So Natalie has been home for about a week and half now. I will say I'm SO glad to have her home, but it is so much more than I expected. It was actually kind of nice to have the NICU nurses feeding her at 3 A.M.


When she left the hospital she was 5 lbs. 1 oz. Her first pediatrician appointment was the following tuesday. By then she was up to 5 lbs. 6 oz. That's my little porky! She sleeps ALLLLLLL day. Ah, how nice it must be to be a baby. She wakes up to eat about every 3 hours. This includes the middle of the night of course. She actually prefers to be awake in the middle of the night. She opens her eyes for basically the first time all day around 11 PM and doesn't close them again until about 5 AM. motherhood rocks. My parents and I have actually been taking shifts...which has been really nice. She doesn't cry (Thank God) Instead, she does this moan-y, grunt-y noise. the only time we get a real wail out of her is if she's getting a bath or a diaper change. You would think the diaper change wouldn't get a wail. I'd be happy for a diaper change. Sitting in a sack of poo would really put a damper on my day.





What I need to know is how new mothers learn to hold their tongue. Even though at the last weigh-in she was 5 lbs 11 oz, she's still very skinny and looks small. But in all honesty, I'm getting tired of hearing about it. Actually, I find it really offensive. Everyone who sees her says "oh my gosh, she's so small". At this point you smile and say "no ****" in your head. But then there's the people who just can't leave it alone. A woman in the pediatrician's office looked at her with the most surprised, horrified look on her face because of how small she was. This is the kind of person that I want to go punch that stupid look right off their face. And then there's the geniuses who make comments like "aren't you scared of her because she's so small?" No, she's my daughter. She's not small, she's perfect and if you can't be respectful then maybe you should keep your trap shut. I really think it's offensive. I already have enough anxiety about her being so early and how sitting around incubating for an extra four weeks after my water broke could have affected her, I don't need to deal with these idiots who want to put in their two cents. It makes me feel like I didn't do an adequate job growing her. Like, do they think I wanted her to be small? If I could have chosen, I would have gone the entire 40 wks.





Also, She's had a hard time with her umbilical cord. When she was born they told me there were a lot of ulcerations in the cord itself. they had NO idea why or what could have caused it. In addition to this, it was much harder than a normal cord and it was initially cut wayyyyyyyy too long. They ended up re-cutting it shorter the day she left the NICU. All the doctors in the hospital all said that they had never seen a cord quite like hers, but no one could tell me what specifically was so abnormal about it. So the visiting nurse came this week and we asked her to look at the cord stump because it still seemed unusually weepy/bloody. She sent us straight to the pediatrician who also "has never seen a cord quite like this". She immediately referred us to a general surgeon at the local childrens' hospital. So I went there today (after stressing all night about the idea of my newborn daughter having to get surgery). The doctor comes and examines Natalies cord. Guess what he says about it?! you've got it! "wow, I've never seen anything like this before" Are you guys freakin' kidding me!? the next person who says this, I am going to just blow up on them! On the bright side, no surgery yet. He decided to do Silver Nitrate treatments (it will probably take about 4 treatments because of how unusually thick and hard the cord is...go figure). I'm hoping it works because her little belly cord freaks me out.



\ this is the "i'm making poop" face. my favorite!

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She is so cute!!!! I have to say though, about people's comments, as a mom of 2 already, its just an unfortunate part of motherhood. If its not one thing, its another. My younger son is very cherub-like (OK, he's tubby, LOL) and I am not lying when I say I can't even get through the grocery store without at least one, usually closer to five, comments. Look at those cheeks, oh his chubby little arms, is he big for his age, are you worried, what do you feed him, and on and on and on. He also looks nothing like me so I get "he must look like his daddy" all the time which used to drive me nuts cause I'm the one who had to frigging go through pregnancy and I've bred my husband two little clones. Anyway, it is very very annoying but trust me, it happens to us all no matter what size or age our kids are. People can't mind their own business, but the good thing is that I think 99% of the comments don't have malicious intent even though sometimes we take it that way.
Monica

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Yay, we got a an update on you guys. Yes, motherhood can be so demanding, but it is soooo worth it. It does get easier and all of this will become so routine and you do get used to the lack of sleep. It is amazing how little sleep you can learn to life with and still function. You are doing a great job Momma and it sounds like she is just growing like a weed.

As far as the "She's So Small" comments....well just ignore them. I think she is absolutely gorgeous and she is just perfect. Just seeing her just makes me that much more excited to meet Kohen. Natalie is a doll!!! You know, people are just nosey and always feel like they have to put their nose in other people business. Just blow them off!! She's perfect, but this you already know.

As far as her cord...try not to stress about it. I know easier said than done. You've seen the doc and seen the surgeon and so far no surgery so that's a good thing. I also had to go back with DD for a silver nitrate procedure and it finally dried it up. Once her cord stump fell off she was left with an outie. Of course, I think it looks cute, but when she gets older she might not think it is too cute. She does have a hernia and the Pedi surgeon and Pedi said to not worry about it. They will re-evaluate it when she is 5 and then we will determine if it needs to be repaired or not. So, it has not posed any problems for us and as long as the Pedi says we are fine that is all that matters to me. My fingers are crossed that these treatments take care of Natalie's and there are no issues. I know you would like to get some answers concerning her cord and I hope that someone will be able to give you some answers so you can put your mind at ease.

So good hearing from you and as always we always look forward to your updates. Take care Momma!!!

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Aww Sarah I think she is perfect. She is so cute! I Love the pic. of you holding her, so sweet. You did a great job momma, just look at her. Some people just don't realize. vent away anytime you need to. BTW thanks for my sweet baby fix of the day, after the day I've had your sweet girls made me smile.

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Natalie is absolutely gorgeous!! She is precious. Love the pics especially mommy and Natalie. I am so sorry about the rude people. People don't have any control over their tongue sometimes and don't think about what they are saying and how it affects people. HUGS!! You're doing a great job Sarah!! Keep up the great work!

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Your little one is SOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL!!!!! She is absolutely perfect. I am sorry you are going though a hard time with her cord I hope the treatment takes care of it for you. Sounds like you are in good hands.

I am so aggravated with why ppl thinks its ok to comment on others UNSOLICITED!!!! That makes me sooooo mad.....I wish you all the best in keeping calm. I would truly just ignore them and NOT let them get to you. Their opinions truly mean nothing and all that’s important is what you believe. Hang in there girly you are truly doing a GREAT job!!!

BIG HUGS!!!!

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Amanda, James & Sweet Mackenzie

7/17 -3rd Laparoscopic Surgery for Endometriosis
8/07 femara & ovidrel First Cy..... 8/24/07
(After trying for 6 years on and off)

1st of all- what a doll! She is such a little cutie...the poop face is too much!

now: She's already up to 5 and 1/2 lbs!?! I say: Go Natalie! It's not easy being a preemie but she seems to be doing just fine. You did everything you could for her before she was born...you were already a great Mommy then keeping her baking for as long as you cold stretch it out- and you are continuing to be a great Mommy now- giving her every thing she needs to grow and thrive...which she IS doing.

Maybe you can try to say something along the lines of "Well, she's growing more and more each week/day...not too bad for a 30-something weeker, huh?" or the classic "Her pedi is very pleased with her size/progress/weight gain but thank you for your concern!" The others are right though...the comments never end. Sad but true...sometimes you'll be really good with the comebacks and sometimes not so much- I've found that even after nearly 5 yrs I am left stunned or speechless sometimes still!

I don't want to offer unsolicited advice on the days/nights sleep/awake thing ssooo just stop reading now if you are not looking for advice on the matter, k? ....

I don't know if anyone told you how easy it is for little ones to get their days and nights mixed up but it is something that happens often and easily. Sometimes to get them to straighten out their schedules you have to kinda show them that days and nights are different. Stimulate her more during the day- lots of eye contact, talking etc and bring her out into areas of the house that are lighter...sometimes you have to actively try and keep them awake for a while. At night tend to her when she wakes but try to do it in a very boring manner. Keep the lights as low as you can to still function, don't talk much and keep eye contact to a minimum. She wants to stay awake because it is exciting to her to have you look at her, talk/coo at her or to look at lights and stuff and the more stimulation she has the more she will want to be awake to have it continue. This never even occurred to me with my 1st son til my Mom pointed out that it was probably the reason he was so eager to be bright eyed and bushy tailed in the wee hours of the night. At 1st it seems a little odd- to feed w/o much eye contact or to change the diapers w/o talking to them but, believe me, getting a little more sleep (and enjoying those awake times during the day hours!) was enough for us to keep this routine with our boys! And it really worked...maybe it will for you too.

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Derek (DH), Derek II (DS), Sammy (DS)

Allison Rene
May 13th 2008
7 lbs 6 oz & 20 in long

thanks Brandy! I'll have to try that.

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