Well, the nurses are taking bets on when we’ll go home. We have 1 each for June 1, 2, 3 and 4. Even if it’s later than that, it’s exciting to know we’re closing in on the final stretch.

Tess is eating more and more from the bottle. She needs to work on getting those burps out without spitting up dramatically, but it’s a new skill. She had a humongous burp, but was really tired today. This afternoon they tried a faster-flow nipple, and after a milk-bath shock of a first mouthful, she did quite well. She’s been more alert the last week or so than I’ve ever seen her, and we’re getting lots of smiles – she’s such a heartbreaker!

Drew and Viv headed to the aviary and Park City today. Dave was with Tess, and I was working and doing laundry. Weather wise, I think the visitors got a bit screwed; it’s quite wet out. For me though, it’s lovely to be ‘home’ doing quiet things during a thunderstorm. Our room here has lots of windows that look out into trees, so it even feels a little like our room at home.

The quiet NICU activity has been nice. Feedings, diapers, baths, snuggling. Most of the super worrisome stuff is behind us, and the routine is just that: predictable and stable for the most part. We’ve turned the corner from the desperate feeling of frozen time (days 50-70) and are more aware of what, or who, we’ll be leaving behind.

Salt Lake city has been incredibly kind to us. We’ve gotten to know the awesome people we see every day, the beautiful parks on our route, some fun restos where we’re regular customers…I miss home, but I think this town will always be special to us. Ditto for the NICU and the Ron McDonald house. I’m glad that the gratitude and awareness of it surfaced far enough in advance of leaving that we can enjoy our favorite people and things as the date draws closer.