So yesterday, Anna took a sibling class at our hospital so that she could learn about babies and what to do with them. They watched a little video called "Sibling Silly", which was very cute. Then the teacher showed them some pictures of newborns so that they would be prepared for how the baby will look. They included a few pictures of things like the umbilical cord, some mild head bruising, and a minor rash so that the kids could see that babies sometimes look a little different at first, and that's okay. They also showed pictures of babies nursing, which I thought was a nice touch, and something that Anna will definitely have to get used to. After that, the teacher talked about how to hold the baby, with emphasis on ASKING first. This is something that I have a feeling we'll need to reinforce a LOT with Anna. She's such a little mother, I have a feeling she's going to want to hold the baby all the time! The teacher also talked about toys that babies can and cannot play with and showed the kids how to use a toilet paper tube to test whether the toy was okay for the baby.
Then she divided the kids into groups and taught them to diaper and swaddle baby dolls. It was hilarious to watch the boys, many of whom had never gone near a baby doll before! One little boy was completely grossed out by the idea of changing a diaper, and he was VERY vocal about it! But not Anna. She swaddled the baby doll expertly. Then when she went to change the diaper, she was not content to merely take one diaper off and put another on. Oh, no. She wanted to wipe the baby, too! So she found a napkin, opened it up, wiped very carefully between the baby's legs, put on the clean diaper, and then swaddled the baby again and held it in her arms and rocked it, supporting its head in her elbow, just like the teacher said to!
After that, we got a tour of the L&D unit so the kids could see where their baby brothers and sisters would be born. The poor teacher then asked if they had any questions. One little boy piped up and said, "How will the baby get out of Mommy's tummy?" The teacher handled it well (she said something about the doctor getting the baby out), but considering this was a class for 6-9 year olds, I was surprised the parents hadn't addressed that with the child AT ALL. I certainly haven't given Anna the gory details, but she does know that the baby comes out through a special opening between the mommy's legs.
Oh, and forgive me for my mini rant, but would someone PLEASE ban those stupid Heely shoes from all public places? One of the little boys in the class was wearing them, and I wanted to strangle his parents for allowing him to coast through the L&D unit without a single thought about whether he was going to knock over some poor pregnant woman or nurse. Seriously. They're bad enough in malls and grocery stores, but in the hospital? Ugh.
Okay, off the soapbox now. Here are a few pictures of Anna at the class. Also note the new 'do. She's very proud of her "grown up" hair!
Getting ready to wipe the baby:
Finishing up the diaper:
Time to swaddle:
Carefully supporting the baby's head:
Anna's "graduation" certificate from sibling class:
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