NICU Tours, Noodle Detours & Oodles of Baby P Updates
Big Conference Day for Baby P
Hello Friends to the first Mitch post. June 18th we had a joint conference with Baby P’s full medical team. This well-attended event helped to coordinate the following UPDATED schedule for Baby P’s delivery:
The short and sweet is, we are celebrating stable for Baby P. His growth ultrasounds and echocardiograms have provided us that reassurance.
Thursday July 10th 5AM – Joyce, Mitch and baby P check into St. Josephs
Thursday During the Day (Please) July 10th – Joyce delivers Baby P (Great Job Joyce!).
Thursday within an hour of Baby P’s delivery – Baby P and Mitch make the journey through the tunnel from St Josephs Hospital to CHOC NICU.
Thursday July 10th – about an hour after delivery – Baby P has his first operation – a septostomy – if needed to stabilize oxygen mixing in his heart.
Thursday July 10th – post oxygen stabilization until sometime between July 14 th to July 18 th –Baby P chills out in the NICU.
Sometime July 14th to July 18th – Baby P undergoes an arterial switch open heart surgery.
Post OP – Baby P recovers CVICU (Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit) while recovering and learning the proper ways to
baby.
End of July to August – Baby P departs CHOC for home.
People have been clamoring since my Mission Hospital food reviews during Donavon’s delivery for a new food review.
I’m happy to oblige.
Nguyen’s Kitchen – 445 S Main St Unit B.
What did I eat? Garlic Noodles with House Chicken.
Should you eat this food between one medical appointment and a large conference with a bunch of teams of doctors? No.
Why not? The generous portion of yakisoba noodles were delicious – thoroughly bathed in butter and garlic. The house chicken was tender, well marinated and perfectly cooked. The noodles came out piping hot in a convenient cardboard take out bowl. The noodles were so hot that I was unable to consume a significant amount of them between the appointments – Joyce had offered me a maximum three minutes to eat as many as possible before walking to the next appointment – the big conference with the whole team we had been planning for months.I tried my best in the three minutes but nearly burnt my tongue and resigned myself to eat them later. Packed into a paper bag – covered already in leaked buttery deliciousness – the noodles embarked on the walk to the hospital conference room.
Outside the temperature was a moderate mid 80s with a light breeze. Despite the breeze, the aromatic appeal of the noodles was unmistakable, even from a significant distance. I felt caution entering the hospital – I almost threw the noodles out – fearing their strong odor would impact our conference. I did not, dear reader, ultimately feel it was moral to leave behind such valuable food. The noodles lived on.
The bag resided in the hospital conference room through the arrival and intermittent departure of our full medical team. Sue, our coordinator, commented on the noodles – reassured me that it was ok to keep the noodles upon arrival – before quipping “don’t forget your stinky noodles” as we made to leave the conference room to start the hospital tour. Thank you Sue for everything. I am sorry about the stinky-ness of the noodles.
The noodles embarked on a hospital tour that follows closely the journey that Baby P will do – the noodles went from the delivery room to the recovery room through the basement tunnel and to the refrigerator in the eating room outside the NICU (food/beverage are not allowed into the NICU). This fridge is loaded with all the items to be consumed by the visitors and occupants of the NICU. As you can imagine, it is packed and all neatly labeled.
The bag, which had started to lose its integrity leaving the restaurant, was now making its fourth stop. The accumulation of spilled oily noodle deliciousness had teamed up with the crumpling of the paper bag due to the adjustment and readjustment of the bag’s makeshift rolled up handle in my sweaty and nervous palms. As I placed the noodles carefully in the NICU fridge – I was certain that their dismal appearance and strong stench would get them thrown out before I could return. Prepared for that disastrous consequence – I said goodbye for now.
While we toured the NICU and CVICU – the noodles took a breather in the cool confines of their temporary home. About 45 minutes later, the second nurse managing our tour, was reminded kindly by Joyce in the elevator to allow us to stop back – yes, we had to backtrack – to the noodles in the NICU fridge. So, we crisscrossed the hospital again and I was sent sprinting from the elevator to the NICU fridge. More food had accumulated in the fridge during our tour – and I quickly scoured the manyshelves for my tattered and worn bag. Finally, I found it, now behind a bag of sub sandwiches. I carefully retrieved my bag rotating and working the noodle bowl to avoid knocking the food of others – some of whom were now eating in the room and watching me work in the fridge.
I was an interloper – they were enjoying their food – or enjoying their respite from the NICU – or more than likely not enjoying anything they were doing at all and just surviving. I desperately didn’t want to knock any of these people’s food out of the fridge.
Finally, I raced back to the elevator with the greasy bag only to hear the elevator alarm blaring – the nurse was beckoning me, faster! We need to stop holding up the hospital elevator over your noodles.
I jumped inside, the elevator descended – finally our long hospital tour was over. One more crisscross of the hospital landed us back outside the hospital doors. I sat in the sun at the only unoccupied table. I ate the noodles.
They were delicious; far better than I had remembered. They had been so hot initially that they distracted from the flavor. They had mellowed and aged in their journey – they were prepared.
Prepared just like we are. What did we learn from the noodles - it may be more complicated than we want, it may be tough, it will be a journey – but there is no doubt it will all be worth it.
-MItch
