Clara was the most alert newborn I had ever seen! She had these huge eyes and even in her first few days of life, they never closed. It was apparent from the very beginning that Clara was a high needs baby. I had never even heard the terms "high needs" or "highly sensitive" before, but what I did know was that my baby was nothing like the other babies I knew. My husband and I anticipated our lives would change drastically with the arrival of our bundle of joy but yet we were not prepared for this special little lady. As a newborn, Clara rarely slept! A couple of short catnaps was all she needed (too bad that's not all I needed). Her sleep was, and still is, very light. She would awaken easily at the slightest noise, even when I would tiptoe past her. This was very confusing to me as I was lead to believe that newborns slept a lot and it was customary to snuggle up to them and drift off yourself. My saving grace was that she did sleep well at night for the first few month...things went downhill after that.
I think that every single person who met Clara commented on how alert she was. She was tuned into the world around her and was not about to miss out on the excitement. We also found out very quickly that Clara was particular! She knew what she did and didn't like and she wasn't afraid to let us know exactly how she felt. Displeasure was met with intense cries. Did I mention that she had the loudest cry in the hospital nursery? Her lungs are healthy and we're convinced that she will sing Opera one day.
It took my husband and I awhile to understand the mystery of the high needs baby. We have come a long way and day-by-day we are learning how to care for and nurture this special girl. Clara is indeed one of a kind and we wouldn't have her any other way. So this is just the beginning of our journey...the chronicles are yet to come.
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