Day 9 - Saturday 31st March

Beth was a trooper and dealt with a feed and nappy change alone at around 3am - not that I wanted to avoid my daiper duties, I just slept through the whole thing. Around 5am I got up and took a wakeful fed and changed Edward downstairs so Beth could get some undisturbed sleep, and around 9am she came down, showered and dressed and ready for the day.

The day would start with a midwife visit from Colleen, so Beth took Edwatch while I performed my ablutions, and by the time Colleen arrived we were all ready for her. First job was to check Edward's rash, and after some questions and answers we felt that the most likely cause was indeed a clothes washing detergent. We had alrady laid in a milder brand but hadn't used it yet, so we're now rinsing eveything he will wear next to the skin with a capful of vinegar to hopefully strip out any residual detergent, and then wash and double rinse with the new stuff.

He weighed in at 8lbs 2 oz, a healthy 3 oz gain on his last weighing, and is now officially above his birth weight. Colleen had to redo his heel prick blood test, as the previous one did not give enough blood for the lab to do all the tests fully. This time we prewarmed his foot with a hot water bottle and she got a good sample. She confessed that she was slightly traumatised by having to do three cuts on poor Edward last time, she's never done more than one before except on her very first baby test. Naturally Edward cried a touch on being spiked, but settled down with mummy and daddy calming him and was almost asleep before the blood was all drawn.

We are very lucky to have these home visits. If we'd had a hospital birth the next official medical exam would come, as we understand it, at two weeks, when we'd take Edward to our chosen pediatrician and have to wait with a roomful of other, potentially infectious, babies for a fifteen minute exam, where we'd be told everything that Colleen is already covering. Colleen is nursing not only Edward but also Beth, checking her condition, blood pressure, diet, exercise regime etc., and making sure she does not overdo things. Stairs are to be taken one at a time, up and down, and Beth has some other exercises to do to return all her organs to their rightful places.

I had a longer than expected sleep in the afternoon while Beth Edwatched again, then I toom over while Beth did some tidying up in the bedroom. The floor had become a litter of discarded adult clothes, baby wipes, spit cloths, wraps, swaddles and other flotsam, jetsam and lagan, and Beth put these down our laundry chute where I retreived and washed them.

Monday is supposed to be fine and sunny for the first time after two weeks of almost solid rain, and we're planning to have a walk round the block with Ed in his stroller/buggy/pram.