The little things

One of the biggest issues that premature infants have is lung immaturity. This is not a problem Blaise has. She was born crying. But we didn't hear her cry for three days after that because she was on a ventilator after her surgery. Now, (bad mom alert) I love to hear her cry. It reminds me that, in a lot of ways, she's just a newborn baby and prone to the random fits of rage that newborns have.

I've also learned to change her diaper. I thought I knew a thing or two about diapers, but I didn't know anything about changing a diaper on a baby with an ostomy. I know most new moms would gladly have an army of nurses around to change their babies' diapers, but I get a charge out of being able to do something for her. So my perspective is a little skewed: crying and diaper changes make my day.

We're trying to make sure we do at least some of the things we would do if we had her at home. Ben sings to her a lot; I don't, for reasons that are obvious if you have ever heard me sing. We also read lots of stories to her, including favorites of ours from when we were little, like Paddington and Where the Wild Things Are. Blaise also gets lots of cuddle time with both of us. We're nowhere near normal, but we're trying not to forget what normal looks like.