Tag Archives: growth

9mo Well Baby and Neverending Cold (9m)

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Kieran saw his Pediatrician today to get checked out for this cough he’s had for 3+ weeks and to have his 9-month Well-Baby visit.

Kieran’s stats from his 9-month checkup:

  • Age: 9 months, 2 days
  • Weight: 19.6lb (was 18lb @ 6mo)
  • Length: 27.75″  (up from 26.75″)
  • Head Circumference: 46.5cm  (up from 45cm)
  • He’s dropped to the 35th percentile for height/weight from the 50th, and his body is starting to catch up to his huge head: he’s down to the 82nd percentile!

I was surprised that Kieran had actually dropped in the height/weight percentiles.  He seems so much bigger to us in the last 3 months, way more than just a pound and a half!  Granted, he is moving around more than he used to, but as he’s not crawling or cruising yet, I don’t think the increased activity is enough to slim him down any.  (If anything, I think the whole 1.6 pounds went to his belly and thighs!  He has the absolute most MUNCHABLE thighs now.)

Dr. Hodapp was his usual self, practically backing out of the exam room as soon as he walked in.  (Paul and I had a chat – I’m strongly considering changing Pediatricians…)  But in the few minutes we talked, Dr. Hodapp pronounced Kieran just perfect.  He’s not concerned at all with the slow-down in growth, as obviously Kieran is thriving.  Kieran’s developmental gains are doing great, since he babbles to everyone (Mama, Daddy, Teachers, Doggy, Kitty, Baby in the Mirror…) and is happily pulling himself up on everything.  Dr. Hodapp confirmed my suspicions that Kieran probably won’t bother to crawl – since he’s showing no desire to do it now and is moving towards cruising on the stuff he pulls himself up on.  I was told to focus Kieran’s nutrition on solids, using formula to “top him up” after a meal of solids.  (Ugh, that’s a whole ‘nother post I wanna make… I’m so frustrated with conflicting information about solids/formula at this age.)  Kieran’s tubes look great, which was a relief. (Kieran’s been patting at his left ear for a few days now.)  Dr. Hodapp thinks it’s teething.  I’m inclined to agree, as the drool has started up again and Kieran has been chewing on his hand more recently.

As far as Kieran’s never-ending wet, productive cough: IT’S A COLD.  I really didn’t want to accept that.  I pushed, and re-iterated that he’s had this wet, productive, body-wracking, eye-bugging, baby-exhausting cough for three weeks now.  It’s worse at night, but still very much there during the day, so much so that Kieran hasn’t wanted to eat for a couple of days now.  But, I have to admit also that he hasn’t been running a temperature, and the accompanying sinus involvement has been on-and-off, and all-around not as bad as previous colds.  I wasn’t looking for meds, but I really wanted some reassurance that this truly is just a cold (or 2-3 colds back-to-back) and not something to worry about.  I asked about possible allergies too.

Dr. Hodapp listened to Kieran’s breathing, and had them check his oxygen saturation.  Both were good – lungs are clear, and his O2 was at 96-97.  Dr. Hodapp encouraged me to bring Kieran back in a week or two if the cough is still there.  (I made an appointment for my next furlough day at work, with every hope and intention of canceling it the day before.)  I mentioned the fact that we were unable to ever get in to see anyone at this office while Kieran had his ear infections – basically I got told that we had the misfortune of having a sick kid during the “bad” season.  Meh.  Again, more reason that I wanna consider changing Pediatricians. But for now, Kieran just has a cold and we’re to keep doing what we’re doing: nose sucking and humidifying his room at night.  No need for meds.  If he has this exact thing next Spring, it could possibly be allergy-related, but Dr. Hodapp said that babies Kieran’s age just don’t have seasonal allergies like that.

I’m glad we were able to get Kieran checked out.  I feel a lot better with confirmation that there isn’t something terribly wrong.  So now we can focus on enjoying this weekend with Grampa John and Great Grandma Cat.  We’re going to take pictures in Kieran’s Dodger outfit to celebrate the start of Baseball season and just do our level best to enjoy the lovely warm weather we’re having.

Sixes and Sevens (7m)

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This last month has just FLOWN by!!  I can’t believe that Christmas was just over a month ago.  (I’m still trying to get my thank you cards done!!  ack!)  But so much has happened in the last month too:

  • This. Every time we change his diaper. Roly Poly kid.Kieran continues to do wonderfully at Daycare.  (We call it School.)  His teachers are really getting to know him, and he has made friends in his class.  Most mornings, he barely notices when Paul kisses him goodbye because he’s already engrossed in playing!  He’s still the biggest diva in the class, but he’s slowly learning to be patient and to entertain himself.  (He just really really likes company – he doesn’t like to feel like he’s alone.)  Watching the other kids is really helping Kieran grow and learn – he wanted to get up in the high chairs at lunch time, which lead to him having his biggest solid meal each day at school.  He’s starting with Cheerios this week after watching the other kids with theirs.  (His teachers are great about helping him try these things in a very safe way.  Paul and I trust them completely.)
  • Kieran is rolling over from front to back and back to front.  He can log-roll around if he wants to.  He doesn’t seem to want to do that very much yet though, mostly because it would mean rolling away from whoever is on the floor with him.  When he topples over on his play mat, we don’t rush to help him up anymore.  And he’s all over the place in his crib.  We’ve had to move all his stuffed animals out from the far end because he’s actually moving around in there now!
  • Kieran likes to play on his belly now too.  He’ll push himself up on his arms while on his playmat and laugh and laugh.  He does a flippy/spin thing on the changing table that would be amazing if it weren’t quite so annoying during a diaper change.  He’s always trying to roll over during a diaper change, so keeping a hand on him is vital these days.  (No, we don’t think his cloth diapers make it any harder at this point really – he’s be just as squirmy with disposables too.  But we are all the more glad that we don’t have to deal with sharp diaper pins though.)
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5 month update (5m1w)

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I cannot believe how much Kieran has changed in the last month!! It’s like he went from ‘infant’ to BABY.  He’s so solid and sturdy now.  When he’s doing his happy baby kick & flail spaz-out on our knee thing – you’d swear he’s about to leap off and just go run around.

He talks to us now.  Not just mono-syllabic cooing anymore – but  multi-syllable sounds.  And a WHOLE BUNCH OF THEM.   Unfortunately, he likes to chatter up a storm at his overnight feedings.  Tells me about his day and what he dreamed – or tries to at least.  I spend a lot of our overnight visits shushing him.   We still have a good time on the changing table though – lots of discussions, usually involving blowing raspberries at each other and then cracking up. His little baby belly laugh is such a joy.  He’s gone from being a growly Baby Bear to our laughing happy little guy.

Kieran can now sit up with almost no assistance.  He can sit unassisted, but not for terribly long.  He’s had quite enough of his Bumpo for the most part though – he doesn’t seem to mind toppling over.  Paul works with him every day on little baby calisthenics – getting strong and stronger every day.  It’s only a matter of time before he’s sitting up on his own, and rolling over.  He keeps trying, and almost did it this past weekend.  We know as soon as he figures it out, everything changes.  We’re relishing these last days (weeks?) of assuming he’ll be in the same place we put him down when we turn around.

Kieran is getting easier to entertain – mostly because he can entertain himself more now.  He likes to hang out in his exersaucer – and is starting to figure out that he can spin around to get to the toy he wants.  It’s incredible to watch him interact with his toys.  It’s obvious he remembers what he likes now, and can ‘work’ his toys.  Like the push button on the talking mirror or the froggy spinning top on his exersaucer – he remembers how to make them go!  It’s incredible to watch him figure things out.  He’s SO smart!  (Not that I’m biased at all…)

Growth wise, Kieran is on fire!  We’re pretty sure we can hear him creaking in his crib overnight.  He’s kissing 16 pounds and is filling out his 6 month footie sleepers really well.  His little Charlie Brown head is getting bigger and bigger – and fortunately his hair seems to be keeping up.  He’s got a pleasant amount of baby chunk on his fat little thighs and arms.  We know he’s growing taller because his infant size cloth diapers are starting to get too small – he is sporting the occasional plumber’s crack.  Looks like I’ll be boiling the next size diapers this month!

If you can’t tell yet – we are just SO in love with this little guy.  He is the light of our lives and such a joy!

The Monthly Comparison gallery has been updated with 5 month pics.  (It’s getting harder to take these pictures because Kieran grabs the stuffed animals and flails them around like mad – so catching a picture with the stuffed animal in place is a matter of timing!)

It's getting harder to get a still shot with the Stegosaurus! (5mo)Self portrait before going for a ride on Air Mommy! (5mo)Sitting around with Eeyore! (5mo)

Four month comparisons! (4m2w)

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(Yeah, I know I’m mixing it up with the timestamping of titles… I dunno how I wanna do them now.)

I did Kieran’s 4-month comparison photos within a day or two of his 4 month birthday, but it took me a little bit to get them up into the gallery and then I just haven’t had a chance to write a post.  Sorry!

I cannot believe how big Kieran is getting!  He’s smack in the 50th percentile for his age, but he seems so big now!  He’s blowing through clothing still (much to my sister-in-law’s joy since she’s getting hand-me-downs like whoa) and is reaching farther and standing taller all the time!  (I blogged that his feet almost touch the platform on his exersaucer two weeks ago…. yeah, he’s got both feet on the platform now.)

So anyway, if you’re interested, click away to see the Monthly Gallery with 4 month photos included!

Chillin' with Eeyore from Auntie Lisa & Uncle Mikey (1mo)Sitting around with Eeyore! (2mo)Making faces with Eeyore (3mo)Nomming hands with Eeyore (4mo)

4 Month Checkup (4m1w)

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How on earth is it possible that Kieran is 4 months old now?  (Actually, he was 4 months a week ago…)  It just doesn’t seem possible.  In some ways it seems like FAR longer since we brought him home from the hospital, but in others it seems like just yesterday.

Kieran has grown SO MUCH since his last doctor’s appointment at 2 months.  We knew he was growing just by how quickly he was outgrowing his clothes, but putting him on the scales at Dr. Hodapp’s office confirmed it!

2mo 4mo
weight 10.3lb (10-25%) 15.25lb (55%)
length 22″ (10-25%) 25″ (55%)
head 40cm (50%) 43.5cm (75%)
size 0-3 or 3m 3m, 3-6m, 6m

Dr. Hodapp was impressed and happy with Kieran’s growth. We were stunned to say the least to see a FIVE POUND gain in two months! And nearly as shocking to us was seeing that Kieran has put on SIX INCHES in four months! Good heavens, no wonder he outgrows his footie sleepers so fast! Dr. Hodapp doesn’t think Kieran will keep up this super fast rate of growth, which is probably a good thing because I don’t know what we’d do with a 6 foot tall 4-year-old! (At Kieran’s last checkup, everyone was commenting on our “tiny peanut” and this time they were cheering our “BIG BOY” – what a different two months makes!)

We talked about Kieran’s reflux and Dr. Hodapp is fine with continuing the Zantac and titrating up the dosage based on Kieran’s growth. He reviewed the printout I brought from Marci-Kids (Midwest Acid Reflux Children’s Institute) about using liquid Maalox for bad reflux episodes (heartburn) and he was fine with it. (Which was great, because Maalox has been our savior on occasion when Kieran is screaming in pain.)

We talked about starting solids too. Dr. Hodapp is in no hurry for us to start before 6 months. He commented that Kieran will probably spit up less with solids, but that that alone isn’t a reason to start them now. He gave us some guidelines for what to start first (oatmeal or rice cereal, followed by vegetables.) But he has no concerns if we wait until after the first of the year to start solids. We don’t have any plans to start them before then, but you never know.

Dr. Hodapp was very impressed with Kieran’s strength and ability to stand with minimal support. He was happy with Kieran’s core strength and said not to bother with Tummy Time if it pisses Kieran off – no need to make him cry just for Tummy Time. We’ll still do it, just not with the urgency of “OMG, have to do it for 20 minutes a day!!”

Suggestions for helping with naps and sleep were mostly to keep doing what we’re doing with instituting a schedule and to work on making Kieran go longer between bottles so he’ll take a bigger bottle, less frequently. Other than that, we just gotta wait for Kieran’s physiological growth to let him sleep and nap longer.

Kieran got three shots and one oral vaccine at his appointment, and took it like a champ. [#2 of everything he had last time: Hep B, Polio, DTaP (Diphtheria, Tetanus, & Pertussis/Whooping Cough), Hib (Meningitis), PVC13 (Pneumococcal disease), and Rotovirus.] 30 seconds of crying followed by a slightly hurt, bewildered look that said “What the hell, guys?” We could tell that he didn’t feel very good over the next two days, but by staying on top of tylenol doses, we were able to keep the worst of it at bay.

Our next appointment is at 6 months, just after the first of the year. We’re gratified that Kieran is doing so well and growing so strong. You’d never know he was almost a preemie!