18 Month D/A

Now that I have some time to write and not be interrupted, I will do so!

Brenton has his 18 month appointment on Thursday. He was 25lbs 3oz (66%) 36 1/4in tall (above the charts) and his head circumference had a percentile of 71%.. forgot the inch/cm amount, whoops.

Our new Doctor office has 4 Dr's. We have seen 3/4 Dr's now and they like you to see at least all of them to get to know them and vice versa. Brenton screams when we get in that room and I'm pretty positive it's because he knows he is going to get shots. After trying to get his weight so many times we stuck with what we got while he was holding onto me so who knows if that is even right.. same with the height he would not sit still for nothing.. screaming and throwing a fit. After the Nurse left I let him run around the room and he always loves doing that to get acquainted.

Doctor said he looks healthy and has no reasons to suspect anything other than him being a normal boy.. but he did say "Wow, he is a hyper boy." Could have told you that one! I told him ADHD runs in the family and he gave me the look like.. be on the look out. He is a wild one for sure. He was talking up a storm the whole time.. pointing outside saying "car, boat" over and over. Dr and I could only get him to say a few words but his constant words right now are car, boat, baby, ball, oh wow, thank you, lovey, yeah, hi, hey, bye, uh oh, ouch, up, duck, moo, dad, mom, tori (Devin's Sister), juice, cup, outside, diego, dora, brobee (from yo gabba gabba..) and a few others but this is what I can think of off the top of my head. He started speaking pretty much overnight and now copies a lot of the things we say. I always say "holy crap" and the other day he copied that.. eek.

Dr said he could have pulled Brenton's skin down on his penis for us instead of the surgery but it would bleed and hurt bad but he said he has done it before and successfully. I couldn't do it. Surgery is still set for Jan. Dr also gave us a book title.. forget what it is but its to help Brenton and us. Dr said to completely 100% ignore Brenton and his throwing because all he wants is attention. You know how hard that is when he throws something at our head or breaks something else? I'm trying though.. but it is challenging.

Urologist Appointment

The Doctor said that his penis looks weird and that there is a bridge tissue connection and that he would like to see him in 6 months to make the decision of whether or not to do the circumcision. Brenton still has a ton of baby fat around his pelvic area and the Doctor had mentioned his scrotum is full feeling. He said it wouldn't be completely necessary for medical concerns, but peace of mind for us and him, it would be worth it if at all needed. I don't want him to have a weird looking penis. We shall see though!

Brenton weighed in at about 27 1/2lbs (12.53 kilo's is how the measured him - weird!) So, he has gained about 2lbs this month.. wonder how that happened, since he wasn't really gaining any from not eating.

Update

We bought a crib rail for Brenton so that he could get in and out of bed in the morning and have some "freedom". He LOVES to play in his crib, and even more so now because he can get out when he wants. Last night was his first night and I think he wandered around a couple times in his room at first, but went back into bed and went right to sleep. I'm trying to give him a little more independence since he seems to struggle a lot when it comes to not getting his way with Dad or me and his toys. He still flips out at them if they don't do EXACTLY what he wants and I have no idea what it is. Plus, the whole feeding thing.. only eating when he FEELS like letting me feed him when I KNOW he is hungry. I like that I can easily lay my head next to him and rub his head before he goes to bed and hum or talk to him. I'm just waiting to see how he does for nap time. We might make our unused room into his play room. Actually, I'm pretty positive we will.

We also bought him 4 new books and there is a signing book I'm looking at getting him as well. We got one that tells about how much God loves him everyday (a page a day) and it comes with 2 CD's with music to sing about it. Devin picked it out and really likes it. Bought some books to teach him more about colors, numbers, and a Baby Einstein one called "First Words". I'm really excited to see if he'll let me read these to him instead of the other books we have. More colors and BIG pictures so it might grab his attention.

15 Month D/A

Well, almost a 16 month appointment, but you get the picture.

He is now 25lbs 10oz (66%), 35 3/4in (off the charts, as usual) and a head circumference of 18.5in. He is my tall baby boy. Basketball, for sure!

Today we had our first appointment with the new Pediatrician, which there are actually 4 of them and eventually we will be seeing all. Dr. Joy was very nice though and she was SO great with Brenton. She said he is on track and is growing very well. I did have concerns with Brenton's penis because it had looked like the circumcision wasn't done right and that tissue had grown back wrong.. it just didn't look right to me. I asked his previous Pediatrician and he of course told me what he always tells me "Looks fine." Well, this Pediatrician disagreed and referred us to a Pediatric Urologist. So, we shall see what he says. She said he may want to re-do it or he will keep it as is to see if he outgrows it. Brenton got his 3 shots today and he is a bit cranky, but that is also because he didn't sleep well last night for some reason.

Brenton's 1 Year D/A

Brenton had his 1 year appointment today and he is 23lbs 3oz (50%) and 33 1/2in long (not on the charts!)! My tall boy :) The Dr is concerned with his 10oz weight loss because he has been sick. We had to take him to the ER on Saturday because he had a temperature of almost 103 WITH Tylenol. He has a viral infection and middle ear infection so he's been on antibiotics. We go in 2 weeks to get the shots and check his ears since the Dr said they are both red now as to only the one ear that was supposed to be infected.

We talked to the Dr about the chicken pox vaccine because I didn't understand the point in it but he said it is DEFINITELY something he recommends because chicken pox is something you can get 2-3 times and the first one is in shot form which makes the others way better to deal with and you don't see death as much as with people who do not get it. So we will be getting this shot after all :)

10 Month D/A

Well, first off, I cannot believe Brenton is 10 months old (Saturday)! Omgosh, that went by so incredibly fast, it's ridiculous! My baby is almost a toddler :(

Anyway, Brenton mostly had this appointment to check up on his ear infection. The Pedi said that his ears look a lot better and there's only a tiny bit of fluid behind them that should drain on it's own. We asked about the strange smelling pee (which has gotten a lot better) and he said that it could be things he's eating, and also that he might need a little more fluid through the day. At his last appointment, he had only gained 2oz in a month.. he wasn't eating very well at all because of the ear infection and that went on for a week. Now, in 2 weeks he gained 1lb and 1oz.. he's 23lbs 13oz (around 80th percentile). We didn't do his height today since it was just a quick check up.. so at our next appointment (1 year!) we will see how big he's gotten :).

Brenton's 9 Month D/A

Brenton had his check up today, and the one word to describe it is disastrous, *takes a big breath in*..

I will start off with his growth rates. He is now 22lbs 12oz (around the 85%), 32in tall (off the charts..still), and his head circumference is 47cm (around the 90%). He hasn't gained that much weight and the Pedi said it's normal to start slowing down now since his baby fat will start to decrease.

Now, the Nurse comes in to weigh and measure him and he loves the Nurse and has never had issues with her but the 'stranger anxiety' came out today for the first time like this. He started SCREAMING. He was pulling on my hair and he just wanted me so bad but I had to sit him down to get weighed. It was just horrid. The screaming he did in there today was NOT anything I have ever heard come out of his mouth.


After we had got him all calmed down, in comes the Pedi. We talked to him about our concerns with Brenton not eating his solids during the day for almost 2 weeks now and he seemed a little concerned. Brenton will feed himself his puffs and stuff but the minute we come near with solids and a spoon, he gets all mad and throws a fit and just is not having that. It's not like him to do that.. he loves his food. The Pedi checked his ears and noticed that his ear drums were red, so he checked for fluid with this other device crap that made Brenton scream his lungs off like he was just born right into my ear, and sure enough he has his first ear infection. He did NOT calm down after that Pedi did all of that. He was unbearable. I told the Pedi before he did all this that all of this screaming he is doing is NOT my child.. his cry was something I've never heard before. He has Brenton on Amoxocilan twice a day for a couple weeks, so he should start feeling better soon.

The Nurse came back in to give him his Hep B shot and he was still screaming and just acting like he was dying and she says 'Well, since you're already so mad, lets give a shot today'. Might as well right? Well, he screamed some more. Had tears running down his face, snot all over the place, and was just so pitiful looking. I had chronic ear infections as a child until I got tubes in middle school, and I'm hoping that won't be passed onto him. She said it's likely that it will though :(.

Anyway, he is in his bed sleeping like a baby (for God knows how long). I gave him some Tylenol and his Amoxocilan and hopefully he starts feeling better soon. He's never been sick before.. so I'm hoping he gets better soon. Sorry this got so long!

Brenton Update!

Brenton is 9 months old already.. geez! We go on the 26th for his 9 month appointment, so I'll update then how big he has gotten since last month :).

He finally figured out how to reach for something and get on his hands and semi-knees and then grab it and sit back up by pushing himself :). It's so fun to watch him do it, and he's getting great at it too. His way of mobilization is to roll around all over.. it's quite funny. Last night the coffee table leg was blocking him so he had to re-situate himself and then finally was able to go some more, lol. Of course when I run to get the camera he gets fussy. One day he will let me get it all on tape :).

Trying to get away!

He's taking his sippy cup during the day, and then gets a bottle in the morning and at night before bedtime. He does really good with it too. Right now he's eating 8oz with rice in his bottles in the morning and at night, then during the day mostly just solids and a sippy cup filled with formula or juice for him to snack on during the day. He wasn't eating for a few days last week, which has happened before, and so I figured he was re-arranging his eating schedule and what he needs and when.. which he has done. He doesn't want a bottle anymore during the day, just his solids and snacks. I try to at least get him 18oz a day, but we'll see what the Pedi says next week. I'm still feeding him oatmeal for breakfast so that he gets all the different vitamins, along with a fruit for lunch and veggie for dinner.

Brenton still only has the 2 bottom teeth. After those poked through on Christmas and they were done coming in, he had stopped drooling so much.. now it's right back to it so I'm think he'll be popping another tooth soon! He does really good with getting teeth in.. not cranky or anything.

I will update next week about his appointment. Have a good day!

8 Month D/A

We mostly took Brenton in today for this rash that has been on his face for quite some time. At his 7 month appt. the Pedi said to just keep putting on lotion, which we have but to no avail. The Pedi perscribed Brenton some cream (still waiting to get it from the pharmacy so I don't know the name) and he said to use it for 7-10 days, then just use the Aveeno Baby cream because he thinks it's the best out there. Then if he does have another flare up to just re-apply the cream again.

I know a lot of you are waiting to see how much he weighs and height so here it is, lol. He is 22lbs 10oz (90%) and 31 1/2in long (even more off the charts than last month!). The charts say that he is as tall as a 12 month old in the 95%. That's pretty insane, lol.

The Pedi also said to start giving more table foods.. steamed of course. Broccoli, carrots (which we have), green beans, peas, saltines, fruit loops, cheerios, etc. Also, real potatoes and things like that which we had given him on Thanksgiving/Christmas dinners. He definitely said by 12 months, no more formula. We move on to whole milk.

There's the update!

Update on Brenton

Brenton will be 8 months old in a couple days, so I thought I would post an update on how he is doing! :)

He finally has his 2 bottom-front teeth! The first poked through on Christmas, and the second 2 days later. They are still making their way through, but it hurts when he bites.. which I'm sure he's trying to figure out himself (haha!). He has been able to sit up on his own for a couple months now, but still doesn't like tummy time, so it's a battle to get him on his tummy at all so he can learn new things. The Pediatrician doesn't think he'll crawl at all because of his weight/height and how he is proportioned, but I still don't want to take that for an answer so, Devin and I have both been working with him everyday. He can pull himself to stand while holding our fingers, so maybe he'll go straight to walking.. who knows. He likes to rock himself.. back and forth, over and over. It's funny to watch. He knows how to pass objects from hand to hand, grasp smaller objects like food, he babbles on and on and on. He can say 'Mama, Dada, Baba, Hi'.. sometimes I think I hear him saying 'Oh yeah', but that one is iffy, lol. I always say it to him, and so does Devin so it's possible. He really doesn't ever stop talking...

He still eats like a cow, but not as much since the Pedi said to slow down, lol. He drinks 20oz of formula, along with 3 solid feedings a day. He knows how to chew so we bought the Gerber puffs and yogurt treats for him and he loves them both.. so he snacks on those throughout the day.

His hair is coming in great.. the bald spot is almost gone, yay! He's so tall though.. probably still off the charts. I swear I woke up one morning and noticed he had grown another inch. I wouldn't doubt it really.. he has always been really tall and off the charts.

He still sleeps through the night.. 7pm-7am, eats, back down until 10-10:30am. He feeds himself now, which is AWESOME! Haha, I love it. I can actually do something else instead of sitting there waiting for him to finish his bottle and play with it. Now he will take it out, play with it, stick it back in, and over and over again until he's done. He drinks from his sippy at least once a day and can hold and grasp that well also.

I'm pretty sure I covered everything. I can't wait until his appointment next month to see how big he's gotten! Overall, he is a healthy, active 8 month old :)