Convalescing

CK, baby 8, came into the world rather unexectedly on April 2nd, the same day the Pope departed our world. Heaven's doors opened to accept one soul and let loose another. The hard road my body took in the manifestation of this beautiful little one is too long for me to journal here but I will say that right now I am doing the only thing my body is willing to do at the moment, convalesce.

Convalescing is something I never felt the need to do or made the time to do with the births of my other children, but this one either took a lot out of me, or her early arrival in this world and the care and nurturing that she requires makes me stop all other things. I read that there is a sedative effect on the mother and child when a premie baby is given skin-to-skin contact, something to help stimulate the premie to want to nurse. My days are filled nursing, pumping, napping and journalling real important things like the times she feeds, how much she consumes, each diaper and what it contained. Every single millileter of milk really does matter to this little body and mine.

So, our schooling, which had taken a great pause, will likely move its way to the upstairs come Monday morning. My highest priority right now is nurturing this little body to health till her due date just as though she were still in the womb. I convalesce for her and her little body in turn makes me feel like doing nothing else.
Also, cabbage leaves really do soften breast lumps that could lead to mastitis.