Thursday, February 15, 2007

Henry's 4 Month Stats

We had Henry's 4 Month Well Baby Appointment this morning.

He weighs 14lbs, 7 oz. He is 25.5 inches tall. His height continues to be 75th percentile and his weight is the 50th. His pea head has grown from the 25th percentile to the 50th. He received 3 shots and an oral vaccine and took them like a champ.

He did well on his milestones. He laughs, holds his hands at midline, can support his weight on his legs, has good head control, and blows bubbles. She said I need to put him on his stomach more than I already do because he floundered like a turtle on his back (it was morning, he was sleepy!) I haven't been laying him with his arms in front of him, I had been propping him on his forearms. He needs to be able to push himself up more.

She recommended that I try to wean him from the pacifier now since he is not that attached. She also said that his feeding schedule is a luxury for him and that I need to stretch him out a little more. She said he is perfectly capable of sleeping for 8 hours and that I should drop one of his nightime feedings. All of this is easier said than done of course. Merri suggested that I call her to listen to him screaming when I deny him food. I am going to have to hide from him.

She also said that we should wait until 6 months to start him on food (cereal, fruits and vegetables). She said that breastfed babies often lose interest in nursing when they start eating and that she would prefer he ate breastmilk over cereal since it has little nutritional value. She also said that it was OK that he listens to white noise still to sleep (he listens to the hair dryer)

That's all for now

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

It was the hardest thing we did letting Matthew cry through his 3am bottle. It took exactly a week and the night that he turned 10 weeks old, he did it....slept through the night! He had never looked back since and sleeps 11-12 hours every night. You must wean him from that feeding...believe me when I say you will feel like a new woman when you can get 8 hours of continuous sleep!!!!

Vanessa said...

A week? I'll die!

Anonymous said...

I feel so honored to be mentioned in the blog yet again! You know me and my competitive streak; I'm going to try to get in here as frequently as possible!! :)

As for solid foods and breastfeeding, Jude has been eating like a champ (3-6 ounces of fruit/veggies and 3-6 tablespoons of oatmeal a day) and has not even thought about losing interest in nursing. I'm so glad because I'd be so sad if he did! If Henry has a healthy appetite, and he apparently does based on his height and weight, he'll be fine whenever you decide to feed him solids. I soooooo crack up when they mention the 8 hour streak in the middle of the night...yeah, right!

Anonymous said...

The 8 hour "streak" is no lie! Matthew started at 10 weeks old. It is very possible...unfortunatley have to let them cry it out. We followed the book Babywise. I highly recommed it. It is a beautiful thing when the 8 hour streak turns into 12 hours. Nothing makes a new Mommy happier!