Bilirubin

As we get to know Sadie, there are a few things that surprise Ali and me. The first surprise was her dark brown wavy hair, and the fact that she had any hair at all, really. Jake wasn't quite bald when he was born, but he only had a tiny bit of dirty blond hair in the back like a bald man's mullet. Ali was pretty much bald when she was born, and I had very fine, blond hair. So, we're continually pulling off her little blue/pink hospital-issued ski cap and giggling with delight.

Another surprise is Sadie's olive skin. Ali has very fair, Irish skin, and my skin tone is probably best described as pink. Sadie, however, was born with (compared to us, at least) a Mediterranean olive-hued skin that caused the hospital to run tests for jaundice after the doctor looked at the two of us. The results came back negative, but it did get me into a funny conversation with Ali's sister Deni about bilirubin levels and her asking me who this "Billy Rubin" person is. This got me wondering whether Rick Rubin ever considered naming one of his kids William just for fun.

Here's picture of Jake and Sadie so you can do your own skin tone comparison at home:


The most pleasant surprise has been the way she communicates her need to feed. She has a very healthy appetite, as Jake did, but their methods of alerting us are very different. At this early age, Jake was very fond of the popular Screaming Baby method. It is very recognizable and its shrill tones fail to go unnoticed. Sadie, however, has opted for a more subtle approach. At about 3am Tuesday morning, we heard a tiny sound coming out of the bassinet next to our bed. Sadie was smacking her gums together in a sucking motion, just persistent enough to get the attention of a light sleeper. A normal human being would not be able to hear this noise, but Sadie must be aware that we are new parents and can register the even the slightest sound coming from a newborn.

I'm convinced that if we fail to notice her polite request for food even once, she'll revert to the tried and true Screaming Baby method, so we are doing our best to respond to her cute gum smacking.