Irene’s Baby Journal – week 5.
Lúa’s grandparents – my in-laws – are here! We’re so thrilled to see them. Not only are they the first family members to meet Lúa but they’re also our first visitors since we arrived in Cancun 10 months ago.
They’re staying at a hotel nearby and we’re super excited – not only about seeing them but also about the visit, because it makes it a bit of a holiday for us too.
On the first day, they treated us to a day pass to their hotel. The whole family was really excited. We got to spend time in a wonderful hotel with them and Jose and I were able to spend a bit of time together as they were so happy to be holding Lúa and looking after the other children.
While we were by the swimming pool, the music changed and we heard Ed Sheeran playing and we saw a bride walking towards the beach. Nelly, a friend of my in-laws who had also traveled with them, got up from the sunbed and, with Lúa in my arms, we ran towards the beach to have a look at the wedding, which was taking place in amazingly beautiful scenery.
It was a first for Nelly, for me, and of course, for Lúa.
I can’t stop crying. Just a few weeks old and Lúa has seen her first wedding!
Baby Journal – Play and development
There’s also another first for Lúa this week; it’s her first time in a swimming pool!
She had her hat on and her swimming nappy. I also put a piece of cloth on her to protect her from the sun. I helped her into the pool very slowly. Dad and her sisters were also with us. We had our first pool time together since she was born and we all enjoyed it very much.
We’re still showering because she really enjoys it! There isn’t any regularity to our showers; 2 or 3 times a week we spend a bit of time under the water and it’s absolutely wonderful.
We don’t use any soap or any other cleaning products but just water on her skin. Babies don’t need anything else. They don’t even need a bath for weeks, so if it’s cold or you are hesitant about doing it, you can wait for as long as you want.
We don’t have a bathtub so it’s showers for us!
Feeding
She’s feeding like a champ. I’ve never really worried too much about feeding – even with my first, but Lúa is my third!
Trusting and following your instinct is what works best. Place your baby close to the breast every time she looks for something. They say babies don’t come with a manual. I disagree. You just need to pay attention to what they are communicating. If you don’t understand exactly, just accompany them with love: that’s all they need.
I noticed a bit of redness in her groin, so I dried her well after the shower and expressed some breast milk on it. Next time I change her nappy the redness was gone!
Breast milk is absolutely amazing!
I’m very glad I’ve have it available again. It’s the best healing product I’ve ever used.
This time around, I’ve dried Lúa’s membranes and I’ve heard this method is very good for healing skin wounds.
Everything to do with a baby’s development has great healing properties.
Drying membranes is very easy and simple. You separate the membranes from the placenta and you hang them to dry. You can also place them, stretched out, on top of some natural fabric like cotton, hemp or linen and they will be dried out in a couple of days. You then can cut them into little pieces to apply to wounds.
I’ll definitely try them but, so far, breast milk is the only human product I can personally recommend for its healing properties.
Next week I’ll tell you about what I’ve done with Lúa’s placenta, membranes and cord.
