NICU blues to thriving one-year-old

On her first birthday you would never be able to tell that Ivey had an unexpected start to life, one that her Dad Chris put to music in a YouTube video.



Ivey was born 12 weeks premature, weighing in at just 2 pounds 5 ounces and small enough her Dad’s wedding ring fit on her wrist.

She spent eight weeks in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Plano. In the video, her dad recalls fond memories of spending time holding Ivey in Kangaroo Care which helps preemies.

Today, though, she’s a happy, healthy one-year-old eagerly exploring by putting everything in her mouth and crawling around curious about her world.

For her parents, a recent visit to Texas Health Plano was a chance to repay some of the hope and inspiration they drew from photos of NICU success stories that line the halls of the unit.

“We knew she was getting the best care possible,” Chris said. “She’s doing so well because of all these amazing angels who work here. The work they do has an amazing impact on others.”

The family recently visited the hospital on Ivey’s first birthday, much to the delight of her former nurses who took turns gushing over how well she’s doing.

“We couldn’t do it without parents like you,” Veronica Schaedler, supervisor of the lactation support program at Texas Health Plano.

Mom Misty said that without the lactation support that Ivey might not have gotten to go home a month before her due date and that she might not have been able to keep breastfeeding given the challenges of a preemie. “It’s all worth it,” she said.

Ivey's visit to Texas Health Plano was covered by NBC DFW. You can see video of the visit here.