Baby superstitions

I feel as though I live on a live movie set sometimes. The things people do and say are often so funny, so stereotypical that it's hard to believe it's actually true. Since the birth of bel bambino we have had a steady flow of visitors. Those that don't come to the house to officially visit stop us in the streets when we are out and about going for a walk when the weather permits. (Yes, I know, shock horror that I can take a new born baby outside so soon, and in the middle of winter too!)

When people aren't asking me if I breastfeed, they are pointing their fingers inches away from bel bambino's face as they say "benadica!" which means bless. The pointing of the fingers comes when they utter a compliment or two, since he is after all the most beautiful baby in the world. Now I am not talking about any old finger pointing here. I am talking about this finger pointing:

This finger pointing is le corna which translates as the horn. It is a sign to ward off the malocchio, the evil eye since giving a compliment to a person can cause them harm. If people don't want to point their fingers inches from the babies face, then one passer by said "che brutto!" with a smile on her face as she looked into bel bambino's angelic face. Now, I am assuming she didn't really mean that bel bambino was ugly, but she didn't want to compliment him cause of this evil eye thing....or maybe she was just a rude old person who thought he was nothing special...but no...I am sure it was not that!

Another tradition is that some people have given us gifts of coffee (a bag of coffee beans, or ground coffee in a pack.) I have no idea why, and have asked bel fidanzato and his mother, but neither of them know why people give a gift of coffee. It's a useful gift however as one can only have so many baby clothes.

Living in a small village is rather comical at times!

Do you breastfeed?

Italians are very open, sometimes so much so that if you are not used to it, you will find them offensive or intrusive. Ever since having the baby people ask me if I am breastfeeding. I am no prude, but I think this is a rather personal, private thing. Furthermore when I say people have been asking me, I mean everyone has literally asked me - men as well as women, people who I don't even know, people I have never even met! Not one visitor has passed who has not asked me this question. People phone day and night to enquire after the baby, and this is a lovely gesture, but when they are people whom I have never, ever met and they ask me this question then it really annoys me.

You can imagine then, that I was getting a little miffed to say the least. My mum and dad flew home this morning, but they also thought it very odd and a little rude that everyone asks me this question. This is my first baby, so I am not sure the way things go in Australia, but I am sure every Tom, Dick and Harry didn't ask my twin if she was breastfeeding.

And for the record, no, I am not breastfeeding. I had just been discharged from the hospital, and after having been inside for 10 days was not feeling the best. We had to buy formula before the chemists all closed for the lunch break. I stopped at a chemist near our village and went inside with my mum. I asked the woman behind the counter, the pharmacist she was, if they had X or Y brand. They had neither she said. I asked her if she had any formula and she said no. I asked when they would be getting formula in, and she said she didn't know, but really I should be breastfeeding.

Excuse me? Did I hear right? Did she honestly just tell me that I should be breastfeeding when I was wanting to buy formula?

I was tired, sore, I had not seen daylight for 10 days, I hadn't washed my hair for even longer, I wanted to go home and I was anxious as I needed formula to feed the baby. So I told this pharmacist fool in a not so polite voice that I had just had a C-section, that
I had no milk so it was physically impossible for me to breastfeed.

Unfortunately I cannot be rude when I reply to bel fidanzato's friends and family. It is only the old people that ask me, friends our age have not asked, but the old people....well there's no holding back with them. They don't listen either. When I tell them that I have no milk, they still like to tell me that really though, breastfeeding is best. Are you deaf - I feel like yelling, but I don't. Why don't you mind your own business? Why are you bothering me? Why don't you go and harass some other tired, new mum with a 15 day old baby. Why don't you go and get a life? I don't yell these things at them, but maybe I should...it would make me feel a lot better!

Our baby boy

This is our little boy when he was about 30 minutes old. It was a strange experience having a C-section...I went into the operating theatre all alone, I was naked since they don't give you a gown or anything to wear, and felt a little self conscious as I was sitting on the bed/operating table waiting to get my epidural. I have never seen such a massive needle in my life and was scared so asked one of the nurses if I could hold her hand. Thankfully she said yes. The nurses tried to calm me down by making small talk which I appreciated.

I felt a little nauseous the table since my head was tilted down a little lower then my body. A cover was placed on my chest and a small curtain up and over my stomach so I couldn't see them hacking into me. Above me however was a large light which clearly let me see the reflection of my open stomach. I made sure not to look up, but rather looked at the nurse who was holding a tube which softly blew cool air onto my face (to help with the nausea.)

The sensation of having doctors pull a baby out of your stomach is a strange one. You can't feel the pain, but you still have feeling. I felt them tug the baby out, and then I looked over to my right as they said "this is your baby" or something along those lines. If memory serves they were holding him by his feet and he was purple. I can't remember if he was crying. I didn't actually feel anything, no emotion as it was a surreal experience. They don't place the baby onto your chest for skin to skin contact, instead they whisked him off into the other room for his check-up and to clothe him.

A few moments later, a screaming little baby was again briefly brought into the room, again on my right hand side and they bent him over me a little so I could give him a quick peck on the cheek. Then he was gone.

Bel fidanzato was waiting for me outside of the delivery rooms and he later told me how the door opened and a nurse came out pushing a crib with a small baby in it. He only realised it was our baby since they had my empty bag in the crib. It was the bag with his change of clothes etc...and if it hadn't been for that then who knows if they would have told bel fidanzato that this baby was his! Normally they call out the father's name, but for some reason this nurse didn't. The baby then was sent to my room to await my arrival. By this stage there were a few members of the family waiting for us, and they eagerly followed the baby into my room while bel fidanzato waited for me to exit.

By the time I got to my room about 20 minutes had passed and I was - not angry - but a little disappointed I guess you could say, disappointed that everyone had seen the baby, touched the baby, kissed the baby - before I had even had a good look at him! I had no idea what he looked like yet all these other people had.

At least he was fine, in good health, a little on the smaller side but perfect in every way. Now that he's home he's already getting little chubby cheeks and is the most beautiful baby in the world!