We are marching to Pretoria...

Or flying at least.  Night before our first flight since arriving in Cape Town from Darwin with Luka on May 4th.  It is absolutely insane to even begin to think how we managed that trip with more than twice the luggage (including a printer, newly arrived car seat, and clothes for two seasons), and only half the infant...

Luka currently weighs roughly 4.2kg, to think when we came here, it was only just over 2.5kg...amazing.  More amazing is that he packs nearly as much luggage as we do - hm, how does that happen?

In other news, we were sad to see Grandma and Grandpa Serjak depart yesterday.  What a splendid trip we all had together, certainly one for the books.  We'll have to work on the next time they get to see Luka - the way he's going, he might be walking by Christmas ;)

5am Musings from a hospital bed

They say you find out what real fear, worry and pain is when your child is sick or in trouble (yes Pa, I know, I know....after all I put you through), and I am coming to realixe that first-hand. While we anticipated yesterday's surgery (unlike the last adventure) and even came properly prepared (I am donning my pj's afterall), watching your infant being wheeled into surgery is not something you can ever be quite prepared for.

We are close to going home again, and as I lie here in Room 6A with Luka asleep in my arms, I cannot help but reminisce about some of the realities and milestones of this experience.

I put Luka to bed in a infant incubator in the neo-natal intensive care unit at 6PM, by the time we got back from dinner at 8pm, he had been moved outside the brightly-lit, always-buzzing humdrum of this most sacred spot where special people care for our special babies. Feeding him I looked in on all those tiny babies and realized that Luka will likely never be in the NICU again...heaven forbid he comes to hospital again, he will go to the pediatric ward.

By 2am I changed and fed him in the nursery, and by 5am he is lying withme in bed, fast asleep and peaceful. What an experience you have given us, perhaps enough for a while?

Update: Luka out of surgery

Luka is recovering after the procedure, he came out of thater wailing, like Chris said that anaethetist has a 'soft touch'. He was only interested in one thing (okay, two) and is now lying peacefully in my arms. He is in some pain but cannot have any pain killers for another three hours unfortunately.

The doctor explained that all went well, but that this sack was almost as big as the last one, so good thing we fixed it now.

No word yet on whether we get to go home tonight or not, either way, hope this is it for a while.

Update: Daddy wheels Luka into OR

.

Here(nia) we go again - Luka goes back under the knife

Despite expecting this, it was with some disappointment that we confirmed via ultrasound yesterday that Luka does indeed have an inguinal hernia on the right side of his groin as well.   This means only one thing - back to hospital and under the knife tomorrow for yet another inguinal herniotomy.  Fortunately, unlike the last time this hernia is not strangulated, and is therefore a much less complicated surgery, but surgery under general anesthesia nonetheless.

We check in at 12pm tomorrow, but poor Luka is not allowed to eat after 8am - and guess who has to try and explain that to the growing little boy!  We are keeping our fingers crossed that he can be done shortly after 12pm and that there are no complications.  Unfortunately due to his premature birth it is highly  likely he will be kept overnight again, fortunately his parents do in fact learn from past experience and will be traveling with the requisite overnight attire this time.

Sorry little man - hopefully this is it for a while...

June 18 - Practicing my self-soothing techniques under daddy's
watchful eye.

Luka and his grandparents

Grandma Julie meeting Luka for the first time, June 9 2011

On June 8th Luka's grandma and grandpa arrived all the way from California to spend a few weeks getting to know him.  While grandma Julie was rooting for a girl the whole time, all resistance melted away when she laid eyes on their third grandson for the first time.

Luka showing off for grandma and grandpa

For the past ten days it has been such a pleasure having them around the house where my way too energetic father-in-law has occasionally been spotted between errands, dish washing, breakfast makings, light fixing, trash hauling, and a myriad of other useful activities.
As for grandma?  She declared herself the chief baby-holder to free Chris and I to go about getting some things done.  As my dear friend Stacy (also a new mom) recently mentioned to me, watching our families with our children is an amazing experience, particularly realizing that someone else can love your child almost as much as you do!

We look forward to welcoming Luka's Ouma and Oupa back on Saturday for a combined family-affair!

Hands down my single most favorite photo of the
in-laws in nearly fourteen years together!

Luka turns 3 months

Luka models a knitted cap that his great grandmother Ouma
Susan knitted for his mommy more than thirty years ago.
Like him and his daddy, mommy and Ouma also shared a
birthday...30 September.

Luka is three months old today, and tips the scales at 4.12kg/9lbs 1 oz which means he has caught up to a normal weight for his corrected age (3.5 weeks old), despite his premature birth. Happy birthday little guy!

Luka the Leopard

A favorite napping position for our boy - this one after a nice evening meal, chilling with his daddy in his 'jungle' pose....

19 June - Like a leopard on a log.

Books: What every new parent wants to know...

...how to <calm/properly develop/soothe/please> my newborn...

Alas, despite some much-more maternally-inclined parents out there than I, I doubt that there is a single mother (or father) for whom this new daunting experience comes completely naturally or pain-free.  As such, yes, I constantly find myself perusing Amazon.com and the local bookstores for assistance in the literary form.  While some books are clearly better than others, here are a few I have found useful to date.

1. Preemies (2nd Edition): The Essential Guide for Parents of Premature Babies by: Linden et al- This blog was never intended to give others advice but this one is seriously required - every parent of a premature baby should read this.  That is, unless of course you know what ROP, SBR, SRBs, inguinal, PU, BO and an incalculable number of other acronyms stand for - then sure, don't read it.  For the rest of us, order it, steal it, borrow it or beg for it if you have to, this book was truly a savior for us in Darwin and have since been a useful tool to friends of preemies as well.  Well written, informative, and easy to understand this daunting 656 page treatise of premature babies is compiled in a manner such that you only read the parts which pertains to you at any particular time.  Don't have twins - skip that section; never needed oxygen - move right along...but should you suddenly require unexpected surgery (insert throat clearing here), the section on What if my baby requires surgery - puts your mind at ease by explaining that a hernia surgery is the most common surgery performed on premature babies (insert sigh).
2.  The Happiest Baby on the Block: The new way to calm crying and help your newborn sleep longer  by: Dr. Harvey Karp (UCLA) - the purveyor of the notion of a calming reflex in babies - Dr. Karp will show you how to calm your colicy/screaming/generally unhappy baby in 5 easy steps.  As explained in this
older post, Dr. Karp believes that a human newborn is cheated out of a fourth trimester, and therefore needs his parents to imitate a womb-like environment to soothe them properly.  Easy to read, perhaps with a bit too much repetition between some of the chapters, though I get the point why, this book will teach you useful and necessary skills in soothing and calming even the most irate baby.  By carefully implementing the 5S's (swaddle, side/stomach, shhhhh'ing, swaying and sucking), or a combination thereof necessary for your own baby, you will soon have the tools to quiet even the loudest cries, and impress your family while doing so! (If you can, he has a video that shows you exactly how it is done - the term 'baby whisperer' does come to mind...) You can visit this Pediatrician to the stars online here
3.  Baby Love: Everything you need to know about your baby's first year by: Robin Barker  Australian nurse/mid-wife gives it to you straight.  This easy-to read, useful reference covers basics from pooing to burping (incidentally she believes there is way too much emphasis placed on the latter).  Use this to calm those frail nerves when your bub does not poo for a week (if you're breastfeeding - trust me, it is bound to happen)
4.  Baby Sense:  Understanding your baby's sensory world - the key to a contented child by: Megan Faure & Ann Richardson.  This most recent addition to my baby-library is a much thinner, and therefore quicker read and provides some very valuable insight into the need to control the sensory inputs for young infants.  If nothing else, it helped me understand the importance of enough sleep during the day for a newborn, if there is to be any hope of a good nights' rest.  The nurse/midwife and occupational therapist authors both specialize in 'fussy' babies and provide valuable advice not only in calming a fussy baby (helped me move Luka to his own cot), but also useful hints on appropriate ways to stimulate your infant in age-appropriate ways.  The book is divided into sections (First two weeks, 2-6 weeks, 6-12 weeks, and so on) with practical advice on how to stimulate vision, hearing, touch and other senses of your growing baby.  While I disagreed with a few of their suggestions (like stretching out feed times by giving a baby cooled boiled water), I found most of it very useful and enlightening and can recommend it for a new mom looking to understand the terms 'over-tired' and 'over-stimulated' as well as looking for tips on how to stimulate your bun's growing little brain.

More to come soon...off for a walk...

Photo of the Day: Contemplation

Camel Rock Restaurant, Scarborough - 19 June, 2011

Newborns - where all good intentions come to an end

Shortly after I thought I recovered from having a prem baby, it was with some disappointment that I soon tossed some of my most strongly-held initial intentions out the window.  Surprisingly for us, or perhaps not so surprisingly considering the somewhat dual-track of infancy we are on, it kicked in slightly later than probably normal.  Either way, my belief that a baby should not sleep in bed with parents soon made way for the only way our prem would sleep at night, tucked safely in the kangaroo-style position on one of our chests; similarly my strong dislike for a binky/dummy/pacifier quickly flew out the window when Luka nearly blessed us with blisters on our knuckles for want of non-nutritive sucking.*

So it is that for the past month or so, Luka has been sleeping with us in bed at night, often calmed or soothed by one of us (yes, with a dummy) for his lack of ability to do so himself.  That is, until last night.  I guess something just kicked in, I don't know, call it instinct call it reading a new book, but last night I decided to try Luka in his cot.  First of all, seems that the key to a good nights' sleep for the baby is good sleeping during the day (to avoid over-tiredness) - yes, yes, all the books tell you this, but it is much better to learn it yourself ;)  So last night Luka and I set to working on this cot sleeping business, we fed, burped and then I laid him down in his cot while drowsy (per said book), and firmly touched him when he niggled, and voila! He slept all night in his own cot, waking every three hours for a feed, and going right back to sleep.  One point for mommy.

Fast-forward to today, napping during the day in our own cot - not a chance.  And so it goes.  Just another day with a newborn.

Then again, who needs a cot when I can nap like this anyway?...

Advanced napping skills, as performed at local dining
establishment Camel Rock on Father's Day, 19 June 2011

* The desire of a premature infant to suck has a lot to do with a very basic survival instinct that requires the infant to be coordinated enough to breath, suck and swallow at the same time. The issue is that if a premature infant is fed through a tube, they do not get to practice sucking, hence the importance of introducing a dummy to stimulate this necessary skill.   

All the amazing discoveries...

This reaction from a cow! Imagine what he will do when
gets his first car!

Despite the odd 2-hourly feeding schedule at night resulting in a fabulously sleep-deprived mommy, I cannot help but look forward to our morning sessions in bed.  Early mornings overlooking the sun rising on Scarborough beach have become quite the discovery of all the new and exciting things this world has to offer.  And so it is that Master Luka recently found black and white graphics when I flipped through a book of animals and he became enamored with the picture of the cow.  I thought I would see whether this was a fluke, or if he was truly that stimulated and excited by it - so I downloaded a set of free black and white graphics for infants.  I pasted one by his changing station, and in the car where he can see it from his car seat, and sure enough - he loves it!  To the point where he audibly laughs when he looks at them!  Who knew, black and white blobs are all the rage if you're <three weeks>* old.

* In line with the majority of literature on premature births, we have started referring to Luka in his corrected age, i.e., if someone in a restaurant inquires about his age, for the purpose of explaining his size and development, he is three weeks old, not three months. 

A First Father's Day

Coffee and beskuit in bed, along with a gift voucher for
six dives in the local freezing water!

Along all the millions of fathers around the world, both first-timers, young, old and experienced alike - Luka and I got to spoil Chris this past Sunday on his very first Father's Day.  It started with coffee and beskuit (like biscotti, but better) in bed, followed by a selection of chocolate chip pancakes and cinnamon French Toast (though I digress, I did forget the bacon...)  An afternoon walk on the beach was followed by a late lunch/early dinner at local eatery Camel Rock.  


For a gift I got Chris a six-dive package with local dive shop Pisces Divers in Simons Town - good thing I did not spring for the 10-dive package as Chris's comment when he saw the gift was, 'do you know how cold that water is?'* - looks like Tropical Dive Boy will finally have to earn his diving stripes!  A number of books and of course the requisite Big Blue funny t-shirt to finish things off.

So lucky to have this experience with such an awesome fellow!

* Incidentally, the current water temperature according to the dive shop is 11 Degrees Celsius (51 Farenheit - that is compared with the 32 Celsius it often is in waters off Dili.   

First visit to an old family tradition

You know it is a good day in Cape Town when it starts with a visit to your very first winery, in this case local establishment  Cape Point Vineyards, followed by a drive across the spectacular national monument, Chapmans Peak Drive, to end up a an old family tradition for calamari - Chapmans Peak Hotel.

Having my nappy changed on
the tailgate of spoedvark ('speed pig')
daddy's 20-year old Toyota

In the morning, Luka oversaw a tasting for grandma and grandpa of the lovely lightly oaked Chardonnays, and Sauvignon Blancs with hints of local fynbos in the terroir accompanied by a fabulous cheese plate.  Of course Master Luka had his own requirements before we could depart, resulting in what we like to refer to as le tailegate change.

A late lunch was enjoyed at an institution that the Marx family has frequented for at least twenty years.  There might be better calamari somewhere in the world, but in all our travels, we have not found it yet - and definitely not with the combined ambiance and view to boot.   It seems only fitting that Luka should find himself camped out on the deck while we feast on their famous grilled calamari, Portuguese steak topped off with a Groote Post Old Man's Blend.

On the deck of Chapman's Peak Hotel

My first hike

On an absolutely gorgeous warm winters day in Cape Town, exactly 12 weeks after my birth (2.5 weeks after my due date) my mommy and daddy loaded the 20-year old Toyota 4x4 with a picnic, an awesome Ergo Baby carrier, my grandma and grandpa, and yes ME!  We headed to the Cape Point Nature Reserve to hike in the Olifantsbos area to a local wreck on a pristine beach.

"Walk 'n feed" - an advanced breastfeeding skill I picked
up from my fellow-nursery moms in the Outback

Criss-crossing the rocky beach near Olifantsbos

Awesome day

Pure pristine beach, my new favorite spot.

Part of the wreck from long ago, the whole beach
is a bonafide treasure chest, can't wait to take Luka back
when he is old enough to enjoy all the fun things!

Whale bone on the beach

New favorite thing, the big T!

Step 1: Approach mouth with thumb

 As far as cool discoveries go for someone that is supposed to be two weeks old this week - the big T - for THUMB ranks right up there!  We watched with great amusement as Luka practiced finding and sucking on his very own thumb.  Watching the concentration provided quite the entertaining afternoon for us....

Step 2:  Insert into this thing they call mouth

Step 3: Suck away!

Hat's off!

Sporting our cool beach hat on a recent walk on Scarborough's gorgeous beach...

Grandma and Grandpa Serjak!

Luka welcomes grandma and grandpa Serjak to Cape Town all the way from California!  Thanks also for ALL the amazing presents!

Namesake Lee Martin Serjak and grandma Julie

From the mailbag!

Seems so official when you see it like that!

Luka received his very first personally addressed package in our very first postal address in over six years today!  Thanks Donna Lee for the lovely outfit - I have already washed it and he will be sporting it tomorrow.

Super cute Monkey outfit

**Note on Luka's weight - the boy is currently weighing in at almost 3.5kg (almost 7lbs 7 oz) so we have finally grown out of preemie clothes, yeah!

A weighty affair...

UPDATE:  Took Luka to the clinic for a weigh-in today and happy to report that despite the rather successful evacuation this morning, our boy tipped the scales at 3.62kg (roughly 7lbs 15oz) and 51cm (20 inches) - so we are fairly certain now that he would have been an eight-pounder.  Congrats buddy!

Happy eleven weeks!

Luka in the nature reserve behind our house.
Photo by Brenda Wardall from 'Hearts in a Shutter'

On this lovely wintery Tuesday in Cape Town, we are delighted to celebrate Luka's 11 week birthday today, and even more thrilled to welcome his grandma and grandpa from California tomorrow.

As luck would have it though, our little man celebrated his birthday with a little 'gut assistance' in the form of a glycerin tablet deposited somewhat uncomfortably (for both of us) for the lack of well, 'activity' for a week.  Might explain why his Aries horoscope this week is all about  'pushing harder for what you want' or something of this nature - I was still too traumatized to really pay attention.

Still hoping he'll have one hell of a sense of humor to make it in this family...

Our little favorite little featherweight!

What's hot, and what's not

Exhibit A - Cheekalicious!

Living with an infant seems to be something like living with a very cute and squishy schizophrenic bi-polar split personality.  One day a bath is the best thing since breast milk, the next day no way Jose, whatcha trying to do, boil me into a broth?  Similarly, you would think we ceremoniously pull out toenails with some of the nappy changes, only to have Mr. Tranquility himself two days later...

Shamelessly plagiarizing Newsweek:

This week in Luka's world:

• Bouncing - Luka would like his parents to know that under no circumstances can they ever sit with their legs still again, EVER, we must have BOUNCE (aaaallll the time)
• Smiling - we have discovered our smile, and is not afraid to use it!
• Vitamin retention - following a few touch-an-go weeks where vitamins were generally frowned upon, retention seems to have skyrocketed!
• Vocalization - after the eerie silence of preemie-hood, watch out world, we have a VOICE!
• Cheek circumference - "Is it me, or is it's very cheeky in here?"

• Pooping - that's right, after the initial post-op bi-hourly poop explosions we're on a hiatus from moving our bowels, and have been for a few days (though in no way does that hiatus extend to flatulence - we have actually considered hanging a car freshener around his waist)
• Holding down our feeds - seems more fun to see whether we can make an equal amount of laundry for mommy as for ourselves by consistently reverse drinking a rather shocking amount of our feeds.

• Nappy changes - since this time last week the usefulness or general existence of nappy changes has been seriously in question

Either way, they certainly know how to keep 'em (read: unsuspecting inexperienced parents) wondering! 

Sunday nap time

Zzzzzz....

After finishing 47th/250 in a grueling 16km (10mi) race straight uphill on Table Mountain on Sunday, Chris thought it wise to have a little Sunday afternoon nap...Luka decidedly did not disagree.

Delightful Daily Discoveries

At a risk of sounding like a massive cliché, allow me to just say that of all the crazy things I've done in my utterly fulfilled life, holding a gurgling, cooing, happy, healthy (and now full-term) newborn has to be one of the most amazing experiences in the world. Watching his little movements and intense concentration on something, only to switch momentarily to something else...is one of the most peaceful emotions I have ever experienced (much much more peaceful than the sporadic bouts of yelling indicating some level of frustration with his inexperienced parents!)

Take the past two days for instance...as far as discoveries go, they must be right up there as best ones in the world I would say (not to mention from the perspective of a should be 1-week old baby), first of - yesterday: The Tongue.  I mean, imagine what he must think..."hm, what is the delightful, squishy, totally awesome device I find here in my mouth...not entirely sure how to use it yet, but seems it belongs to me, and when I open my little mouth, I can magically make it go in and out, and out, and in and, well, mostly out.  But I mean really, how cool is that!"

Followed today on this lovely Friday in Cape Town by the first serious practice session of the most melt-your-heartable SMILE! And no, I do not mean the 'oh that? that's a wind/cramp/accident' - I mean the kind of smile that he beams at his mommy's voice or a gentle tickle on the cheek.

So, as far as Luka's week is concerned - I'd say pretty impressive, and with the bonus that no one had a scalpel anywhere near his shorts in over a week!

Where we live...

...sunsets look something like this...

...and sunrise after an all-night winter storm something like this...

how blessed we are (and that is not to mention the wonderful neighbors and friends we have in our hometown in Scarborough)

All clear (with a small caveat)

After our eventful week at the Vincent Pallotti hospital last week, Luka returned to the pediatrician and surgeon today for a follow-up on his emergency inguinal herniotomy.  The good news is that the left side has healed wonderfully and he is clearly a much happier boy.  The other news is that the surgeon wants to do an ultrasound in about two weeks time to check the right-side for a similar hernia.  There is a small chance that it is present, but the good thing is if we identify it in the ultrasound we can do an elective surgery as an outpatient procedure (theoretically avoiding all the excitement of an emergency room run).

In other news, while we were at it, Luka also visited an ophthalmologist for the final 'all clear' on the Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), and the scan came back a-ok, so another one off the list.

Seems our boy is slowly swimming out of the deep waters, and is very much turning into a full-blown newborn now complete with changing moods, likes, dislikes and the cutest smiles (I don't care if they are not 'voluntary' yet!).