Premature babies in area NICUs had ghoulish fun dressing up ahead of Halloween

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Babies in hospital neonatal intensive care units (NICU) across the area showed their Halloween spirit ahead of the holiday.

Neonatal nurses at Rex shared photos of some of the premature babies dressed in costumes to get them ready for a festive week. The nurses told ABC11 that most parents welcomed the festive distraction during their children's time in the NICU, which can last for weeks or months.

Cape Fear Valley Medical Center also shared photos of the babies in the NICU dressed in costumes from the Cookie Monster and an M&M to a little with and a beautiful mermaid.

At Duke Health, NICU patients were dressed in costumes that were individually picked out or hand-knitted by the team at Duke Health, including twins who were dressed as "Thing 1" and "Thing 2".