Matt, Rachel, and Cadence: Wee's Check Up

Its possible that we might have to refrain from calling Cadence "Wee" since she's not so "wee" anymore.

Since the day she was born, since she was such a "wee" little thing, I've been calling her "Wee" or "WeeWee" (as funny as that sounds) and the nickname has just stuck. We're happy to say that we've got a healthy and growing girl on our hands.

Today we visited her pediatrician for her one month (can you believe it!?) check up and she's doing extremely well.

Today's stats:
weight 8lbs 10.5 oz
height 21 inches
head circumfrence 13.75inches
vaccines: Hep B #2

We didn't have any medical concerns about Cadence today. I did ask the doctor about if Cadie had baby acne or a rash on her face and a bit on her chest and the doctor said that it could be either but "treatment" is the same, washing with mild soaps and using soft cloths. Cetaphil has been working well so we'll continue washing her face with that during bath time. This week we'll schedule a hip ultrasound through Children's Hospital to evaluate Wee's hips for hip dysplasia, which all breech babies get checked for. To date, she hasn't shown any evidence of dysplastic hips but this is routine and often times, babies can be asymptomatic and still have some hip issues, which are far easier to correct when they're little. We asked about when Cade can sleep on her stomach, which she loves, and learned that when she places herself on her tummy, going from back to front, is when we can "allow" her to sleep like that with less supervison. She loves tummy time so when she's awake or napping with us, we let her stay like that.

We learned a little about what to expect with developmental and motor skills showing themselves in preemies. She does little smiles, primarily when she sleeps and we should start to see her recognizing us and smiling at mom and dad in a month. Her skills for the first few months will be delayed slightly due to her prematurity. Essentially, if she was a term baby, she'd only be a week old right now. Cadence is, however, very strong in her legs, arms, and she likes to stretch her neck a lot. She pacifies well with hands, fingers, mom and dad's necks, blankets.....Binks, of course. She has begun to track us and focus on our faces and looks for Matt or myself if we're close by and she can hear our voices.

Unless she gets sick, she won't go to the doctor again until she's 2 months old. Overall, we had a great visit and learned lots of great information. Cadence, mom, and dad were all brave when she got her shot and she was a little champion, cried 3 times, and has been asleep and worn out ever since.