May 7

You're doing WHAT with that washcloth??

Today was a fun day, as we decided that Elsie desperately needed a bath. I was worried that she wouldn't like it this time, but much like the first time we gave her a bath, she loved it. In fact, she was so relaxed, being wrapped up in a snuggly "Finding Nemo" fleece to keep warm, that she let "it" all loose. Yep, she pooped in the bath tub. Oh, Elsie! So the nurse hurriedly filled another bath tub, and we transferred her to the clean tub and started washing her again. Aaaaand then, she pooped again. So funny, we were all dying with laughter. All of us, of course, except for the poor nurse who had to fill up yet another bathtub and clean out both poopy ones. Hee hee hee. We hurried to get her all clean before she pooped again, but luckily, the third bathtub was the charm.

Let me just tell you, having to pull back several layers of chubby chub-chub to get to the crevices filled with lint and other unknown substances that are stuck beneath her fat rolls, it's probably one of my favorite things ever. Compared to the little stick-figure baby that she used to be, with legs and arms as thin as a pencil, she's amazingly chubby in a healthy way, and I absolutely love it.

After the bath today, she was still wide awake and pretty happy, so it was a good time to thrust her upon my bosoms. Yesterday, the nurse and OT worked with Elsie on her feedings by putting drops of milk in her mouth while she was sucking on her pacifier. She seemed very happy with this situation, and the OT feels like it helps Elsie to understand what to do when milk is in her mouth. I was still a little apprehensive; after all, it's been about ten days since our last (and first) successful breastfeed. We just keep running into bad timing issues. But she did have surgery a week ago, and it seems that she is finally fully recovered and back to where she was developmentally before that darn surgery disrupted her life. So the boob is introduced to the baby again (so sorry, by the way, for all of you who cringe each time I mention my glorious breasts. Hey, it's part of life, and I'm getting less and less self-conscious about it with each new person who has to observe the feeding lessons, so deal with it!), and Elsie latches on! Hooray! She has to be reminded to breathe, but still does a champion job. Normal full-term babies can take about 20-30 swallows before having to stop and recover their breath; Elsie can take 5 or 6. Then she stops sucking, breathes heavily like she's just finished the 100 meter dash, and then continues feeding. The good news is that she is feeling comfortable enough to continue feeding. This is huge progress.

Then, after a few minutes, Elsie stops nursing and starts squirming uncomfortably. The OT suggests that I burp her, and so I put her to my shoulder, and pat her on the back. She lifts her head, looks right at me, and makes the loudest belch I have ever heard come out of a baby. It was so big that it was more like a gag instead of a burp, and I was expecting projectile vomit to hit me right in the face. Lucky for me, it was just air and she kept all that good milk inside where it belongs. Oh my, we were all laughing so hard. Soo so so glad that she didn't spit up in my face.

They swaddle her in a towel or blanket while bathing to help her stay warm and feel secure.

Rinsing off the bubbles.

Love this cute picture! Doesn't it just look like she's sitting on a cloud? Sweet little smile :)