A New Addition to the What-I'm-Thankful-For List

"My what-I'm-thankful-for list, while genuine, is probably similar to many others who also love their family, baseball team, and lawn mower. But I have one more addition: the nurses of the Intensive Care Nursery (or Neonatal Intensive Care Unit - NICU) at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri."

"Our twin daughters were born Monday, June 2 at 8:46 and 8:47 p.m." wrote Jeremy Krashin. "Around midnight, they were transported from Shawnee Mission Medical Center to Children's Mercy Hospital (CMH), where they are set up to handle pre-28 weekers, while Julie and I dealt with a flooding barrage of feelings ranging from excitement to anxiety to fear."

"The NICU nurses at Children's Mercy Hospital work three 12-hour shifts per week from 7:00 - 7:00. They are in charge of two babies at a time and are constantly monitoring both of them, which means they are administering doctors orders, changing (and weighing) diapers, inserting PICC and mid-lines, taking temperatures, charting all activities, all while managing parent expectations and emotions. It might sound relatively routine, but I assure you it is not."