That is what calms Hallie down everytime. Just today, I was trying to get her to sleep. She laid in my bed and cried for a little bit, tossing and turning as I patted her back and sang to her. She would not fall asleep and was getting more and more upset. So, I rolled her onto my chest and I held her and sang to her. It took only a few seconds for her to calm down and start listening to my sweet(or not to sweet) voice and feeling the vibrations from my chest to hers. She was asleep in a matter of minutes.
As I laid there, I was thinking about how it is so important for little babies to be comforted and attached to their Mothers like that. Having an adopted child, it made me think about what it was like for Hallie the first few hours/days of life. We were there when she was about 9 hours old, but there was alot of time that we were not there. I wonder how much time she spent with Jennieke, her birthmom? and how much time with nurses? Did Jennieke put her up on her chest at all? Or did she just lay in the bassinet most of the day?.........I have comfort knowing that her birthmom breastfed her. So I do know she got alot of comfort from that.
When I held Hallie for the first time, I wore a V-neck shirt, and intentionally put her on my chest to sleep. I wanted her to feel my heartbeat and the warmth of my skin as soon as possible. Then when we got her back to our rented NYC apt, I held her for days on my chest, bare skinned. It was wonderful...I just hope that mothers know how very important skin-to-skin contact is for their baby.
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