SHOWERS, SHOWERS, SHOWERS...

I am not sure if it is this incessant rain that has graced us with its continuous presence almost every day for the past week, my daily exposure to runny noses and a Strep or Flu case here or there, or the various commitments that have me rising early and home no earlier than 7:30 each evening, but Team Evans was down and out for the count this past Friday. I came home and crashed for about three and a half hours and was still exhausted that evening.

I feel much better now -- I guess I just needed to recharge.

Saturday I hosted a baby shower for a family member who will be having a baby girl next month. I attempted a diaper cake again, and it turned out okay. I attached various baby knick-knacks and placed the ribbon on afterwards, which looked kind of funky. However, the most important fact is that everything that was on the cake could be put to good use for a new baby.

Remember how I stated in a previous post that I was going attempt to make a marshmallow fondant?

Yeah, right!

I was planning on attempting for the shower, but sometimes self-preservation trumps gourmet. I just figured that the added energy and stress wasn’t worth the possible failure. Instead, I opted for simple. I made a four-layer 9” round cake with buttercream frosting that I purchased at the store and topped it with fresh flowers.


Since I am on a Pedatrics rotation this month, I thought it would be fun to play a game at the shower using facts that I have learned in med school. Unfortunately, I think the game was a little too difficult for my guests, particularly those without children! Though I think that some of them wanted to kill me, most had a good sense of humor about it and, hopefully, learned something that they may not have known.

I will leave you with the questions I made up as well. Hopefully, you will learn something, too!

1. What is a baby's first stool called?
Meconium
2. Which is preferred for a baby's health: breast or bottle feeding?
Breast -- Mom passes on her antibodies, which protect the baby until he/she is able to make his/her own.
3. When does a baby's soft spot (fontanel) close?
Usually by 12 months of age.
4. In what position should a baby sleep in order to avoid SIDS?
On the back!
5. Babies spontaneously smile in early life. When do they develop their social smile, a response to seeing other faces or smiles?
2 months
6. The umbilical cord should fall off by what time after a baby is born?
Usually 2 weeks
7. A car seat must be rear facing until an infant is how old AND what weight?
12 months AND 20-lbs
8. What is the first immunization given to a newborn in the hospital?
Hepatitis B
9. What temp is considered a fever in a newborn/early infant?
100.4
10. What is the medical term for spit-up?
Reflux
11. At what ages can you introduce solids to an infant?
4-6 months; start with cereal at 4 mos and then add baby food at 5-6 mos
12. When can you give a baby whole milk?
NOT until they are 12-months old!
13. By what age does a baby usually hold his/her own bottle?
Usually by 6-months of age
14. List one risk factor of an infant born to a mother who has smoked during her pregnancy.
Prematurity (and subsequently underdeveloped lungs), low birth weight
15. What does NICU stand for?
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit