Parental Dilemma

As parents we are constantly striving to do what is best for our children. We faced this with Grant when we were dealing with C Diff and the appropriate course of action. Whether it is deciding how to discipline and what approach is right or making a medical decision such as whether to put a child back on an antibiotic after it has proven it isn't working.
 
We are treading the same waters with Amelia although it is with a relatively minor issue at this point. At her 2 month check up, our pediatrician indicated that Amelia is beginning to develop very minor labial adhesions. Well of course questions went to what is it and why does it happen.
 
Labial adhesions are occur when the inner lips of the vagina or the labia minora have become stuck together. The area that's joined may be just a small section (Amelia's case), or it may be extensive. This happens to about 2 percent of girls up to age 6 in the United States. Some little girls just seem predisposed to it. Experts think adhesion happen when the labia become irritated and raw — possibly from soaps, lotions, allergies, lack of estrogen circulating through the body, or wet or dirty diapers — then fuse together as they heal. Adhesion tend to develop at about 3 months, just after the estrogen a baby received at birth from Mom has tapered off.
 
Our pediatrician suggested we use a "cream" applied with a q-tip twice a day. I guess in some ways I was caught off guard and didn't ask as many questions as I should have. I assumed "it's just a cream and people apply creams to baby bottoms everyday." Naturally what I did do when I got home was some research. This research informed me that the "cream" prescribed was actually an estrogen cream (premarin isolated from pregnant mare urine!!!) that helps to separate the labia (if the lack of estrogen theory holds up to what causes the adhesions). What I also found out was the side effect of said cream can be breast enlargement, vaginal bleeding, and early menstruation (yes... Even in an infant!)
 
It took me about 2 seconds flat to call the doctor and ask some more questions. I had read alot about a more waitful watch approach using products such as A&D or vaseline (or in our case our choice for the time being is alba un-petroleum jelly) and she was comfortable with that since Amelia's is very small, not causing discomfort during urination (or so it seems) nor is it causing infection which are possibilities/side effect if the lesions close up enough and begin to close off the vagina and block the urethra.
 
It is just another example in our lives as parents where we have needed to advocate for our children and do research and it is my hope that other parents/friends do the same. Yes... Doctors often have our children's best interest at heart and may feel a treatment is harmless but there may be other and better options or what they are recommending may not even be necessary in the 1st place.

2 Months ~Amelia~

Confession Time:  Well two months have come and gone and it is time for a mommy confession.  There are times when my attention feels torn in a zillion different directions whether it is keeping an eye on a curious/energetic toddler or tending to a new baby or better yet doing both at the same time that I honestly feel like I don’t know how or can’t carry on an intelligent adult conversation anymore.  I honestly feel like a blubbering idiot at times.  I finish a sentence and can’t remember what I just said or can’t remember what the person just said to me.  I know it will get easier but I can’t stand that feeling because I have always prided myself on being a good listener and being able to multi-task 

Growth:  Amelia weighs 13 lbs even (86th percentile).  She is 24” long (97th percentile) and up 1.5” in just 3 ½ weeks!  Her head circumference is 39.5 cm (84th percentile).  Most 0-3 month clothing is too small and she is mainly wearing 3 and 3-6 month clothing.  We just moved her up to size 2 diapers since she has been blowing her 1’s out and on the rare occasion she wears shoes, she wears size 2.

I know you can’t compare children especially a boy and a girl because they grow at such different rates but Grant at this point was 14 lbs 2 oz and 24”.

Mobility/Coordination:  Amelia continues to work on head control and is a tummy time champ.  She doesn’t put up a fuss until she is tired.  She has even rolled from her tummy to her back several times but I still think it is somewhat of a fluke.  Each time it has happened she has been on her tummy time mat that has a very small incline/pillow (which I think helps her get the momentum she needs to roll over).  She is getting much better at grasping objects and can accurately swing and swat at an object hanging with in her reach.  She also loves standing and baring her weight (might be time to unpack the Johnny Jumper) and has recently discovered how to bring her hands together and play with them. 

Language/Communication:  She continues to smile at us constantly and is babbling more and more.  I love “talking” with her because you can see the concentration it takes for her to answer back but if you give her the opportunity she almost always has something to say in reply.  Her replies are limited to “aah” and “ooh” sounds with some gurgle and “gur” sounds.    

Personality/Amelia-isms:  Amelia is a talker and a lover.  She is still so laid back and go with the flow.  When she smiles her face lights up and she literally scrunches her entire body.  It is so cute!

We still haven’t introduced a pacifier and I don’t’ think we will.  Grant never took one and it doesn’t seem Amelia needs one either. 

Sleep:  We have still been very blessed on the sleep front.  At night I feed her around 9:30 pm and she sleeps until at least 5 am.  I usually wake her at this time to feed her before we take Grant to daycare on his school days and when I go back to work 5 am will likely have to be her wake up time.  During the day she eats, has about 30 minutes of wake/play time and she goes down for a nap without a fuss pretty much wherever we lay her.  I am a firm believer that strictly following an eat, wake, sleep routine has been what has made both Grant and Amelia such laid back, go with the flow little babies.  After Amelia eats, she always has wake time (aka no nursing herself to sleep even if we have to wake her by changing her diaper or even undressing her sometimes).  Once she is fully awake we play and interact for a little while with various activities then it is nap time.  Again, we rarely rock her to sleep or let her fall asleep in her swing.  She has learned to go to sleep on her own without any sleep props.

Amelia is still sleeping in her bassinet in our room but we are going to have to make the crib transition soon but I am holding on for a bit longer.  She is getting way too big for her bassinet and she is a wiggle worm when she sleeps.  She wakes up cock-eyed with her head pressing against one side and feet against the other.

Feeding:  During the day, Amelia is still nursing every 3 hours and at night she likes to eat about every 2 hours.  She is still very efficient and finishes in 25-30 minutes tops but throw in a diaper change and some burp time it usually takes us about 45 minutes.  Burps can be very hard to coax from her and sometimes she just doesn’t have any.  She still rarely spits up.  Luckily, my milk supply has adjusted and the leaky messes are fewer and further in between.  I pump once first thing in the morning after I feed her and have built up a hefty supply of milk (70 4-oz pouches... yes I counted today lol).

We try to do a bottle at least 1-2 times per week.  She is still taking 3-4 oz.  We could do them more but honestly I hate pumping any more than I have to.  I figure I will be doing enough of that when I go back to work.

Something that goes hand in hand with babies and eating is pooping… Amelia is no longer having a bm with each feeding.  Instead she has slowed down to 2-4 a day which tend to be BIG and we have a blowout at least every third day or so.  (I keep the lava soap handy to scrub the stains.)   

Likes:  Baths, lotion, swinging, cuddling, tummy time, looking at herself in the mirror, dangling toys, music, that her hair has quit falling out (although it is very thin on top now at least she has stopped losing) 

Dislikes:  There are still times when she isn’t a fan of the car seat, having a shirt pulled over her head, being over stimulated (when this girl wants to sleep, she wants to sleep!),

Firsts:  Wedding (We were all dressed up… Matt was in the wedding and do you think that we took one nice family picture together? No!)

Happy 2 months sweet baby girl!