More than Expected

Part 46

February 3, 2014
It's been almost two weeks since Rick left and it's safe to say Kate hates it. Royce started smiling two days ago and it broke her heart to have to wait until almost 10:00 at night when Rick was finally settled into his room after a long day to FaceTime him and show him. She's been anxious about today for the past few days. It's Royce's four month check up today and it's the first time she's had to go alone to one of their son's appointments. Both her parents have work and Martha was out of town until tomorrow.
Kate is up and out of bed early to shower and eat before Royce woke up. She nursed him and got him ready before loading him and the diaper bag into her car and driving to the pediatrician's office. At the doctor, Kate signs Royce in before sitting with her baby boy and smiles as he gazes around the room. "Royce Castle." Kate stands with her son in her arms and carries him back to an exam room, "Good morning. I'm Lucy, I'll be this little guy's nurse today. I'm going to start by weighing and measuring him."
       Kate nods and strips the baby down to his diaper and placing him on the scale. Royce begins crying at the discomfort of the coldness. Kate aches to soothe her baby boy. "Alright, he is now 15 pounds 4 ounces and he's measuring at 24.50 inches in height, so he is right on track." The nurse says, "Hear that, Bubba? We're doing good." Kate coos, "You're doing perfect. I'll let you get home dressed and then I'll show you to a room." Lucy says. Kate quickly slips the little outfit back on her son and follows the nurse.
     They're not in the room long before Dr. Swann walks in, "Hello. How are we today?" Dr. Swann asks, "We're good." "That's good. How's he been doing? Do you have any concerns?" "Nope. He's a happy baby boy." Kate smiles as she bounces her son on her knee, "That's great to hear. Has he reached any new milestones recently? Smiling? Rolling over?" "He's been smiling a lot the last few days. As for rolling over, he goes from his belly to his back easily, but the other way is still a work in progress." Kate tells her son's doctor.
       "That's normal. Most babies have a harder time rolling from back to belly. As long as he's rolling from at least one side to the other, he's doing perfect. And you're still breastfeeding correct?" "Yes. He nurses about every three to four hours." "And how long is he nursing for during each session?" "About 10 minutes all together." "Perfect. Now, we recommend starting them on baby foods around six months. If you want to start mixing your breast milk with some rice cereal, this could help him with transitioning to the baby food. I would just do it during one of his feeds for now."
      "Okay. Should I start trying to pump and bottle feed him?" Kate asks, "That's your preference. Some moms like fo exclusively breastfeed while others like to pump and bottle feed for their babies especially if the baby will be around family or sitters while mom is busy." The doctor says and Kate nods, "He bottlefeeds once or twice a day during the weekdays while I'm at school and he's with my mother-in-law." "That's perfectly normal. If you want to transition him completely to a bottle it could help him with eating baby foods and sippy cups in the future."
     Kate nods. "Here are some pamphlets on bottle feeding if you choose to go that route. The next thing I want to talk about is sleep training. This is the stage where most parents start the self-soothing approach or the pick up/put down method to getting their baby into a schedule of sleeping through the night. Here are some pamphlets on both. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to call me and ask." Dr. Swann says. Kate nods, "Alright, I'm going to start his physical exam. At the end of his appointment today, he will be getting five of his vaccinations."
     "All of them are second or third doses: PCV, DTaP, Hib, and Polio are shots so he'll get two in each leg and the Rotavirus is given orally." Dr. Swann says. She performs the physical on the baby and assess that he is growing perfectly and sees no problems. Once she finishes the physical, she orders one of the nurses to give Royce his vaccinations befor Kate is sent home with her son. She takes a breath of relief when she gets home and notices he's asleep in his baby carrier.
     She walks inside and finds her parents, "Hi. How was his appointment?" Johanna asks, "Good. He's sleeping right now. I have to go to the store later today and buy him some rice cereal. Dr. Swann recommended giving it to him with my breast milk to help the transition from nursing to baby foods in a couple of months." Kate says, "Okay. We can go after dinner. Other than that he's good?" "He's perfect." Kate whispers as she carefully lifts him and passes him to her mom. She walks over to the counter where she notices both her parents looking at her.
     "What?" She asks. Jim slides a piece of paper her way and she opens it. Her heart stops and eyes widen, "What is this?" Kate asks, "It's a round trip to North Carolina for Valentines Day. Your father and I will watch Royce so you can go see Rick. We know you miss him." Her mother says. Tears well up in Kate's eyes as she hugs her parents. She decides she wants to surprise her solider so that night on FaceTime, she keeps one of the biggest secrets from him: she'll see him in a little over a week.
Part 46! Next chapter our couple will be reunited!