Today is a great day for Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jay Jackson and his partner. The couple announced on Instagram that they’ve welcomed their son JR home after 166 days in the neonatal intensive care unit.
“Got an unexpected surprise on Tuesday, a day earlier than we planned, but we got the best Christmas present ever — welcome home JR!! 166 days of loving you in a NICU, we finally get to love you at home,” reads the joint Instagram post made by the couple.
The pitcher and his fiancée announced the birth of their son back in July. The baby came 15 weeks early.
In their recent joint Instagram post, the couple thanked the team at the University of Utah NBICU that took care of JR.
“We cannot thank the University of Utah NBICU enough. To his primary nurses — Mariah, Lisa, Katey, Harper, Anna — you are all incredible. You are his extended family and the most amazing women,” the couple said through the social media post.
“You guys kept him safe and kept me sane. I couldn’t have asked for better primaries. Elisa, Jeanette, Krista, Tamika, OT Krista, Kristen, Ashley (his first frenemy), Brett, Allie, Shay, and Adrian — thank you so much for everything.”
The couple also took some time in the post to thank the support system that they had outside of the hospital, including other family members.
“Thank you to our family and our older kids for being patient, loving, and incredibly helpful while we spent 166 days commuting back and forth every night. Thank you to everyone for checking in on the family and the prayers and positive thoughts. Reading other NICU stories and getting messages about amazing NICU babies helped us stay positive on a very long journey.”
The pitcher provided regular updates on his son’s status throughout the journey, including the time when he first got to hold his son.
“Without a doubt, the best Christmas gift ever,” the couple ended their announcement.
The 35-year-old pitched 29.2 innings for the Blue Jays last season.
Full article can be found at: https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/blue-jays-jackson-son-home-nicu