My darling Emma is sleeping peacefully next to me. I swear everyday she grows. I know I have witnessed this with my nieces and nephew as well as all of my friends' children, but it is so much more profound when it is my offspring doing it.
The first two weeks were rougher than I had ever expected following Emma's momentous entrance into the world. As I mentioned at the end of the last post, we were released from the hospital but had to return twenty four hours later.
The reason for this was Emma's bilirubin count at her thirty six hour testing was elevated. Bilirubin is essentially the broken down red blood cells that the liver typically processes. More often than I realized, infants can have higher than normal levels which causes jaundice. Most babies flush it out on their own but in Emma's case the levels kept rising. They never reached the truly dangerous levels, but Emma did need phototherapy and formula supplementing to flush it out of her system. I am sort of getting ahead of myself...
I knew something wasn't quite right when our first night home when I had to wake her up every couple of hours to eat, and she wanted to sleep through the feedings. Also there was the yellow tinge to her skin... At our mother/baby visit the day after we initially went home she had to have another bilirubin check done; which exhibited that her levels had continued to increase. After a botched attempt to get an outpatient bili-blanket delivered in a timely manner, and conferring with the pediatrician that was on duty at the hospital we decided it was in her best interest to take her back to the hospital and get the treatment going.
The phototherapy they use for treating jaundice in newborns is essentially a tanning bed blanket (so to speak). It's a UV light blanket that gets wrapped around the baby's torso. The outpatient version is essentially the same but smaller and not as strong.
We were in the hospital for two nights, and then came home AGAIN Tuesday (December 10th) and had to continue with th photo therapy. It was difficult for me not being able to do skin to skin tummy time with her, and having to feed her formula and breastmilk from a bottle. I was an emotional wreck, and was crying at the drop of a hat. All the stress and worry, wanting her jaundice to clear up, frustration of having to give her formula, everything was just beyond what I had expected (but that's having a kid right?). Again, I can't begin to express how grateful and blessed I am to have my wonderful husband. He helped me out so much, and was so supportive while I dealt with my "baby blues".
What made this even more brutal was the knowledge of how finite Collin's time with us at home was (he started a new job on the 16th). We had constantly had to go to the lab for more bloodwork and follow-up appointments. I think we only had one, maybe two days at home between me being induced and Collin returning to work. The first eleven days were truly a whirlwind that flew by in such a emotional blur.
Collin began his new amazing job, and I had my first day home alone with Emma. It was one of the best days. Her bilirubin count was down to normal, and she didn't look like a lemon jelly bean. Collin enjoyed his first day at work. I was still emotionally raw, and getting to sleep was kind of tearful.
One of my biggest saving graces that first week flying solo during the day was K coming up Tuesday and Thursday to afford me a chance to sleep and shower (not that Collin didn't let me do these things LOL).
Wednesday the 18th was Emma's two week check up and we were ecstatic to learn that she had not only got back up to her birth weight but she was above and beyond it! It is typical of newborns to lose a small percentage of their birth weight immediately after being born but they like to see the baby's weight rebounded by the two week mark. Emma was born at six pounds but dropped down to five pounds eight ounces. At her two week appointment she weighed in at six pounds and ten ounces! Over a half a pound above her birth weight!
And that was the blurred beginning of this wonderful adventure called parenthood. For the next installment we will mostly just try and get caught up to current. The sad fact is knowing I will be returning to work in just over three weeks. I am excited (since I am getting a wee bit stir crazy and going for walks just ain't cutting it) and saddened all at the same time, which I know is perfectly normal.
So next post: the holidays, extreme gas, colic, and (depending on if I post before or after next Tuesday) a visit with my mother...
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