Hospital Photos

In the hospital after Wee One was delivered, I was trying desperately to get the hang of breastfeeding.  The nurses would come in periodically and ask when the last time was that she ate, how long she fed, etc.  I was trying to write it all down.  The first day was fine, she nursed in the recovery room then slept.  She was eating about every two hours, like normal.  The second day ... she was nursing all the time, it seemed.  I was having trouble keeping track of all the nursing sessions, because it all ran together in my head.  My dad was mortified and embarassed and didn't want to see my bare breasts (I can't blame him really) so we were trying to keep curtains drawn, etc.  Meanwhile a constant parade of people through my room, including the records person pestering me about a name.

In the middle of all of this good stuff, the hospital photographer comes to take her First Photos.  Well, actually, most hospitals contract out to a company now, so she was the contracted photographer.  I shooed her away with a wave of my hand and a curt "we're having some nursing issues, can you come back tomorrow."  Which, generously, she did.

I had outfits in our bag planned for this big event.  Clothes that were WAAAAAY too big, because I planned for a decent sized newborn, and by this point she was down to about 5 pounds, 5 ounces.  I found one nightgown thingy in the bag that we could put on her and still see what she looked like, so that's what I chose for her First Photos. 

The blanket was crocheted by my Aunt Jody, the first Jo in the family.  I was glad that I had it to use as the backdrop.

So her official photos were taken on her third day.  Through the course of the day, she turned orange as a carrot, and that evening was the phone call from the doc to send her to the NICU overnight under the bili lamp to try to reduce her bilirubin levels to something less than neurotoxic levels.

Once we got home, I had really mixed feelings about these photos.  Honestly, they reminded me of the stress and worry of breastfeeding, the NICU night, trying to get enough milk into her that the nurses wouldn't forcefeed formula, and ... well, worry worry worry.  And some fret for good measure.  The packages seemed expensive, I couldn't decide which pose I liked, and I wasn't sure if I even wanted to order any.

Several months ago, my mom mentioned the "hospital photos".  She wanted to order at least the cheapest option, so we would at least have them.  She was right, in my heart I did want copies of "her hospital photos", but by then I'd lost the paperwork and had no idea where to look for it.  (Two moves in three months will do that, you know.)

Happy ending:  I found the paperwork, and am ordering the cheapest package.  I would have ordered it today online, but when I clicked the "order" button, red flags popped up that their website isn't secure.  My computer basically said "this is a bad idea, girlfriend".  So I'll be calling Customer Service to order.  Meanwhile, I saved the files to my computer for most of the poses :)