Luca and I just got back from his 4 month checkup. His new stats are as follows:
Length: 27" (98th percentile)
Weight:19lbs 12.8oz (99th percentile)
Head Circumference: 43.8cm (88th percentile)
The doctor also gave us the go ahead to start him on some solid (well, semi-solid) foods, although it will just be baby cereal for the first month or so to avoid any nasty allergic reactions.
Many people swear by baby cereal to help baby sleep through the night, however the doctor cautioned us that this is more urban legend than anything else. Just like nearly everything with children, every one is different so what works for one may not work for another. She did give us some good advice on sleep though, including the assurance that it is ok that Luca still needs to be nursed and/or rocked to sleep. Apparently the whole putting ones self to sleep is more of a six month skill, so I can keep nursing him to sleep for a bit longer.
The other problem I expressed to her was that Luca seems to be waking up more frequently now than he did a month ago. I noted that in mid-January he would wake up only once during the night, nurse, and go back to sleep, and that his feeding at night spaced out to about every six hours. Now, however, he seems to wake up every three or four hours to nurse. The doctor said that if he has gone six hours in a stretch without feeding I should hold him to that, otherwise he will simply want to nurse every time he wakes up just to pacify himself. Human Pacifier: another role we moms are lucky enough to fill.
All of her advice came with the caveat I've heard since he was born: "But don't worry too much about it, he'll probably grow out of this phase in a few months." This is the eternal hope, and indeed for the most part the reality, of raising a baby, although there are times when you are just pulling your hair out in the interim.
Thankfully we have had some relief from the nightly sleep battles, which came courtesy of my mother who was being helpful without even realizing it. In conversation about the difference in sleeping habits between my niece and Luca, my mom mentioned that Lilianna had to sit upright for twenty minutes after eating or she would get terrible gas. So a few nights ago I tried it with Luca sitting him upright, asleep, after I had nursed him. Since then we have had only minimal fussing when I put him down, sometimes none at all. Hooray for trying everything you can think of then finally finding something that works! Silly guy, why didn't he just say he had gas?
Length: 27" (98th percentile)
Weight:19lbs 12.8oz (99th percentile)
Head Circumference: 43.8cm (88th percentile)
The doctor also gave us the go ahead to start him on some solid (well, semi-solid) foods, although it will just be baby cereal for the first month or so to avoid any nasty allergic reactions.
Many people swear by baby cereal to help baby sleep through the night, however the doctor cautioned us that this is more urban legend than anything else. Just like nearly everything with children, every one is different so what works for one may not work for another. She did give us some good advice on sleep though, including the assurance that it is ok that Luca still needs to be nursed and/or rocked to sleep. Apparently the whole putting ones self to sleep is more of a six month skill, so I can keep nursing him to sleep for a bit longer.
The other problem I expressed to her was that Luca seems to be waking up more frequently now than he did a month ago. I noted that in mid-January he would wake up only once during the night, nurse, and go back to sleep, and that his feeding at night spaced out to about every six hours. Now, however, he seems to wake up every three or four hours to nurse. The doctor said that if he has gone six hours in a stretch without feeding I should hold him to that, otherwise he will simply want to nurse every time he wakes up just to pacify himself. Human Pacifier: another role we moms are lucky enough to fill.
All of her advice came with the caveat I've heard since he was born: "But don't worry too much about it, he'll probably grow out of this phase in a few months." This is the eternal hope, and indeed for the most part the reality, of raising a baby, although there are times when you are just pulling your hair out in the interim.
Thankfully we have had some relief from the nightly sleep battles, which came courtesy of my mother who was being helpful without even realizing it. In conversation about the difference in sleeping habits between my niece and Luca, my mom mentioned that Lilianna had to sit upright for twenty minutes after eating or she would get terrible gas. So a few nights ago I tried it with Luca sitting him upright, asleep, after I had nursed him. Since then we have had only minimal fussing when I put him down, sometimes none at all. Hooray for trying everything you can think of then finally finding something that works! Silly guy, why didn't he just say he had gas?
Comment(s):
Post a Comment