Meet Cooper

Cooper was born on February 3rd, 2021 at 24 weeks and 1 day. He weighed a “whopping” 1lb 13oz and was 12.5in long. He was at his birth hospital, Riverside Methodist Hospital, until February 14th, 2021, when he was transferred to Nationwide Children's Main Campus. We like to joke that he’s been stopping hearts since day 1, so it’s comical after the fact that he was transferred to Nationwide Children's on Valentine’s Day haha. 

We were told he had a pretty typical NICU course for a micro-preemie, but it honestly felt like anything but that most days. He had blood draws, IVs, blood transfusions, X-Rays, ultrasounds, feeding tube, and constant breathing support in the form of the ventilator, CPAP, and nasal cannula. They say having a baby in the NICU is like riding a roller coaster, and I think we got whiplash! He spent 115 days in the NICU and got to “go to the zoo” aka go HOME on May 29th, 2021. Being home after almost 4 months in the NICU wasn’t without its challenges though. We still had lots of specialist appointments — his pediatrician, Early Development Clinic, BPD Clinic, Nephrology, Opthalmology. He’s also seen Hematology, ENT, and Audiology, as well as had a couple of admissions since discharge from the NICU. We like to joke that he’s taking the grand tour of Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Through Early Intervention in our home county he also had regular visits with his amazing speech therapist, Sharon, until he turned 3 years old. 

Cooper just turned 5 a couple of weeks ago, and we’re truly in awe of where he started and where he is now. He’s caught up in size and development with his peers. He’s in his second year of preschool and will start Kindergarten next fall. He’s obsessed with dinosaurs, cars, trucks, anything that involves getting dirty, and playing tag, hide-and-seek, monsters, and floor is lava. 

He has two older sisters, who are equally smitten and annoyed with him, as well as a dog and 2 cats. As hard as it was having a critically ill child and navigating all the unknowns that come along with it, we truly believe it changed all of us for the better. It taught us to slow down, take life one day at a time, be flexible, and appreciate the little things. And as Cooper’s mom, I really feel like one of my life’s missions is to support other NICU families. We’ve met many amazing families along the way and have had the privilege of walking alongside them on their own journeys.

Of course we couldn’t have made it through without the love and support of our families, friends, community, and the incredible staff at Nationwide Children’s. They have loved and cared for our entire family as if we are their own. Even the days we couldn’t be with Cooper in the NICU, we knew he was being loved on and spoiled rotten. His NICU team, especially, became like family, cheering us on from the day he was born to the day he finally came home. We will be forever grateful for every single person who wrote a page in his story and for all the lessons we’ve learned along the way. And as our NICU Psychologist, Mara, reminded me often: “Two steps forward and one step back is still one step forward.”