Alex had his four month appointment this morning. He weighed in at 13 pounds, 5 ounces, and was 25 ¼ inches long, and his head was 42 centimeters around. If you wanna compare that to other babies he was in the 25th percentile for weight, 67th percentile for height, and 49th percentile for head circumference.
On the raw numbers, the doc seemed a little concerned that he had dropped from the 50th percentile to the 25th percentile in weight. But once she saw him moving around -- how bright and alert he is, how ahead of the game he is on his activity level, and how he has hit every developmental milestone either on time or early -- she declared him "perfect." Thankfully, this doc is more breastfeeding-supportive than the first one we had seen. It didn't hurt that I was able to tell her that he gets around 19 ounces of expressed breast milk a day at day care -- supportive or no, docs like quantifiable numbers, and it gave her more confidence that my supply was adequate. (at four months, she said around 24 ounces a day is the norm/min, and he certainly gets more than that -- he eats from me at least twice in the evening, twice during the night, and first thing in the am in addition to the bottles). I feared they would push me to start solids too early, but quite the opposite -- the doc really wanted me to hold out until 6 months, which was my plan in any event. She said that I should only start solids sooner if he is really pushing for it himself, and even then cereal only (no veggies) on top of breastmilk until after six months, and not before the end of this month. The only reason I should do it, she said, was if I felt my supply was dwindling; I could do solids instead of formula. But I don't like that idea. I plan to hold out.
I talked to my day care provider about it all, and she thinks he could do with a little more during the day, so I am going to try to kick up the pumping a notch and provide one more bottle. I do hope I can keep up! I really do think he is just skinny because he is muscular and active and burns a hell of a lot with all of his ooching and scootching. I also think breastfed babies are just skinnier in general, and would be the ones bringing up the bottom of the curve in any event.
He handled the shots very well. I breastfed him as soon as they were over and he calmed immediately. He is also starting to get good at getting his own thumb in his mouth and soothing himself that way, which is good too. All in all, a good visit.
Way to go! Sounds like this doc is far more supportive then the first one was and that she has a better grasp on the norms for BF babies. I can't believe how much he is taking in! And he is a very alert and active kid so I am not suprised that he is a skinny butt. You were a really skinny butt when you were an infant too. Always above height and below weight midlines. I am glad that Alex has survived his shots yet again....How's the mommy doing? Momma aka Nana
Posted by: Momma on October 16, 2003 06:10 PMThat doctor sounds great! Better than the one I had even.
As far as trying to pump more...can't remember if you are already doing this but I was able to get at least 4oz more per day just by using that Isis pump on the other breast while Sean was nursing. It is much easier to get the flow going when the kiddo is doing his thing! And the nice thing about this was that I didn't have to take extra time while at work to pump more.
Ker, I do exactly as you describe in the morning and get 4-5 ounces. I think I need to start doing it at night too, pain as it is, just to make sure I am getting enough for this kiddo. At work, I only get 4-5 ounces from both breasts. I can't tell if it is stress, a different pump, just later in the day, or what.
Posted by: Dineen on October 17, 2003 12:29 PMIt's so interesting to read your experiences, Dineen, since we both have boys almost the same age! But Sven is HUGE...exclusively breastfed, he's already more than 20 pounds (!). Thanks to breastfeeding, I have totally disappeared, as all my pants are falling off of me (the kiddo is taking even my reserve fat storage of the past 10 years or so!!). It is hilarious to see him at my Mom's club meetings with other kids his age...he's like double their size.
My doc is also supportive of BF through 6 months, but since Sven is so huge, doesn't see the harm in getting some rice cereal once per day starting around 5 months. Diluted in breastmilk anyway, so I don't see any harm in it. With his size, I wonder if I'm not satisfying him completely anymore...he's more than 99 percentile in height and weight for his age.
Call me if you get the chance (and if I'm available too). In the meantime, know I'm reading along too and sharing in the joy of your experiences with Alex!
Love,
Connie