A Trifecta of Experience

At 2 days old, Melita was suspected to have a hip 'click' and we were told she had slight jaundice. The hip 'click' would require an appointment with a orthopedic pediatric specialist to fully diagnose and she was prescribed window treatment for her jaundice. We were discharged from the hospital on Wednesday. On Friday we had a follow up appointment with the pediatrician to assess the jaundice.

At 4 days old, we were told that Melita's jaundice had gone up to the point that she needed to be treated medically with a bili-blanket which is essentially a fiber optic blanket that is wrapped around the body and emits an ultra violet light. Reagan dubbed it her "Michael Jackson Hyperbaric Chamber."

Meanwhile, I had been breastfeeding Melita. When I found out her jaundice had gone up, our pediatrician recommended I see a lactation consultant a.k.a. La Leche Nazi to get help with the breastfeeding. The level of jaundice Melita had caused her to be very lethargic and fussy thus making feeding a nightmare. After trying for 45 minutes to get her to latch, she would then feed for about 4 hours on and off only to never be able to suck hard enough to get any sustenance. The decision was made to pump and supplement each feeding with formula until the jaundice was brought under control i.e. Melita pooped. My weekend was spent alternately putting Melita under her bili-blanket and pumping for 30 minutes in 2 hour increments. And anticipating our appointment with the orthopedic pediatric specialist on Monday. It was a looooong weekend.

On Sunday morning, after giving Melita her last ounce of breast milk, I made the decision to stop pumping. Honestly, at this point we had more important things to worry about than pumping breast milk. Reagan agreed with my decision and apparently so did my body. The minute I decided not to breastfeed/pump, my boobs immediately dried up. There was no engorgement and my boobs are actually the smallest they have ever been in my entire life. Of course, Reagan was the one to notice how small they had gotten. I sat back and (tried) to enjoy my first stiff cocktail in 32 weeks.

At 7 days, we learned Melita has hip dysplasia. It's not very common-only4 in 1000 births. But is treated very easily when discovered at birth. Melita will have to wear a Wheaton-Pavlov Harness that holds her hip into place while she grows for a maximum of 12 weeks. We have a follow up appointment in 2 weeks to check the progress. At that time, if things are looking good, she will only have to wear the harness when she sleeps. The harness makes everything look much worse than it is. Where we used to call Melita our little monkey, she is now undoubtedly our little froggy.


And so goes my first week of motherhood. I feel like I have barely had time to breathe yet I feel so different and excited and happy and in love. I never knew I could be so giddy even when working on 3.5 hours of sleep or that I would ever be okay with not keeping to a schedule. But I am. I think becoming a mom is the best thing that ever happened to me. It also helps that Reagan is the best husband /dad on the planet.

And Bungy, he is over the moon about Melita as she has quickly become his baby to take care of. He is constantly watching over her and is the first to rush to her side when she cries. When we go for walks, he insists on being right beside her stroller and is quick to let out a warning growl whenever anyone gets too close.
All in all we are doing okay and are looking to many more adventures.