The White Family

My family’s story with this pregnancy began on August 31st, the day we found out we were pregnant, how far along we were, and that we finally had our girl. This is also the day that everything changed and went full speed.

During the appointment, I received so much information, which gave me a little anxiety. I was 26 weeks pregnant; my blood pressure was extremely high, and I started having contractions. My OB sent me to the hospital soon. As soon as I got there, I was hooked up to all these machines and given medication to stop my contractions, which only helped for a little while. They then noticed my blood pressure was getting even higher, so they let me, and my husband know that they were sending us to Savannah.
Once we got there, they ran a test that told me that there was something wrong with my umbilical cord and our baby wasn’t getting what she needed, so they wanted to put me on bedrest until we get closer to our due date. That only lasted four days – on the fourth day, when they came by to check on me, everything was going crazy. The doctor said at that point we had waited as long as we possibly could and needed to get the baby out immediately.

For the brief second, I saw her, she looked perfect, but so tiny. At birth, she weighed less than two pounds. After having her, I was in the hospital for three days, then was told I was being discharged but my baby had to stay in the NICU. It broke my heart. The hospital staff told me about the Ronald McDonald House, where I could stay as long as my daughter was in critical condition. So, I applied for a room so I could be close to her.

The staff at the Ronald McDonald House were amazing. Once I made it there, I did some paperwork and they showed me my room. I was still in so much pain from the c-section and crying because of the situation so they tried to console me. For the next 2 and a half months, the staff and my fellow families staying in the House became like family to me. I saw them more than my own family, with us living so far away, my husband having to work, and my other kids having to go to school. They fed us breakfast, lunch, and dinner, even providing snacks throughout the day. They also had little gifts for us and our babies.

The best part is that they knew how stressful and time consuming all of this. They took the time out to check on us each regularly, just to see how we were, how the baby was doing, and what they could do to help. I can honestly say they were a godsend during of the most difficult times in my family’s life. I don’t think we could have made it this far without them.

We have been home since the beginning of November, and everything is going amazingly. Our family is together again, the boys finally got to meet their little sister, and we’re just getting used to life as a family of six. Thank you so much to the Ronald McDonald House – you made it where I could just focus on my baby and my own well-being. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.