Here we are, it was Elisabeth’s first trip to the Minnesota State Fair. Chris and I weren’t planning on staying too long, I just wanted to eat a foot long hot dog and have a malt from the dairy building. However, Elisabeth was having so much fun we stayed for three hours!
I have come to the realization that if the baby gets a toy, Bear and Indie also need that same toy. So when Elisabeth was given a cute little rubber ducky for the tub the dogs thought it was to share.
It was not, in fact, no kid wants their toy covered in dog slobber.
The next trip to the store I picked up a couple of duckies for the dogs. Indie ate the beak off hers in a second and Bear is protecting his with his life.
You should hear the growling when Indie looks at it.
We had what turned out to be a full day of appointments at the U today. I think it was more stressful for me than it was for Elisabeth. She was a champ, except when she had her blood drawn.
Imagine being stuck in a closet, the door is closed, there’s a screaming baby and two lab technicians plus you…for fifteen minutes, did I mention you forgot your earplugs?
I thought I had reached my maximum capacity for stress…However, when I left the lab with said screaming baby, some weirdo came running up to us saying, “I’m the baby’s friend and I can stop her from crying.” Then he proceeded to repeat it over and over and over again.
So, just when I thought the world would end, an incredibly kind woman with two little boys approached us and gave Elisabeth this rattle. I was moved by the sweet gesture and my faith in humanity was restored with her kind words.
I plan to pay it forward.
Did you ever think hearing aids could be so adorable? Just when I thought Elisabeth couldn’t get any cuter…Did you notice they’re PINK! They have stickers too, she’ll have fun with those when she gets a little older.
I had no idea what to expect when the audiologist turned them on for the first time. Chris was holding her and Elisabeth was super cranky from all of the manhandling of her ears.
At the moment she could hear, her eyes became HUGE. She looked at Chris as he spoke to her she was amazed. When it was my turn to talk to her, she turned to me. That was the first time she’s ever heard my voice, she was mesmerized. It nearly brought tears to my eyes, I have never felt so much joy!
Chris and I have started out on an unforeseen detour in the life of our beautiful little girl. Elisabeth has significant hearing loss and will be getting hearing aids tomorrow. We are so excited for her to finally hear our voices!
I feel incredibly fortunate that she is growing up in a time that technology can enable her to hear. With the help of the hearing aids and discovering her deafness so early, she will learn to speak and live a mostly normal hearing life.
When Chris and I brought her in for the special test to determine the extent of her hearing loss I was really uneasy because I didn’t think she would be able to hear anything. After failing three hearing tests and not responding to the dogs barking or my voice, I just didn’t want to get my hopes up.
The non-scientific results of her test are: one ear is really bad and the other is sort of bad.
Chris and I were overjoyed she could sort of hear. I almost cried because sort of hearing is way better than not hearing anything.
I am staying positive about her hearing loss because it could be much worse. We also have an incredible network of support from her doctors, our family and friends. I do admit, I’ve had some nightmares about her getting bullied at school and her not hearing the fire alarm when the hearing aids are out at night.
Chris directed me to an article online about the top idea in your mind. You can read the article here. I tried it and felt like I was able to work a few things out…
My hope is that Elisabeth will get at least a bit of Chris’ quick wit and none of my aversion of confrontation. Most importantly though, we’ll teach her to be strong, self-confident and respectful and then she’ll be able to handle herself in any situation.
To solve the alarm concerns, there are special alarms made for the deaf and hard of hearing. When the time comes we can get those all switched over.
Soon, this uncharted territory will be a lot more familiar and I think the worries will dissipate too. We just need to get through the unknown and with new hearing aids tomorrow I can see a break in the clouds.
This just isn’t lasting long enough, Elisabeth is growing and changing so fast. She’s picking her head up during tummy time, smiling, giggling, saying ahhh and grabbing onto things.
I could never tire of watching her. All of the adorable faces she makes and some less than adorable faces too. Is that where “a face only a mother could love” comes from?
Well, I head back to work in two weeks…I’ll be ready, I think. I really miss adult conversations without a screaming baby in the background, I miss my friends and also, lunch breaks. Nobody tells you to say goodbye to lunch, but I try to get things ready the night before so I can graze on healthy stuff. Summer makes this easy, I love fresh raw veggies from the garden or the roadside stand near my house.
On a side note…I’ve decided that the nickname her dad picked for her, Isla, fits her personality perfectly. I couldn’t imagine her being named anything else. Chris and I have joked that were on Isla time since she was born because she and most new babies have no set schedule. Now that she is two months old she still has no routine or any signs of starting one. It’s a good thing she’s cute.
Indie and Bear are adapting well to life with a baby, they are especially in love with the walks down to the park to play catch!
I can be a tad compulsive when it comes to researching topics that have an interest in. I consider this my biggest character flaw, so does my mom.
So while I was pregnant, Chris and I took several baby classes at the hospital, they were invaluable. I needed more information though…I’ve never had any kids, I really wanted to know what to expect.
Most importantly, what did I need to have the first few weeks for this baby? I didn’t want to stop at Target on the way home from the hospital. Finding a list was really difficult for someone who doesn’t think they need every piece of baby equipment out there…So, here is my list:
For Baby
Car Seat
Bassinet (I did not think this was a must, at first. However, at 11:22 pm, 1:15 am, 3:02 am and at 5:08 am you will be glad you didn’t have to trek 12 paces to the baby’s bedroom to spend an hour feeding and changing her in your semiconscious state.)
2-3 Bassinet Sheets
5 or 6 cotton sleep sacks, they make nighttime changes a breeze (the kind that open on the bottom)
6 -onesies in 0-3 months, if you are having an average sized baby.
3-6 snap on t-shirts, size 3 months
6 pairs of super stretchy baby socks…You want them to stay on and they also double as mittens!
12 flannel receiving blankets minimum size 36 inches x 36 inches, these are great for swaddling your baby.
A changing pad and a cover, we just put ours on a low dresser.
A stroller or one of those carseat frame strollers is nice to have if you are feeling good enough to walk.
Baby wash, check out the Skin Deep website before deciding on which one to use. Forget the baby towels and wash cloths, just use the ones you use.
I suggest holding off on swings, bouncing chairs and the like because your baby may not like any of those things…Elisabeth does not. Fortunately, we were able to borrow them from Chris’ sister. If you need to set your baby down in a safe place you always have the bassinet and the carseat.
My splurge was a wool changing pad. This is Elisabeths favorite thing too. During changes she loves to lay there and marvel at her diaper covers hanging from above. It is just so snuggly.
Speaking of diapers, I use cloth diapers, I know your thinking, gross. But in all seriousness, I love using them on her. They’re soft and fluffy, I don’t need to throw them away, I have never had a poopy blowout and I don’t need to run to the store to pick up more. Plus they are easy to wash, we use our regular detergent but half the amount and to start do a cold rinse with no soap, then a hot wash cycle with soap and an extra rinse. Voila, they’re clean. Because I breastfeed Elisabeth there is no rinsing the poopy diapers, it’s water soluble. Here’s what I used to cloth diaper starting our first day home:
24 preemie prefolds
36 infant sized prefolds
OR 36 of these cloth-eez orange edge diapers…they are just the right size
5-6 newborn sized covers, I like these Mommy’s Touch and Bummis covers. Diaper covers are a personal preference and there are lots of great reviews at the Diaper Pin.
2 or 3 Snappi fasteners
40-50 cloth wipes
Some bum spray
Plastic garbage can with lid
Diaper pail liner
Diaper Bag
Wet bag (for the diaper bag)
For Breastfeeding
The phone number to the hospital Lactation Consultant, we had several visits with ours after leaving the hospital, she was great.
A double electric pump
A couple of bottles in case you have to leave the baby or have to supplement with formula.
Wool nursing pads, I don’t recomend these for their waterproofing but for they’re healing powers.
Lansinoh Lanolin
Flannel nursing pads to prevent getting leak spots on your shirts
A nice firm, flat regular pillow or a Boppy pillow for nursing support
For Mom
A clean house
A clean bathtub, you’ll be soaking your bum a couple times a day. When you get home you will be too sore to clean the tub, trust me on this one.
Frozen dinners
An ice pack, Ibuprofen, pads and tucks
A good parenting book, I actually liked the one my husband got for himself, Be Prepared: A Practical Handbook for New Dads.
Also, figure out how to turn off your phone ringer. It really stinks when it’s ringing off the hook and the baby is screaming…
You’ll also want to have a thermometer, one of those suction bulbs, a comb, and some formula samples. These items were sent home from the hospital with us, it’s a good idea to ask what your hospital will send with you so you don’t buy duplicates.
I hope this list helps you figure out what you need. Just remember the most important things, baby should be fed, changed and snuggled. That’s all our baby really wants, we find that even when we dangle exciting toys in front of her she’d much rather stare at us, kind of like this…
Okay after three weeks, Chris was booted off today. Well, actually he went back to work and I KNOW he’s coming back because this is where he left his iPad charger.
The day hasn’t been too bad taking care of a baby all by myself, I just can’t put her down. Not even for a second because she will scream, even if she is passed out napping. See a fit unfold (No babies were harmed in the making of these pictures):
Just waking up…
This was just a few seconds later. I left it in color just so you could see the angry, red face in all its glory.
I can’t believe Elisabeth is one week old today. It feels like she couldn’t be more than two days old. Maybe it’s because I have been completely deprived of sleep, it really seems like just two LONG days since she’s been born. My dad said I won’t ever sleep again… That doesn’t sound promising. Well, someone can sleep through anything.
Even after being posed, poked and prodded. She’s a good sport.
Today is the first day I really feel like progress is being made towards healing. I can be a bit obsessed with reading and studying all things unfamiliar to me and I thought I had prepared myself well for a new baby. The only thing I missed was the recovery portion of childbirth…I had no idea I would feel so uncomfortable afterward and still feel this way a week later. I am on the mend though. Also, it has really helped to have Chris around all the time, he’s been my gopher, dog-wrangler and baby changer. That takes a lot of pressure off of me, I have been able to focus on feeding and snuggling Elisabeth and getting back to my old self.
