Health Nurse's Visit

This morning the nurse from the Public Health Unit came for a visit to check in on me and Ryan. I've said yes to this visit for all 3 kids because I think it's a good idea to have another medical professional take a look at the baby, plus there's always new questions I have about me and baby each time. You know how every birth/pregnancy/baby is different.

So, here's Ryan's latest stats, at 3 and a half weeks old: he is 7 lbs., 10ozs.; still about 20.5-21 inches long; and his head circumference is 14 inches.

He is doing fantastic! So, he's gained about a pound since he was born. (It's funny: at 3.5 weeks, he's still smaller than even Andrea's birth weight-- 7 lbs., 12 ozs.). He's now eating an average of 3 ozs. every 3 hours, which also right on target for his age.

I had the nurse look him over for jaundice, and she said his colour is great--no signs of jaundice at all. We talked about some gassiness/fussiness he's had, and she said it sounds normal. She checked his reflexes, and he was very responsive. He was also bright and alert while she was here (which is actually a bit unusual for Ryan!). I asked her about his dry skin, and she said it's okay to try some lotion on him now. (We held off before because the NICU nurses had warned us about sensitive preemie skin.) Actually, Ryan's got a bit of a sore bum right now because he has so many BMs--an unfortunate side effect of immature digestive system combined with newer formulas that have special (but healthy) oils in them. So, on with the rash cream and cut down on the wipes because they seem to irritate him, poor baby.

All in all, Ryan is a beautiful, perfect baby. This nurse (like lots of others) just kept saying how perfect he was, and how he doesn't look like a preemie at all!

As for me, I am doing okay. I am feeling the normal exhaustion, but the incision is healed and pain pretty much gone. I am having a little problem with bleeding. It was almost done, but I suddenly had some small clots and increased bleeding in the last few days. The nurse said it might be I overdid it and accidentally popped a stitch inside, or maybe it's part of having the tubal ligation, too. It's not really bad, but it's something to keep an eye on. If it worsens, I'll call the doctors, so don't worry everybody!

Overall, Ryan and I are doing very well. :))