A Word About Growth Percentiles

Yesterday, Nathaniel and I went to the Ontario Early Years Centre drop-in to hang out with the other kids and play with some different toys. Another mom with a babe asked me how old Nate was and predictably expressed surprise when I told her six months. I asked the age of her baby and she said, "Too." But, of course, I heard "two" and assumed she meant 2 months. It turns out that her little boy, although half Nathaniel's size, is actually 2 days older than Nate. "Wow, he's big," she repeated, obviously convinced that I was lying about my son's age. 

We get that a lot. 

Which prompted me to check out some growth percentile calculators online to see just where Nathaniel fits in with other kids his age. What I learned was rather interesting (if you're interested in that sort of thing). Since birth his weight has stayed in the 50th-75th percentile, meaning he's slightly above average. His length and head size, however, have both jumped from the 25th-50th percentile to the 95th for length and 90th for head circumference. That means that only 5% of boys his age are longer and only 10% have bigger noggins. (I, for one, am glad that his head size started on the small side.)

Hidden somewhere in his fist is half a banana. I have found that if I leave on part of the peel, he has an easier time holding onto it since it isn't as slippery. By the end of the meal, though, it gets pretty squidgy.

Mmm, toast and jam.

Believe it or not, a fair amount of food actually made it into his mouth. 

This huge leap in length goes a long way toward explaining my baby's appetite. Steve has taken to calling him "Dyson" around mealtimes (presumably because it's funnier than "Hoover"). And so far, Nate has liked pretty well everything I've offered, though the jury is still out on peaches and cauliflower.

A Messy New World - Solid Food

I still haven't figured out how to post videos - apparently, they need to be converted to a different format first. But, I decided to update anyway. 

Nathaniel, now 6 months old, is getting very good at sitting on his own. He will sit and play with a toy for about 10 or 15 minutes before he leans too far and needs some propping again. Still hates tummy time. When he tries to roll over, he gets one arm wedged in the wrong position and gets stuck. That's usually when the tears start. It seems that he is happiest standing with Mommy or Daddy holding his hands. And jumping. He LOVES jumping in his exersaucer. 

We've also started playing with food. He's been eating pablum and pureed vegetables for about 6 weeks. Click here to see him trying pablum for the first time. 

Recently, I came across something called Baby Led Weaning (BLW). The idea is that a baby's oral and motor skills develop at the same pace as his or her digestive system, making pureed food an unnecessary step. If the wee one can pick up a piece of food and get to his mouth, he is developmentally ready to digest it. You start with food cut into sticks so the baby can palm it. As the pincer grasp develops, foods like peas can be introduced without a fear of choking. (For a full description and studies supporting the theory, check out the links at the left.) Therefore, the baby weans himself as he slowly manages to get more food into his mouth and down the hatch. I asked Nathaniel's pediatrician about it and she said it made sense to her so go for it. 

Now, since he had already been eating purees for a few weeks, our approach is not the purist BLW way, but more of a hybrid. When we reach the point in a meal where most of his food is on the floor or his face, I offer him some oatmeal if he's still hungry. To date, Nate has tried and enjoyed sweet potatoes, avocado, banana, carrots, pears, peaches, potatoes, bread, green beans, broccoli, chicken and apple. He tends to gag about once per meal which is perfectly normal in BLW and attributed to the learning process. The theory stresses that gagging and choking are very different things. That said, he tried a piece of cantaloupe in a restaurant last week and gagged so we don't eat finger foods in public for the time being - it seems to raise eyebrows.

I will post videos of him eating in the near future. 

Here we are...

Friends and family have often suggested that Steve and I start a blog to keep everyone up-to-date on our doings - and it makes even more sense now that there are three of us - so here we are!

This is Nathaniel at 3 1/2 weeks old way back in September. The day after this picture was taken, he actually rolled over. Before you get excited, he's only done it once since then about a week ago. Mostly, he just cries if left on his tummy too long. Right now, we're working on sitting up. Wobbly, but we are making progress.

The big news today is that we have teeth! Two just poking through on the bottom which goes a long way towards explaining yesterday. Thank goodness, because teething seems to be a long and painful road for the poor wee bean. 

I intend to post more pictures and videos once Steve explains his catalogue system to me. Hmm, better not hold your breath. More updates soon.

Karen.