the hospital two hours after the bath incident and appeared normal as reported to me by daughter. Daughter remained at the hospital for several days to care for her newborn baby while awaiting the results of the tests prescribed by the pediatrician. Since testing done on the infant required results to be obtained by a laboratory in Chicago, Illinois a lengthy stay in the hospital was required because of the wait involved to obtain the results in writing from this distant city. After arriving home, daughter and I decided not to submerge granddaughter in a bath of water until she was three months old and so daily sponge baths became routine for granddaughter during the next two and one half months.
Through news reports, one became aware of the hazards of BPA (bisphenol A), which is a chemical used in the manufacturing of linings for metal cans that contain food products. It was reported that BPA can cause brain and nerve damage, cancer, hormonal problems resulting in reproductive problems and/or human developmental defects and is especially harmful to infants. A news story from China, depicted parents with infants waiting on long lines to procure medical help for the children apparently made ill by BPA. Television reports alerted people in the United States to the dangers of this substance. Concerned with the lining of granddaughter’s baby formula cans, one contacted the formula manufacturer to inquire if BPA was a compound in the linings of the formula cans used by this company. The reply was yes that BPA was used in the lining of cans and that the FDA (Federal Food and Drug Administration) had approved the use of this chemical compound for lining the cans of food products.
At three months old, daughter desired to have portrait photographs taken of granddaughter. Granddaughter was dressed in a formal dress in preparation for these milestone photographs. Daughter selected a photography studio contained within a major department store to take and develop these photographs. After taking several photographs of granddaughter in various poses, it was suggested to daughter by the photographer to remove the clothing from granddaughter for additional poses and photographs.
In August, granddaughter received the sacrament of Baptismal at a local Catholic Church. A small dinner party to celebrate this event was given at our home.
Over the course of the year, granddaughter recovered from what seemed to be an early ill beginning. Vaccinations were declined and granddaughter became a chubby, strong, vibrant infant who began walking at nine months, one week post birth. She amazed me with her memory and recall and was able to recite with very little adult help, the poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas” at age twenty- two months post birth. In 2011, when daughter was reviewing papers in a file cabinet, she discovered that granddaughter was immunized with the hepatitis B vaccine shortly following birth. A quiet outrage over came me as I then realized why granddaughter may have suffered from these earlier health problems as a newborn baby.
It is most appropriate at this time to discuss the environmentally polluting (to human beings and nature), disposable diaper. A half century ago and before, babies undergarments consisted of a cloth diaper with perhaps a liquid proof pant worn over the diaper. It is also interesting to note that most children at that time were completely toilet trained by two years old. At this time, it is not unusual to