Gracie, Her Daddy, and Diapers

I am so proud of my daughters these days. What fighters they both are! Hope is learning, slowly but surely, how to breast feed. Gracie is a bit behind her sister in that department, but has remained off of the nasal cannula and today earned her way off of the foot band which keeps track of her oxygen saturation in her blood. On top of all that she now weighs 3 pounds 3 ounces and seems to continue to gain a little bit each day.

Gracie also has had a great time recently playing tricks on her dad at changing time. It is becoming popular lore in the NICU that Gracie likes to leave me "treats" in her diaper. This week I have gone 4/5 on having "#2" to change. Being the spawn of Jeni and I, Gracie has already begun to show her creative side, and while we want to encourage and foster this for years to come, I am hoping the bathroom creativity will cease and desist sometime soon.

However, in my heart, I have a funny feeling that I have my work cut out for me. Gracie has managed to go to the bathroom out the sides of her diapers and likes to look at me wide-eyed while I clean it up. She has peed on me now twice while I try to change her, again looking at me oh, so cute with her wide eyes. The grandparents of another child in the NICU get the giggles every time I go to get a diaper, because they know that I am in for another adventure.

Despite all of this, I am not one to cause a stink. Sure, I'll emit a "WOAH!" when I open up the preemie Pamper and find a "surprise," or, when she pulls her most infamous stunt of resuming going to the bathroom in the midst of being changed, but in so many ways this is such a blessing. Our girl is digesting. She is acting like a baby, and, while gross, it is something you just deal with and make the best of. After all, do you think someone who is this cute could make a mess? :)