Tomorrow, Jessie and Caitlyn finally get to go home after a month of staying at the postpartum center. Therefore, it was time to finally teach us how to properly take care of our baby by ourselves, starting with bath time.
Yesterday was the first time I bathed Caitlyn. The day before that, the nurse had shown Jessie and I how to do it. Before we had even gotten started, she warned us that our baby has a tendency to cry extremely loud when taking a bath and to prepare ourselves. Well, so much for giving us a confidence booster before class.
I had recorded the demonstration so that I could review over it before I tried it out myself. As with anything a professional does, the nurse made it look overly simple and easy. So, after going over the video a few times that same night, I figured I had things down pat. There was no need to watch it again.
However, as the time drew nearer for me to try, I actually began to feel a bit nervous, even though I tried to play it off. When we stepped into the room where we were to wash Caitlyn, the nurse was waiting.
“OK, let’s see you wash the baby,” she said.
Wait, what?! No help?! No tips?! My mind drew a blank as to what I was supposed to do. Do I take off the baby’s clothes first? Do I put soap in the tub? Which body part do I start with? Ahhh! I had to keep mentally telling myself, ”KICF!”( Keep it cool, fool. Keep it cool.)
After regaining my composure, I slowly started to remember what the nurse had showed us. I picked up Caitlyn and began washing her face. Incredibly, she didn’t mind at all. Hah! This is a piece of cake!
Next, I went on to wash her hair. Same thing. Not a single peep from her. I began thinking back to how Caitlyn was howling when the nurse washed her. Why, I’m doing this 100 times better than her! If Caitlyn gets through this whole bathing process without crying once, I might as well quit my regular job and work here full-time. I could probably teach the nurses here a thing or two.
Of course, I spoke a bit too soon. Once I began to undress her so I could wash her body, that’s when she started bawling. And that’s when things started going downhill.
Our baby apparently doesn’t like being in the nude, even though that’s the way she was born into this world. I suppose that’s a good thing. When she’s grown up, maybe she’ll have enough sense to cover her body, rather than wearing the bare minimum.
As Caitlyn’s crying became more and more pronounced, I began getting more and more nervous. I started forgetting what to do next. Sweat started forming around my armpits and forehead, and the nurse had a look on her face like she feared for my child's life.
After placing Caitlyn in the tub and washing her down with a cloth a few times, I was ready to be done with this whole thing. However, the nurse seemed to have other ideas.
“So, what body part are you going to wash next?”
What? Are you crazy?! Woman, I thought we were done! Apparently not, as she made me continue washing Caitlyn’s bottom and back, all while trying to hold on to her squirming, kicking, little body.
By this point, I’m sure Jessie was feeling pretty smug about delegating me to do the bathing, while all she did was film. In the end, I managed to finish up and get Caitlyn dried and dressed.
If I were to give myself a grade, it would be a C minus. We all made it out of this alive. No baby was dropped, and hopefully there’s no lingering trauma. That’s a good enough start for me.
I take this as a humbling experience. I went in thinking I could ace this, but barely stumbled out of there. However, it just makes me that much more determined to perfect the techniques. I’m going to keep at it until I can post a video of Caitlyn taking a bath without crying. Then, I’ll come back and give these nurses a run for their money.
Yesterday was the first time I bathed Caitlyn. The day before that, the nurse had shown Jessie and I how to do it. Before we had even gotten started, she warned us that our baby has a tendency to cry extremely loud when taking a bath and to prepare ourselves. Well, so much for giving us a confidence booster before class.
I had recorded the demonstration so that I could review over it before I tried it out myself. As with anything a professional does, the nurse made it look overly simple and easy. So, after going over the video a few times that same night, I figured I had things down pat. There was no need to watch it again.
However, as the time drew nearer for me to try, I actually began to feel a bit nervous, even though I tried to play it off. When we stepped into the room where we were to wash Caitlyn, the nurse was waiting.
“OK, let’s see you wash the baby,” she said.
Wait, what?! No help?! No tips?! My mind drew a blank as to what I was supposed to do. Do I take off the baby’s clothes first? Do I put soap in the tub? Which body part do I start with? Ahhh! I had to keep mentally telling myself, ”KICF!”( Keep it cool, fool. Keep it cool.)
After regaining my composure, I slowly started to remember what the nurse had showed us. I picked up Caitlyn and began washing her face. Incredibly, she didn’t mind at all. Hah! This is a piece of cake!
Next, I went on to wash her hair. Same thing. Not a single peep from her. I began thinking back to how Caitlyn was howling when the nurse washed her. Why, I’m doing this 100 times better than her! If Caitlyn gets through this whole bathing process without crying once, I might as well quit my regular job and work here full-time. I could probably teach the nurses here a thing or two.
Of course, I spoke a bit too soon. Once I began to undress her so I could wash her body, that’s when she started bawling. And that’s when things started going downhill.
Our baby apparently doesn’t like being in the nude, even though that’s the way she was born into this world. I suppose that’s a good thing. When she’s grown up, maybe she’ll have enough sense to cover her body, rather than wearing the bare minimum.
As Caitlyn’s crying became more and more pronounced, I began getting more and more nervous. I started forgetting what to do next. Sweat started forming around my armpits and forehead, and the nurse had a look on her face like she feared for my child's life.
After placing Caitlyn in the tub and washing her down with a cloth a few times, I was ready to be done with this whole thing. However, the nurse seemed to have other ideas.
“So, what body part are you going to wash next?”
What? Are you crazy?! Woman, I thought we were done! Apparently not, as she made me continue washing Caitlyn’s bottom and back, all while trying to hold on to her squirming, kicking, little body.
By this point, I’m sure Jessie was feeling pretty smug about delegating me to do the bathing, while all she did was film. In the end, I managed to finish up and get Caitlyn dried and dressed.
If I were to give myself a grade, it would be a C minus. We all made it out of this alive. No baby was dropped, and hopefully there’s no lingering trauma. That’s a good enough start for me.
I take this as a humbling experience. I went in thinking I could ace this, but barely stumbled out of there. However, it just makes me that much more determined to perfect the techniques. I’m going to keep at it until I can post a video of Caitlyn taking a bath without crying. Then, I’ll come back and give these nurses a run for their money.
Nurse demonstrating how it's supposed to be done.
Daddy demonstrating how it's not supposed to be done.
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