Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Happy 6.5 months!

GORGEOUS green eyes!

Our little peanut is 6.5 months old. We had her six month wellness visit on December 19th. We drove to the pediatrician with high hopes that Kara had grown to at least 14 lbs. She was eating like a champ and she seemed "bigger" to us, but our hopes were quickly crushed when I placed her on the scale. Instead the scale read 12.3 lbs. A gain of only 4 ounces (she was 11.15 at 4 months old). I couldn't keep my emotions in as I walked back to the room. Chris took one look at my face and knew it wasn't good. The nurse confirmed it with the dreaded words, "her weight is off the curve." She walked out the room and I broke down in tears. How is this possible? I feed her ALL the time! Chris got me somewhat calmed down by the time the doctor came in, but there was no hiding the fact that I was upset and the doctor could tell as soon as she sat down. I again broke down into tears and she quickly read the chart.

She looked up, smiled and said. "Don't worry, mom. Kara is fine. She grew over an inch in length and her head circumference grew as well. She is just petite." But how is it possible to only gain 4 ounces when I feed her every 2 to 3 hours all day long? The doctor explained that some babies are just built smaller then others. We need to stop comparing. Which is something I think we are all guilty of doing from time to time. With Kara being our second child, we often compare her to what Ryan was doing at her age. For example, he was 16 lbs at six months old. I also feel pressure from family members concerning Kara's feeding schedule. It frustrates me that I get questioned as to why she eats so many times during the day, why is she so small, why haven't you started her on solids yet, you should have started cereal by now, when are going to give her a bottle already, etc., etc. I don't need the extra stress and sadly the constant questions add that stress. Anyone who has nursed their children will tell you that nursing the second time around is stressful enough. I am doing the best that I can and feel my child is getting the best nutrition by being breastfed exclusively for now. Thankfully the doctor agreed with me.

The doctor then proceeded to do the exam and told us that Kara was in perfect health. She is sitting in a tri-pod stance, she rolls, she babbles, she grabs objects and bangs them together. All in all, she is doing what she should be developmentally at this age. Kara was also in a great mood so the doctor got to see her "happy side". We agreed that starting Kara on cereal (which we had always intended to do at six months...there are many reasons why you should wait...allergies being the main reason to wait until after 6 months old) would be a good thing to start now and maybe it will help her put on a little more weight. She told us to keep trying the bottle, that eventually Kara will accept it. This baby is VERY stubborn! I wonder where she gets that trait from? :) Just to ease our minds, we go back for weight check in mid January.

Stats for six months are:
Weight: 12.3 lbs (gained 4 oz.)
Height: 25 1/4 (grew over an inch in length)

As far as the shots, I took Ryan to the bathroom and missed the crying. Chris said she screamed at first but calmed down even faster then last time. Good Job Kara!

We decided to wait until after the holidays to start a new routine that included cereal. Chris is home all this week so I was happy to have him there to help document her first cereal feeding. Yesterday (12.29), was the big day! We mixed some rice cereal and sat her in her bumbo. Snapped on the cute "K" for Kara bib that my aunt Geneva got her and....

She HATED it!

She took the first bite or two just fine....but then she started to freak out! She was seriously spitting it out as fast I was trying to get it in her mouth. Ugh. Well after a few spoonfuls of cereal that ended up either on her chin or bib, we gave up and decided to wait a day or two before trying again.


Kara has the craziest HAIR! Pictures do not do it justice. You need to see it in person to understand the color and thickness...or lack there of. It comes up like a dark brown or even reddish color in pictures but when you take a closer look at it, there is a combination of brown, red and blond?! She has very FINE hair but it is long. Just check out this photo of her "tail"....

Kara showing off her "sitting up" skills!
(and yes those are 6 month jammies that are still too big on her!)

Kara just being Kara...silly!

She may be petite but she has a BIG personality!




Christmas 2008 post coming tomorrow!

13 comments:

christy | brides to booties said...

Adorable update...you are doing a great job Bobbi...it's evident when you see Kara in person and in the pictures as well. She doesn't look undernourished...just petite like the Dr. said.

Keep your chin up girl...why is it when she gets to be our age it will be her watching to make sure she doesn't put too much weight on...it's crazy that this vicious cycle and obsession with weight starts so young.

Anonymous said...

She is so adorable!!! I love her green eyes! She's just a litle girl. Which actually makes her very cute because some babies eat so much that they are chubby and big, but Kara is not. Too cute.

When I adopted Sylvester I got him at 4 months old and he was so tiny. He didn't fit into any collars or anything. He was way under the average kitty size. So I kept getting him into the doctor for his health checkups and they kept saying that he was perfectly fine. He will be three years old in August and he is 5.5 pounds. Very small for a kitty.

I brought that up because you were talking about Kara and how she was small.

She's just so cute! And the hair, funny! I have really thick and long hair and in different lighting it'll be different colours. Mostly it is dark brown with a lot of red.

Happy New years eve =)

Mrs. Schaeffer said...

sweet. beautiful. perfect.

Anonymous said...

Hey, looking back at the first pic...does Kara have a ring of fire? (On her eyes) What's funny, is I have a ring of fire and I have brown eyes. Sylvester has greenesh orange eyes with a ring of fire. =)

Whitney said...

She's a beautiful baby, I love the pictures! Especially her face when she is getting fed the ceral!

You know, I noticed when my SIL was prego and now that the baby is six months, just how many people want to offer their advice/ask rude questions. Since I don't have babes, perhaps my advice isn't worth much, but I would just ignore them. Perhaps even reply, "You know, not EVERY child in America has to be chubbers." And I LOVE that you are nursing, that's exactly what I hope to do!

3 Bay B Chicks said...

Kara is such a beautiful baby. I think you and I are in a very similar situation. Second baby...super petite...eating all the time without much weight gain. As daunting as the fact can be that your child is simply not putting on weight, you were right when you said that Kara is receiving the best nutrition possible from breastmilk.

It is natural to worry as a parent. (If you didn't, you wouldn't be doing your job, right?) However, maybe think of it this way: Kara is a healthy, happy baby. She is growing. Yes, she is petite, but in 20 years from now, she'll love it! :)

-Francesca

Anonymous said...

HE'S BACK! VESTER IS BACK! HE'S ON THE EHHH SIDE RIGHT NOW AND HAS A CUT ON HIS PAW SO I'LL HAVE TO TAKE HIM IN TOMORROW BUT HE'S BACK! WOOOT WOOOT! WHAT A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Anonymous said...

Yay! He's back! That was the best new year day ever! Yes, Christy made the header a while back and put it back up =) Happy 2009 to you guys!

Jenni said...

Awwwe she is just a sweet "little" girl. I think she is adorable and never would I have thought she was "too small". You are a good mother for following your intincts and strictly breastfeeding her. That is how God intended it right? All of the new "you need to give them solids at 6 months" or whatever was obviously invented by modern-day doctors.

I love her bib! That is so cute. And her face in those pics...she definitely was not liking that cereal! Neither did Preston. We still can't get him to eat it. And he is usually a good eater.

Tara Bennett said...

Gorgeous green eyes in an understatement - I'm speechless! Amazing. What a cutie.

The Farley's said...

Bobbi, I am so happy that I found your blog while I was "blog surfing". My situation is almost identical to yours.

My daughter Addie, who is 7 months now, weighed 12 lb 8 oz at her 6 month well visit and was the exact same length as your little Kara. The doctor seemed very happy that she is crawling, sitting, and even pulling up. She was very concerned about her weight gain (or lack there of), and has us coming in for weight checks every week.

Obviously this has made life very stressful. My husband is in the military and was recently deployed overseas. We are visiting family for a few months and have had to find new doctors to accomodate us. I feel as if I am constantly thinking/worrying about her food intake. She nurses 8+ times a day, and takes in an about 4 ounces at a feeding. We had her weighed before and after eating several times to determine this. We feed her solid foods, but she really has no interest in them. Every ounce of weight gain on this baby is a struggle. I wish you the best of luck in helping your adorable little Kara put some weight on, and I definitely sympathize with your struggles. Kara is so adorable and reminds me so much of my little Addie.

P.S. Maybe we should start our own line of clothing for skinny little girls. I hate how nothing fits.

Sara @ Domestically Challenged said...

What a doll!
I saw on your profile that your hubby mountain bikes- so does mine! He is currently trying to talk me into a new 29" wheel bike. Something about them being great... I tune out!!
Cute pics!!

The High Family said...

awww...thanks for all the love and support everyone!

I've taken on the attitude where I don't care what people say anymore. Kara is healthy and very happy so I will continue what I am doing with her...going by her cues. So what if she doesn't eat solids at 6 months...maybe she will enjoy them at 9 months? Only time will tell...

Thanks again for all the wonderful comments. :)

Live...Love...Laugh,

Bobbi :)