Nine Month Check Up

We had Olivia's 9 month check up yesterday.

Everything is going well.  Praise the Lord, she has yet to be sick!

Her stats:

Height: 29 inches, 91%

Weight: 23 lbs 9 oz, 98%

Head circum: 18 1/2, 99%

I was a little surprised on the height.  I was expecting it to be a little longer.  She did gain a half inch in 3 months, which is still impressive.  She just seems so long to me.  That's all I hear, "She's so tall/long". Plus, she always grows out of everything in length first. But she's still in the 90's, so I guess that is probably why.

We discussed the MSPI.  She said we won't be introducing any diary until after Olivia is 2.  There is a much higher rate of her having grown out of it by then.  I'm not 100% sold on waiting that long, but I do agree that it will be awhile.  If we push the issue now, there is a higher chance of her having allergies and being "sick" a lot when she gets a little older.

At age one we will probably move her to coconut or almond milk.  They are 50% higher in calcium than cows milk, so that won't be an issue.  They are many other ways to get protein.  They also have the same healthy fats as cows milk.  (I don't think any of the pediatricians at our office eat/drink dairy in their personal lives.  If you think about it...cow's milk is meant for a calf, which is very large in terms of size compared to a kid.  Plus, they feel the "bad" of dairy outweighs the benefits.)

We will be going down to 3 bottles (20 oz) a day.  We just started a third meal.  We need to keep up with that and add a snack.  She doesn't recommend eggs (even though it's becoming the new trend to do them before one).  She also said no beef because it's hard for their bodies to digest at this age.

Olivia is slightly behind in some of her developmental milestones (no waving, clapping, crawling, cruising).  She's pretty much been that way from the beginning.  I haven't been worried.  She always gets it.  I attribute it to coming 2 1/2 weeks early (and really, being forced to come before she was ready), being severely jaundiced--she didn't even hardly open her eyes the first two weeks of her life, and her size.  I did want to make sure the doctor was alright with it.  I asked her and she said "Honestly, I don't really worry about it too much in bigger babies".  She said to just keep working on it.

I asked how long the stranger danger was suppose to last.  It seems to have gotten better recently.  She said it usually starts anywhere between 6 and 9 months and lasts about 3 months.  Perfect!  Olivia started the week before she turned 6 months, so hopefully we are truly outgrowing it!

That about sums it up.  She said Olivia looked great and was healthy.  

She got one shot and didn't even flinch or cry.

We won't be going back now until she turns 1.  

Holy cow!  She'll be one before we know it!!