Newborns are amazing

... and great if you can give them back after a lovely cuddle. Today I visited a friend and her newborn little girl. I was using a newborn assessment that I have used in the past at work and try to practise when I can so I don't lose my skills in doing it. My skills weren't very good to begin with (I only just scraped through the certification exam) so I figure that the more typically developing newborns I can do it with, the better I'll be if I use it at work again in the future with babies who may actually be at risk of developing problems.

Newborns can do lots of things despite the prevailing view that they don't do much except eat, sleep, poo and cry. For instance, they are very good at protecting their sleep in that they will adjust to a stimulus presented repeatedly, for example, a torch that shines into their eyes. They have amazing reflexes that precede movement development. And they can be very social if they are in an alert state, following an adult's face or turning to their voice.

It's fascinating to watch them and see the many things they are able to do. I found it hard to do this with my own baby because I was so sleep deprived, and in my case, feeding difficulties meant that much time in Rosie's early months was spent dreading her next feed and praying that she would gain weight.

But when I have the opportunity to observe someone else's newborn, I am in awe of how God has made us.