Molly is three weeks old now and when I went to visit her this weekend I could see some big changes. For a start she is almost twice as big as the day she was born and has increased from five to eight pounds in weight, which I suppose makes her about the average size of a new born baby. Her face has filled out and she has delightful little cheeks, a rosebud mouth and she has lost her frown and her heavy forehead. She is feeding strongly and she is making rapid progress and I expect I will see even more changes in a week’s time.
She is also much more alert and her eyes are open for long periods. They are a dark violet blue but we will have to see if she keeps them because baby eyes can change in the first few weeks. Most newborns have blue eyes, which change to green, hazel, light brown or dark brown and the scientific reason for this is that eye color is a polygenic trait and is determined by the amount and type of pigments in the iris. Humans have many phenotypic variations in eye color and these variations in color are attributed to varying ratios of eumelanin produced by melanocytes in the iris. So now you know! I hope she keeps the blues, they suit her and she gets them from Sally.
Baby sight develops only gradually and Molly’s vision will be pretty fuzzy, though by all accounts she can make out light, shapes, and movement. She can see only about twenty-five centimetres at the moment, which is just far enough to clearly make out the face of the person holding her so you have to move in close if you are going to be recognised.
Hearing is different and by now will be almost fully developed and she is fully receptive to what she hears. She is used to Sally’s voice of course after nearly nine months in the womb and whoever is holding her she turns her head towards the direction of her mum’s voice. Actually I am sure that as well as being the prettiest baby ever born she is probably the brightest ever as well so I probably need to get thinking about an application to Oxford or Cambridge already.
She is also much more alert and her eyes are open for long periods. They are a dark violet blue but we will have to see if she keeps them because baby eyes can change in the first few weeks. Most newborns have blue eyes, which change to green, hazel, light brown or dark brown and the scientific reason for this is that eye color is a polygenic trait and is determined by the amount and type of pigments in the iris. Humans have many phenotypic variations in eye color and these variations in color are attributed to varying ratios of eumelanin produced by melanocytes in the iris. So now you know! I hope she keeps the blues, they suit her and she gets them from Sally.
Baby sight develops only gradually and Molly’s vision will be pretty fuzzy, though by all accounts she can make out light, shapes, and movement. She can see only about twenty-five centimetres at the moment, which is just far enough to clearly make out the face of the person holding her so you have to move in close if you are going to be recognised.
Hearing is different and by now will be almost fully developed and she is fully receptive to what she hears. She is used to Sally’s voice of course after nearly nine months in the womb and whoever is holding her she turns her head towards the direction of her mum’s voice. Actually I am sure that as well as being the prettiest baby ever born she is probably the brightest ever as well so I probably need to get thinking about an application to Oxford or Cambridge already.
But we are starting with more practical life training and this week we took her to the pub for Saturday lunch. I used to hate that and I feel such a hypocrite because I used to think that babies in pubs just spoilt it for everyone else. I have a theory about this and I think when you become a grandparent this triggers the release of a patience hormone that has been lying dormant for fifty years or so. Mine has suddenly and dramatically increased even to the point that babies on aeroplanes don’t even bother me any more. I wonder if this is something that will pass or if it will be with me forever?
1 comment:
Hello Andrew,
Molly is gorgeous, i love the way she is looking at you in the photo :o) You're take on patience Grandad had me smiling !!!
Jaynee X
Post a Comment