Surgery to Bring Him Home

On his 100th day in the NICU, our sweet baby Thatcher is preparing for his next big fight.

On his 100th day in the NICU, our sweet baby Thatcher is preparing for his next big fight: G-tube surgery, likely next week. Since his lungs aren’t strong enough to orally feed safely, he needs a surgical feeding tube through his stomach to be able to come home.

The surgery will require him to be intubated again, which is scary for his fragile lungs. It risks setting back the progress we’ve made weaning him off intensive breathing support, which took three months. But Thatcher has proven to be a fighter, and we know he can handle this, too.

The hope is that after he recovers from surgery, Thatcher can come home with his g-tube and oxygen. If we get to that point, it won’t exactly be the homecoming we imagined. It will be a new kind of hard for our family, juggling medical equipment, his twin brother, and three other kids running through the house. But finally, after six long months, our family of seven will be together.

In time, we are hopeful Thatcher can make a full recovery and outgrow the need for medical support. We don’t know how long that will take, but hopefully no more than two years.

After Thatcher and Briggs were born, my husband read me a quote from former Prime Minister of the UK Margaret Thatcher: “You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”

Without knowing how many times we’d have to fight for our boys, or that some of our hardest fights were still ahead, the quote resonated with me.

100 days later, it’s more true than ever: We’re preparing our baby for surgery, and preparing our family for a new kind of “normal” at home. I don’t expect much about these next 100 days to be easier than the last, but I have faith that we’ll find peace being able to continue this fight at home.

As we get ready for this next chapter, we appreciate the continued love and prayers. We are beyond blessed to have so many people supporting us through this journey and rooting for our miracle boys.

Yes, Thatcher and Briggs had a difficult first 100 days. But because of this battle, they have an entire lifetime ahead.

Photos by Hannah Marie Photography.