An A-Z of Infants Part II

Kicking – Little babies are so much stronger than you think! You haven't seen strength until you've seen a twelve week old in a Jolly Jumper going for it like there is no tomorrow. Chubby legs kicking with all their might while their body remains bolt upright in the supports. When Tricky is old enough to do this I'll film it and play it to the music from Riverdance.

Looks – As soon as your baby is born you, and everyone who visits or sees a photograph, will try to figure out which traits are from which parent. It thought by some that bub will look more like dad in an effort to confirm their paternity. Whilst I have no idea if evolution has found a way of increasing the chances of a guy sticking around to help raise his offspring, what I do know is that Tricky is a carbon copy of Hubby. I put a picture of Hubby aged three next to one I took of Tricky last week and you would swear it is the same child – same eyes, same nose, same smile and coincidentally they even had a similar outfit on!

Moro Reflex – The cutest of all the reflexes. This is the startle reflex and a baby's legs and arms will fly out if he hears a loud noise or feels unsupported – it would appear even in his dreams. My favourite part about it is that it looks like he's doing 'jazz hands' or 'spirit fingers' and so each time he does it we say “Ta daaah!” Yes, this kid is going to grow up with a complex. Either that or become a dancer.

Nappies – When he was first born Tricky was put in Huggies newborn nappies that the hospital provided and they had an 'indicator panel' that went from yellow to blue when he needed to be changed – the was no opening up the side of the nappy to check. Then when he was about five weeks old he was big enough to fit in to his funky and environmentally friendlier, modern cloth nappies. The only downfall is that they most definitely do not come with a fancy indicator panel. Unless you count the wet patch on his pants the couple of times they've leaked?

Odours – This alone puts many people off having children in the first place. I had been told that if breastmilk goes in the top end, the stuff that comes out the bottom end doesn't smell (babies who have to have formula have been known to make the wallpaper curl). I didn't believe it at all. But I'm delighted to say it is sorta true – it does smell a little bit, but it is a very sweet smell and isn't offensive at all. I wouldn't go so far as to put it in a perfume and spray it on myself, but it's not bad. When Tricky starts on solids though, it'll be pegs on noses time.

Palmar Grasp – Another reflex, the one responsible for the oh so cute way a bub will grab your finger and NEVER LET GO. And even though it's a reflex I still feel loved when he does it.

Questions – Hundreds of questions a day zoom through my head but they all revolve around one thing: Is that normal? Am I supposed to do this? Is he meant to do that? What did parents do before Google? But how many questions must be going through a baby's head? What is that? Who is this? Is that smell coming from me?

Rooting Reflex – This is where you brush their cheek they will turn that way and open up their mouth, ready for a feed. In the earlier days when we had no idea what each cry meant (we only have half a clue now), it was a great way to see if he was hungry because if he was he wouldn't just turn his head, he'd lunge violently in that direction. We call it 'gobbing' and sometimes Hubby will bring Tricky over to me and say “Here, you take him, he's gobbing my shirt.”

Smiling – According to some research it is no accident that babies start smiling at the six week mark. It is right when the sleepless nights and endless nappy changes are getting on top of you and voila! You are rewarded with your bub's first true smile and it melts you. The bags under your eyes just became worthwhile.