Shots, Doctors, and the Milk Cow

It's nice when the milk cow feels like she is doing her job well. It helps make up for walking in to the doctor's office feeling like you're about to receive the Incompetent Mother of the Month Award.

Miss Gabriela had her first appointment with the pediatrician yesterday afternoon. We took her in to a vaccine clinic just before her appointment to get her newborn shots (Hepatitis B and BCG here in Brasil.) The nurse at the clinic asked if she was our first child and when we said yes, she started to explain the BCG vaccine to us. It is given to protect children from tuberculosis. And it leaves an open wound on her upper arm - that could bleed and ooze for up to 6 months according to the nurse. Oh, and it will leave that scar that you see on all Brasilians. And then she pulled out a reference book and showed us pictures to make sure we understood what she was telling us.

Whoa, hey, back-up . . . you want to do what to my child? I know that scar well. My parents have it. Eric and I had noticed it on people our age here, but assumed that Brasil just didn't update the method for vaccinating as early as the US or something. After some research, I now know that the US doesn't vaccinate against TB anymore . . . and that in the 100 years this vaccine has been around they haven't developed a better way to administer it. (Time out on all the hard to fix problems of the world for a moment - we can send people to the moon for goodness' sake, can't we find a better way to vaccinate babies against TB?!?)

Eric and I left the clinic with our kiddo only getting the Hepatitis B shot. In the thigh. With a normal needle. She only cried for 5 seconds. The way vaccines are supposed to go for a baby, in my opinion. We told the nurses we needed to do some more research before agreeing to permanently scarring our daughter's arm. And taking on caring for an open wound that may or may not really be necessary.

She's liking bath time with Daddy more and more these days.

So we went on to her doctor's appointment after that. I knew she was going to ask us if we'd gotten the kid vaccinated. I wasn't really looking forward to answering that one since I hadn't done the BCG research yet and had no argument against the vaccine except - it looked like it would hurt and I'm not sure I want my daughter to have that scar. I highly expected it might get me a nomination for Incompetent Mother of Month.

And that was on top of my first concern of the pediatrician-appointment-day. With two weeks under my outside-of-the-womb-care, and over a week and a half of successful cloth diapering, Gabriela had had a perfectly healthy hiney. No skin irritation, no pink bum, no need for any diaper rash cremes, nothing but skin as smooth and soft as, well, a baby's bottom. So imagine my dismay when she wakes up yesterday morning and from the bottom end it appears that a baby baboon has escaped from the zoo and crawled into Gabriela's pajamas and replaced my sweet baby girl while we were all sleeping. Poor thing. She had the brightest red hiney! It seems that the remnants of digested breastmilk produced from calories provided by spicy Mexican food has roughly the same effect on my child's skin that pure battery acid would. (Explains why she cried while filling up that diaper though!)

So now I look like the mom who lets her new baby sit long hours in dirty diapers. And doesn't bother getting her vaccinated. Score.

My little princess showed off her exhaustive list of tricks yesterday highly impressing the doctor though. She peed on the doctor, pooped on the scale, spit up on the exam table, and screamed like a banshee the entire time the doctor examined her. For extra credit, she also poked out that pouty bottom lip as far as it could possibly go to show her displeasure with the whole experience.

I grew up showing sheep and beef cattle with 4-H and FFA. But I swear I haven't trained my daughter to assume this 'show animal' position! (Although her form is good, huh? Head up, arms and legs squared up, back straight . . . )

Luckily, she checked out just fine at the doctor's office. And she has grown: 3 cm longer and about a half pound heavier since birth. So I might have redeemed myself a little - she didn't appear to be completely neglected. Her mother might seem incompetent, but at least the milk cow has been showing up to feed her!

Her cheeks might be getting chubbier, but none of that weight has gone to her legs yet!

A Day with the Drama Queen

GABRIELA: I'm here for my close-up, Mother.

GABRIELA: What do you think? Pouty lips are in this season, no?

GABRIELA: Do you really have to use a flash?



GABRIELA: This isn't as much fun as I thought it'd be.

GABRIELA: Really, stop taking pictures!



GABRIELA: I'm calling my agent!



GABRIELA: This is too hard, I need a break . . . maybe a nap.



GABRIELA: Ahhhh, sweet rest.



ME: Won't you please give us just one smile for the camera, Gabriela?

ME: I'm going to take that as a "no".

Labor Day and Gabriela's First Mug Shot

Yesterday was Labor Day down here, so Eric had the day off to play with Gabriela and me.

If it seems like he has had a lot of days off lately - he has. April 3, 10, 21, and May 1 were all holidays here. Which all happened to make long weekends. So in the last month, he's only worked one full week. Gotta love it when the holiday schedule works out like that. Obviously, we didn't consult the holiday calendar before procreating. Can you imagine all the traveling we could have done if we weren't 9+ months prego/with a newborn? We'll remind her one day of all the sacrifices we had to make for her . . . meanwhile, I guess she's worth it. ;)

We decided to head to the plant/flower market yesterday. It comes around every Friday, but only runs until dark so Eric never gets to go with me. We loaded up and drove down there, taking along Gabriela's car seat carrier stroller (which actually fits in the Punto, as opposed to her jogging stroller which doesn't stand a chance of getting into the trunk.)


It's going to take me a while before I get used to being stopped everywhere I go for people to ooh and aaw over the baby and ask all about her. I was so anonymous before baby - but I think my days of going out for a walk and not having to necessarily talk to anyone are over!


Like all the interesting things we've done with the little squirt so far, she slept through the whole thing. Which is probably just as well. At home, I've found that she much prefers staring at the blank white wall or the ceiling than any of the brightly colored, noise-making toys I wave around in front of her. Newborns really have no appreciation for quality entertainment nor culture experiences. hehehe

I think our favorite part of the market is the setting. The fresh cut tropical flowers, gorgeous orchids, and lush potted plants are great too, but the corridor of gnarled old trees and the cool, fresh air when surrounded by so much green is most fabulous!

Today Eric wanted to try out our Babybjorn carrier. It was a little breezy and overcast this evening, so we put a hat on the little monkey before going for a walk.

I promise she is awake sometimes. Just not much longer than it takes her to get her belly full.

We're thinking Little Miss might be seeing lots of miles in this thing. Hopefully she'll continue to like it.

And for today, I think I'll leave you with her very first mug shot. Glassy, half-opened eyes, messed up hair . . . wonder what she's in for?




Actually, the way it went down was this: we have an appointment with the Polícia Federal on Wednesday. They're the ones who handle passports in Brasil. Our little brasileira needs her Brasilian passport before we can leave the country with her. And before we go to our appointment, we needed to have a passport picture taken. To meet the photo requirements, she had to be sitting up, looking at the camera, eyes open, and with no other person/hands in the photo. Ever tried getting a shot like that from an eleven day old baby?

They gave us a tall stool for her to sit on. So Eric and I crouched on either side of her each using one hand to support her from the side and the other hand to support her back and head - all while trying to keep our hands out of the picture, keep her awake, and keep her head from rolling forward. She did great though and it only took three pictures to get one we could use! Of course, Chick had car seat hair like nobody's business and no amount of Momma spit was helping. (Is there a certain amount of time that has to pass before my saliva officially becomes 'Momma Spit'? Because I don't think it has the proper molecular make-up quite yet . . .)

And the most important rule is

Muzzle Control.

That was a concept really drilled into my head back in my 4-H shooting sports days. (I started out competing in BB gun matches as a youngster and went on to shotgun and air rifle competitions in high school.) In other words, pay attention to where you are pointing your gun.

My husband should have stayed awake in his hunter's safety class. I think he missed the part about being cautious with loaded weapons.

(Caution: Graphic material. Not for weak stomachs.)

She got the changing table.

And she got Daddy.

And she got the floor - up to roughly 3 feet away from the changing table.

For those of you without newborn experience: yes that is what breastmilk poo looks like.

For those of you with only boys: changing girl diapers can be challenging too.

For those of you expecting your first child in the near future: remember that when dealing with a loaded weapon, muzzle control is the most important rule. Don't point at anything you don't want to get shot.

And for those of you still wondering what the heck happened: Daddy was changing Miss Gabriela tonight. He lifted her little hiney up to give it a good cleaning when he heard a gurgling sound. He instinctively lowered her down a bit, but not before the explosion occurred. He called for help and just as soon as I got the camera and took some pictures and quit laughing, I gladly helped him get things all cleaned up - and quickly get a diaper on the little miss.

But Daddy's a trooper. He's a brave one. He's back there changing her diaper again right now as I type. And I assume being a lot more careful where he aims that itty bitty hiney!

1 Week Old

As of yesterday, she's been with us for a week. Yet somehow we already are having trouble remembering life before Gabriela.

I was trying to figure out what I'd been doing for the last week. I feel like I've stayed busy enough, but there really isn't much to show for it. The housekeeper had a small mountain of dirty laundry to do yesterday, dishes were piled up in the kitchen, and the bed hadn't been made since she was here on Friday. I think it was Eric who first pointed out that we've been spending hours out of the day just staring at our new daughter. So I guess between filling my new role as milk cow and changing lots of dirty diapers, I've been sitting in awe of this perfect little person that we somehow created. Who knew someone who sleeps like 20 hours per day could be so captivating!

Livin' the rough life

Little Miss Gabriela has been the most perfect baby. She rarely ever fusses - although she's still not a huge fan of bathtime - and she has been sleeping in her bassinet the whole night waking only once or twice between midnight and 8:00 am to eat. (And even then she usually doesn't cry. She makes increasingly louder sucking noises until one of us drags our sleepy behinds out of bed to get her.) Although no one around here has had an uninterrupted 8 hours of sleep, we're not feeling nearly as sleep deprived as we thought we would. We're really hoping she'll keep this up!

The many faces of Gabriela. She's actually not screaming here, just letting out a little happy squeak. I am completely in love with her squeaks.

Eric returned to work on Monday after spending all of last week with us at home. So we've spent the last couple days adjusting to it being just us girls during the day. We're doing pretty well - yesterday we ventured out on our own for the first time. We went for a stroller ride/walk down to the mall and had lunch at a little cafe. Gabriela made a pretty good date. And I only almost died pushing her up the steep hill beside our apartment. (Note to self: really need to work on getting some aerobic endurance back.)

Poor thing didn't stand a chance of getting a cute little button nose. Maybe she'll grow into her nose though - I like to think her Daddy and I turned out alright despite our big honkers. Right now she has dark grey-blue eyes. Genetically, she has a 50/50 shot of ending up with either blue or brown eyes. (And the same odds of brown or blonde hair.)

We were supposed to have her one week check-up with the pediatrician yesterday, but the doctor was sick so we rescheduled for next Tuesday. According to my scale at home, she has gained about a third of a pound since birth . . . we'll be looking forward to getting her on the infant scale next week though and seeing for sure. Her lab results from her Teste do Pezinho are supposed to be ready this afternoon, so we're looking forward to seeing those.

We've had a great first week. And if I can pull myself away from staring at Miss Gabriela, I might get around to posting updates and pictures a little more frequently in the future!

Out and About

Gabriela got to go out on the town yesterday for the first time. We needed to take her to the lab for her Teste do Pezinho (just the basic blood work done on newborns - I love that it translates to Little Foot Test though.) And we thought while we were out we would stop by the Cartório and get her birth certificate issued. (They give you a record of live birth at the hospital, but you have to go to the Cartório to get the birth certificate and actually name your kid and all.)




So she got all cleaned up and put on her polka-dot dress and little "shoe" socks, we packed her diaper bag, strapped her in her car seat, and off we went.

We went to the Cartório first. You can read all about these places here (read the comments for some clarification - I had some info wrong). The hospital deals with one specific place, so we had to go there. It was quite small, very crowded, not very well organized, and exceptionally hot. Of course, any Brasilian would probably have known better than to try doing this on a Friday - there were no less than 6 wedding parties all crammed in there yesterday! After waiting our turn, we finally got called back. And then we were told the hospital had not filled out the certificate of live birth correctly and that if we submitted the form as is, it would certainly be denied.

So off to the hospital we went. It was a quick fix to correct the certificate, but a bit of a hassle with a three day old baby and slow-moving new mommy. And of course, we didn't get any sort of apology from the lady who made the mistake. (I know, we Americans apologize incessantly, but, seriously, please acknowledge that you didn't do your job correctly and caused us an inconvenience! It would make the postpartum hormonal woman feel much better about the whole ordeal!)

And back we went to the Cartório. There wasn't any parking close by and Gabriela was awake and decided that she was hungry. So she and I stayed in the car and I fed her while Eric went back and got the birth certificate handled.

After that we went to the lab to have her blood drawn. She was less than thrilled to be awakened from her sweet slumber by someone poking a needle into her heel and squeeze blood out! But it was over quick and so was the crying.

I think the whole afternoon wore her out a bit though . . .





And I guess we're going to need to get the girl some bows for her hair or something. While Eric was getting us signed in at the lab, I had three different ladies come over to see Miss Gabriela, ask hold old she was, etc. And all three ended up asking if it was a boy. Now, I'm no expert on all the cultural differences between the US and Brasil, but I'm pretty sure they don't dress little boys in pink polka-dot dresses here. Or have a pink blanket in their car seats. Maybe a hair bow would help clarify things in the future though. :)

We decided to go out for a little walk around the neighborhood and to the grocery store this afternoon. Short of our excursion yesterday, I hadn't been out of the house at all and was ready for a little physical activity (as I suppose the soft belly isn't going to tone up on its own!)

(The lighting has her looking yellow in this picture - she's not actually jaundiced! Although maybe a little tan from the prenatal time at the pool in the Brasilian sun . . . hehe)

Gabriela slept through the whole thing. Which I take as a sign that she liked it.

She's definitely pimpin' one of the best looking strollers in town! And those bike tires roll like a dream on our bumpy, uneven sidewalks! I think we're going to find this was one of our best imports yet from our trip home at Christmas!

After coming home and getting a belly full of milk, Gabriela passed out once again and has assumed this position in my lap . I thought it provided a perfect opportunity to post a few more pictures and update on our days!

Settling In at Home

Yesterday morning Eric and I were staring down at our little Gabriela and he turned to me and said, "You know, I think it's not actually going to sink in that she's ours until we get her home." I admitted that I had just been thinking "Holy cow - they're actually going to let us take her with us when we leave!"

They released us from the hospital at 11:00 yesterday and by the time we were all packed up and home it was about noon.

The princess is sleeping great for us - so long as someone is holding her. She's not a big fan of her bassinet quite yet. So Eric and I spent last night taking turns with her. She is absolutely content in our arms or laying on our chests, but put her down and she is none to happy! We'll have to break her of that eventually if we ever want good sleep ourselves, but for now we're enjoying our little cuddle-bug!

All ready to leave the hospital

Home Sweet Home



Gabriela was impressed with her new digs. Well, as impressed as one can be while sleeping through the whole thing.

Daddy gave her first at-home bath this afternoon. When he flipped her over to wash her back she pulled up her knees and started crawling/swimming like crazy. It was hilarious!

All clean and happy

And here's a little something for the grandparents: A video of her first at-home bath. (She cried a lot less at home than she did when the nurse bathed her in the hospital! I think Daddy was a lot gentler than that mean ol' nurse. hehehe)

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