July 17

Caleb had his three-year checkup with the doctor today, but somehow it was this girl who ended up getting poked with a needle.

But before we talk about Daisy, let's talk about Caleb.

He clocked in at 29.7 pounds, which is in the 25th percentile, and 37.75 inches, which is in the 50th percentile.

He passed all of his developmental tests with flying colors - the doctor asked if he was speaking in three to four word sentences, and I just laughed.  She asked him to count to three, and he went ahead and counted to four. (I'm sure he would have kept going, but we were counting wheels on a truck and there were only four.)

She did determine that Caleb is, in fact, tongue-tied, just like Daisy was. Apparently this only happens in 3-10% of children, but both of mine have had it due to strong familial tendencies. Right now, Caleb's bottom teeth form an inverted V because of his short frenulum. Of course we can eventually get braces to straighten out those teeth, but the tongue tie will cause them to continue to pull inward. Later on, he could also develop speech difficulties, neck and jaw pain, other dental issues, or migraines. So. The doctor was willing to address it today (it's a 2-3 minute procedure involving a dental laser), but because Caleb is so cautious and sensitive, I decided to wait a bit to do it. That way we'll have time to talk about it and prep him emotionally for the event. It won't be fun either way, but hopefully he won't be traumatized by it.

And since we were at the doctor's office, I went ahead and weighed Daisy. 

*whomp-whomp-whoooommmmp*

17 pounds, 5.6 ounces.

Two months ago, she was 16 pounds,13.8 ounces.

So in two months, she's gained half a pound. I was excited about that progress, but apparently that's not good. Last time, she was in the 9th percentile, and now she's in the 5th. And those percentiles are based on the World Health Organization's charts, which also include starving Ethiopian babies. Because of that, and some weird diapers she's had lately, and the fact that we still don't see the immunologist for another month, our doctor ordered another round of blood work. This time, she re-tested Daisy's immune response to the pneumococcal vaccine, re-tested Daisy's iron level, tested for celiac disease, and ran a panel of tests that are routine for underweight babies.

Because, you know, my baby is underweight.

Our doc threw around the term "failure to thrive" a few times, until I cried out, "Don't say 'failure to thrive'! She's thriving! She's just skinny!" She agreed that, though clinically appropriate, it was not an accurate term for Daisy's situation. 

I know it's just a term, but sometimes the labels are harder to deal with than the actual situation.

Because this girl is thriving. She rocked her blood work - just whimpered when they stuck her, but didn't cry until they tried to put a band-aid on her arm. Apparently she's not a fan of Scooby Doo.

She may be underweight, but I love her!