Some of Richmond's smallest residents got into the Halloween spirit this week, as babies receiving care in the neonatal intensive care unit at Virginia Commonwealth University's Children's Hospital were dressed in storybook-themed costumes. This year's lineup included Rainbow Fish, Tigger and Clifford the Big Red Dog, turning hospital bassinets into tiny stages for some seriously adorable cosplay.
According to WRIC ABC 8News, nurses and volunteers spent the past month sewing and assembling the costumes so families would not miss out on celebrating their babies' first holiday. The station reported that dressing up the NICU's tiniest patients has become an annual tradition for the unit, with this year's photos credited to VCU Health.
A Tradition That Started in 2018
The costume-making effort goes back further than this year's batch of storybook characters. VCU Health says its NICU team has been creating Halloween costumes since 2018, with nurse Katelyn Eutsler taking the lead on the project in 2020. In a past description of the effort, the hospital said the goal behind the tradition is simple: the whole point is to make sure no one feels like they're missing out on their baby's firsts.
In one recent year, the costume theme centered on classic children's books, with Rainbow Fish joined by the Tin Man, Corduroy and a litter of 101 Dalmatians. That year the team set out to make a minimum of 70 costumes, according to VCU Health, with nearly 15 nurses from the Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU gathering at a colleague's home to get the sewing done. The hospital credited its Junior Board, Senior Board, church small groups and even some of the nurses' own mothers with making about half of that year's costumes.
Richmond's Smallest Patients, One Year Earlier
The Richmond tradition has drawn attention before. Last October, more than two dozen babies in the same NICU celebrated their first Halloween in costumes based on children's books, as reported by WTVR. That year's festive outfits included the Lorax, Piglet from Winnie the Pooh, Princess Belle and Cinderella, complete with her glass slipper, with hospital staff dressing the babies ahead of Halloween.
Similar Scenes in Other NICUs Nationwide
Richmond is far from the only hospital finding ways to mark the holiday for its youngest patients. Babies in the Cleveland Clinic Children's NICU also dressed up this year, with outfits including a tutu-wearing pumpkin, a witch and a mermaid, per Talker. Nurse manager Kelly Yuhasz told the outlet that the goal is to give families opportunities to celebrate milestones with their babies just as they would at home, adding that little moments can mean a lot to families during what can be an uncertain time in the NICU.
On the West Coast, Mary Bridge Children's Hospital has its own version of the tradition. Nurse Jode Murphy made her first costumes for that NICU back in 2019, according to Seattle's Child, and the effort now stretches to fit patients ranging from micro-preemies weighing less than a pound to infants topping 10 pounds. Murphy told the outlet that the work is entirely voluntary, done on nurses' own time with their own supplies and money, and that families get to take the costumes home to keep, along with printed photos for anyone who wants one.
Back in Richmond, this year's crop of costumed newborns offers families another small but meaningful memory from a NICU stay, carrying forward a tradition that VCU Health says has been part of the unit's culture since 2018.
