slept.
Little did Alex and Mitchie know it was just the beginning of a very long first night home for Ariana…
Okay sorry again this chapters on the short side, I PROMISE I will try and make them longer. So I have a question for all you readers out there:
How far do you want me to go with this story? How old should Ariana be when this story comes to an end? 3? 5? 10? 18? You tell me! Cause I have a few ideas for chapters I can do up till she's 18, just sayin'
