Today marks week three of living inpatient at John's Hopkins. Our room is a nice size and includes a full bathroom, some small storage space, a one person sleeper sofa (for Jeff), great window view of the city, and a single hospital bed for Payton (and me!). We have slowly been decorating the room with some fun colors and pictures to make it feel a little more like ours.
Our unit provides a few amenities to help with long stays at the hospital. We have access to a family lounge with a shared fridge, microwave, toaster, keurig, water/ice machine, and some stocked dry food. On Thursday they normally have a free lunch for parents. There is a stack washer and dryer so we can do our own laundry. The unit also has a wonderful playroom for the kids. We can visit the playroom anytime or bring toys back to our room to play with. There are a few fun cars to ride in for laps and laps around the floor (one of Payton's favorites).
Payton gets unhooked from her IV during the day and we are welcome to take her downstairs for a walk around the hospital or even out in the courtyard. We make it a point to go for a 30 - 60 minute walk/stroller ride around the main floor of the hospital each day. We sometimes stop for french fries or another snack.
Food at the hospital is just fine. Payton gets to order a meal three times a day, typically this meal is shared with Mom or Dad (since Payton isn't eating a whole lot). We also have a nice cafe and bistro downstairs called Balducci's. The hospital has a pretty nice cafeteria, a Subway, Baja Fresh, Pizza & Pasta place, and Flamer's Grill. So we have some good options to choose from. Being in the city we also have endless options for take out food, most places can be delivered directly to the hospital through different deliver apps. Typically Jeff meal preps and brings his food from home. Most of you know Jeff loves to cook so I know this makes him happy and helps keep his hospital life feel as normal as possible.
I have nothing but good things to say about Hopkins, we are so thankful to be here. Yes, living in a Hospital is not ideal and we are sooooo ready to be home and sleep in our own beds. But they do make the say doable and as comfortable as possible around here. We are slowing getting used to it...
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