Happiness is... the power of Ducky

So, I have to confess... when I said that I was alone with Miss Gracie yesterday, that wasn't entirely true. Meet Ducky...

... he was there, too. Ducky was in a basket that my brother gave us while I was in labor with Gracie. He was transported to the NICU with her the night she was born and has since been required to accompany her at every hospital stay. He's been present for every single hospitalization, every single anesthesia, every outpatient procedure, every surgery. His presence isn't so much a comfort to Gracie, as it is to us... and he is always the first thing we pack.

Yesterday, they kept trying to give him back to me, for fear he'd get lost - - which was sweet - - but I let them know that they just needed to pretend that Ducky was a part of Gracie. If they weren't planning on misplacing her, then they wouldn't misplace him. This earned a chuckle and then I explained his significance. I also let them know that Daddy wasn't going to be there, which was a first, so Ducky had an even bigger job.

I think the anesthesiologist, though a very tall man with an even larger presence, was a big softie about Ducky. (He also took an interest in signing and signed "duck" and "ready" to her... which is a first for any doctor, ever). Once he talked to me about Gracie, he made sure I saw that our stuffed friend was sitting at Gracie's feet keeping an eye on the recovery nurse. I think he, too, believes in the power of Ducky.