One Month Under Her Diaper

Jahan turned one month old today! As a premature celebration, she shed the stump of her umbilical cord yesterday. We've decided to save it as a candle for her 16th birthday cake. If her birthday behavior is a sign of what's to come, we're in for a very long 17 years and 11 months. When she wasn't sleeping or nursing today, she was letting out a cry that makes parents cringe and bystanders think about calling DYFS. Fortunately, the car ride to the grocery store was a worthwile sedative. But while Sarah was inside the peaceful store, Dan was trying to weather the storm in the car. He tried everything--baby talk, smiling, rocking, and reason. He drove around the parking lot in circles, but the screaming only intensified. He offered his pinky as a pacifier; she spit it out as if it were poisoned. Finally, Sarah tapped on the window, and we were quickly back on Raritan Avenue. Once the car reached 40 mph, Jahan was asleep. Rather than going home, we decided to drive through all of the streets on the south side of Highland Park--twice. Then we did a loop through the park before we finally decided to roll the dice and try to go home. Luckily, Jahan was in a deep state of sleep, so we let her sleep for a while in her car seat in the kitchen while Dan did some grading and Sarah prepared dinner. While she was sleeping, Jahan let out a few cries and frightening noises. We could only imagine the scenes of her nightmare from her traumatic experiences today. After a bit more time, drama, and detective work, we realized that Jahan's fussiness had a logical root--gas. Another feeding and several squirts later seemed to release the demons and return our daughter to us. She is now sleeping peacefully next to a friendly, overstuffed lamb.