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A family's second chance at a first Christmas at home
Summary:
Erica and Brett Morrison spent last year’s holiday season in the SickKids NICU with their newborn son Jeff. Now, they’re preparing for their first Christmas at home as a family of three.
This December, Erica and Brett Morrison are looking forward to the little things: waking up on Christmas morning and eating breakfast with their son Jeff, opening gifts and taking a walk with their dogs on what they hope will be a snowy day. They’re especially looking forward to this year’s celebrations because of where their family spent last Christmas – in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids).
Jeff was born prematurely at 24 weeks in November 2023 and was admitted to SickKids because of suspected necrotizing enterocolitis, feeding intolerance and chronic lung disease.
Erica and Brett with Jeff in December 2023.
“Last year, we were still very much in the crazy part of the roller coaster with a lot of unknowns, a lot of ups and downs,” Erica says. At the time, it was “impossible to imagine what this year would look like.”
In March, when Erica and Brett got the news Jeff was close to being able to go home, they were in disbelief. It turned out his health issues were caused by his prematurity, in combination with GERD, or severe reflux.
“He just needed time and support while he continued to develop and grow,” Erica says.
Since coming home, Jeff has been healthy and is meeting his milestones.
“It’s really nice to reflect on how far he’s come, and how thankful we are for him being fully healthy,” Brett notes.
Jeff has had follow-up appointments at SickKids every few months since coming home and will come back until he’s a toddler.
The Morrison family.
At SickKids, where, for the first few months of his life he was too small to wear clothing, Jeff is better known by his nickname “Big Jeff.”
“We joke that he’s actually Big Jeff now,” Erica says. “I’m sure we get some funny looks if we use it in public, because looking at him, he isn’t actually that big – but he is to us.”
Big Jeff has recently “found his voice,” as his parents say, and he’s often crawling and wiggling around the house, chased by Erica.
“Jeff is tenacious and he is full of life, and very active,” she says. “It’s been amazing to see him come home and just continually exceed our expectations.”
A “second first Christmas”
Last year, with Jeff in the NICU, Erica and Brett came home for a day before Christmas. Their families decorated, set up a small tree and brought over food. They watched Jeff through a NICU camera, shared stories about him with their families and looked at pictures. Nurses in the NICU “were great at encouraging us to get out and to get home and have that family time,” Erica says, something the couple found “really helpful.”
Erica and Brett returned to Toronto to spend Christmas Day with Jeff at SickKids. Looking back, the dedication of SickKids staff stands out to Erica.
“They also have families at home when they leave and work their shift on Christmas, and I didn’t hear one single person complain that they’d rather be home. When they’re there, they are so amazing and compassionate and focused on giving the best care to these kids,” she says.
This year, the Morrisons are looking forward to travelling to see their families for Christmas. But Erica and Brett are especially excited for quiet time with Jeff at home on Christmas morning.
“I think both of us have memories of what Christmas is like with your family, and for me it’s always the basic things,” Erica says. “Being where we were last year gave us so much perspective and appreciation for those little things that we may not have had if the situation was different.”
They were excited to get their tree and look forward to bringing Jeff to their town’s Christmas events – and they’re hoping for a white Christmas, Brett says, so they can put Jeff in his snowsuit and let him enjoy the snow.
“We keep joking that it’s his second first Christmas, because we’re going to have the opportunity to redo everything that we would have been doing last year if we were able to have a regular first Christmas for him,” Erica says.
Celebrating the “little things”
The family’s first Christmas at home with Jeff is not their only big celebration this year. In November, the Morrisons celebrated Jeff’s first birthday with a big party with family and friends. It was a “very emotional” time, Erica says, and “a great way to celebrate where he is today.”
Jeff’s follow-up appointments at SickKids have also been standout memories from the year. Initially, Erica wasn’t sure how she’d feel coming back to the hospital because of all the hard moments and uncertainty the family had experienced – but she’s found she looks forward to visiting SickKids and stopping by the NICU to say hi. On a follow-up appointment on Halloween, she dressed Jeff up as a hockey player and brought treats to share with the NICU staff.
“It’s really special, and we’re always really proud to show him off and to have the people that were there with him right from the beginning see how well he’s doing and how far he’s come – and how big he is,” Erica says.
Other milestones stand out, too: when Jeff first started to crawl, sit, eat solids and when he had positive weight gain check-ins.
“It’s funny but it’s little things like that that we really celebrate,” Erica says.
Erica has been working on two baby books for Jeff: a scrapbook of his time in the NICU, including the notes she wrote from the daily rounds along with cards and photos, and another baby book that documents what happened once Jeff came home. She and Brett look forward to sharing their SickKids memories with Jeff so he can learn about the people and place that helped him.
They also make a point to speak to co-workers, friends and family to raise awareness about SickKids and the environment created at the hospital around the holidays.
“Before Jeff, I used to donate to SickKids, but I didn’t know much about SickKids,” Brett says. “I feel like it’s a good time, whenever I’m talking about my son, to bring it up and make people aware of all the good work that SickKids does.”
Erica notes they still have toys they were gifted at the hospital, and they are donating specifically to the Music Therapy program through SickKids Get Better Gifts.
“We’re making sure we’re highlighting those opportunities to people, because it was something that actually did make a huge difference to us around the holidays.”