Kangaroo care

When I was pregnant, I remember thinking how weird it would be if I were a marsupial and my fetus decided to climb out of me underdeveloped and then finish growing in an exterior pouch.  Well, that's kind of what happened, and that's kind of what happens to premature human babies all over the dang world.

Hamb and I are fortunate enough to live in driving distance to plenty of great hospitals, but in some countries, preemies don't have access to cozy isolettes and well-trained doctors, so their survival/thriving rates were much lower than in developed nations.  Then, somebody was like, "Look what happens when this baby snuggles up on its mom!  OMG! Stability!"

It turns out that these preemies kind of wanted the marsupial pouch experience.  You can't blame them.  It's cozy.

Now "Kangaroo Care" is used almost all day in places where medical technology isn't as advanced, and it's used frequently plenty of other places.  Study after study have shown that when babies are snugged up on a parent's chest, their temperature, heartbeat, and breathing regulate.  It's during this stable, sleepy time that the babies do almost all of their growing.

My view during Kangaroo Care

Apparently my body knows what to do as well as the baby's body during "Kangaroo Care."  When I sense her getting too hot or too cold, my boobs change temperature!  Really!  (I haven't actually noticed this.  Medical studies told me.)  Also, K-care releases all sorts of hormones in me that makes pumping (and later breastfeeding) wildly successful.  Post-cuddle milkfest!

All this means that Hamb and I have been taking off our shirts and cuddling with the baby.  (Not both of us at once, weirdo.)  We do it during her feeding time (which is just when a vial of milk is being slowly pushed into a tube that goes down her nose into her stomach) so she associates feeding with skin.  Because of our schedules, we probably get in a total of 2-3 hours a day, but once she's home it's practically going to be an all day kangaroo party.  (Besides the boxing.  Don't kangaroos box?)

Since "Kangaroo Care" and "Skin-to-skin" time is being used more and more in hospitals, you'll probably see plenty of pictures of both moms and dads sans shirt cuddling up with their babies.  It's not just us bragging about our hot bods (though that is definitely part of it), but rather giving our babies the best shot at growing up and bragging about THEIR hot bods.