Did You Just Call Him Chunky?

"Tell his Mama to back off on the food.  He's getting chunky."  Yes, those were the words spoken by our pediatrician yesterday.  C brought Josiah for his 2nd year well-check up.  He weighed in at 28 pounds, 7 ounces.  He's 34.5 inches tall.  The MD admitted that Josiah has defied the profile of Down syndrome.  He is neither underweight or under height.  He is a thriving little boy.  

In the beginning, there was a little boy who struggled to gain an ounce.  In the beginning, there was a little boy who ate but didn't gain.  In those days, a breastfeeding mother wondered, and prayed, when the weight would follow.  During it all was K, a stranger-become-friend - someone I have never met.  After every weight loss, every 'failure to thrive' suggestion, every 'supplement breastfeeding' recommendation - my go-to person.  She is the reason I continued to breastfeed (until nearly age 2).  I couldn't have gotten through those early days without her.

It only made sense that I called her yesterday.  We chatted for some time.  This time, we enjoyed the memories of what once was.  We revel in what has come to pass.  We remain amazed by this little man with an extra chromosome.

Now, all these months later, I chuckle at the description of Josiah being 'chunky.'  This fact had not eluded me.  I have been referring to his Buddha belly for months.  How funny those words struck me yesterday.

Yes, Josiah has a little belly.  I know when he starts walking, he'll trim down.  In the meanwhile, we continue as always.

Life is good for Josiah....all 28.7 lbs of him.

Life is perfect here :)

Failure to Thrive; the Despised Phrase

Josiah was born weighing a healthy 7 lbs - ironically, he weighed more than either of his brothers at birth.  However, it didn't take long to see that he simply wasn't gaining weight as readily as his peers.  For those of you who have read the blog from the beginning, you know this has been a sensitive issue for me (given that Josiah was/is a breastfed baby).  We have persevered.  Josiah has done the same.  His providers have been patient (I was never willing to stop breastfeeding, only willing to supplement). 

'Failure to Thrive' has always been that phrase we didn't want to hear.  We didn't want Josiah diagnosed with "failure to thrive."  Though it's just a concept, I guess the name sounds so horrific to Carl and I.  Despite providers not using it, it still remained.  It was the (usually) unspoken truth.  I say usually, because hidden on a medical summary somewhere are the words 'history of failure to thrive.'  Carl and I have never considered Josiah as failing to thrive.  So, I set out to check definitions.

Johns Hopkins refers to failure to thrive in this way: "Children are diagnosed with failure to thrive when their weight or rate of weight gain is significantly below that of other children of similar age and gender. Infants or children that fail to thrive seem to be dramatically smaller or shorter than other children the same age."  It goes on to say that failure to thrive can be the result of physical problems (such as Down Syndrome) or environmental problems (such as abuse/neglect).

Ok, fair.  I can agree that Josiah does not match the weight of other children his age.  I guess it's the phrase that is despised.  It feels like it implies something sinister.  Perhaps, in some cases it is caused by something sinister. 

I've never brought myself to write about this as it's so personal for us.  However, yesterday gave me good cause to mention it. 

Josiah came down with a fever on Sunday.  101.3.  It was late in the afternoon.  He was crying non-stop, difficult to console.  I finally gave him a small dose of Tylenol and called the pediatrician's office.  An RN was on the phone within a few minutes.  We agreed, Josiah could wait until morning to be seen.

I knew the pediatrician's office opened at 8:30, so I was up, showered, and dressed by 8.  I was watching the clock with the intention of calling them at 8:35.  Well, as usual, they beat me to the punch.  At 8:15, our phone rang.  Sure enough!  It was the pediatrician's office calling to see how Josiah was doing.  I explained.  He fussed off and on during the night.  His fever remained when he awoke at 4am.  We were given a 9:45am appointment.

At 9am, we were out the door.  The big boys were in school allowing Carl & I to take Josiah in alone.  Once inside the room, they asked what he currently weighs.  Well, you know me - I stopped weighing him at home because I was becoming a bit obsessive about the weight issues lol.  So, I gently said "Can we weigh him here?"  Minutes later, Josiah was undressed and laying on the scale.  I knew that he weighed 15 lbs 3oz on Aug 16th.  I watched the scale teeter - I was simply waiting for the end result.  OMG!  17lbs 2oz.  He did it!  He gained 2 lbs in 5 weeks!  I almost started dancing in the hallway.

They examined Josiah.  Luckily, nothing serious.  No ear infections.  No respiratory issues.  It boils down to a cold/viral thing.  Thank goodness!  As we were leaving, we stopped in the hallway.  The MD passes by smiling.  He tells the nurse, "my two failure to thrive kids are both thriving." 

"My two failure to thrive kids are both thriving." 

I'll take it!

Weighting with Bated Breath

You might think I'm lacking in sleep if you noticed the title of this post, "Weighting" with Bated Breath.  Nope!  I'm not sleep deprived.  It was a pretty cute pun though, huh?  I AM waiting with bated breath - for Josiah's next pediatrician's appointment.  I want an official weight check.

Yes!  You heard me correctly.  I WANT a weight check and, for once, I'm excited for what I know will knock their socks off!!! 

The weight battle has been, seemingly, a never ending one.  At the last visit, he was 4 days shy of 8 months.  He weighed 13lbs 2oz.  He seemed to average 1/2 lb weight gain per month.  June 8th = 13lbs 2oz.  The MD was pleased, to say the least.  None-the-less, since then, I have avoided weighing him at home.....I don't like how obsessed I get.  So, ignorance is bliss! lol.  I stopped checking numbers. 

Last week, C (the occupational therapist) was here.  She remarked that Josiah seemed to be thriving.  This was similar to conversations I recently had with his child care specialist and physical therapist.  However, I had no numbers to go by....I just wouldn't do it. 

Well, finally, curiosity got the best of this Mama.  Three days ago, immediately after changing his diaper, I decided to get a "guesstimate" of his weight.  I double-checked.  I triple-checked.  Holy cow!  16lbs 10oz (give or take a little). 

That means that in approximately 7 weeks, Josiah has gained a whopping 3+ lbs!!!! 

I'm calling the pediatrician's office tomorrow.  I'm going to try to get him a weight-check appointment for Wednesday!  I want this on record :)

Josiah will be 9 months old in about 2 weeks.  Just for fun, I checked the 'blue books' of my other two boys for a comparison.  My first, weighed approximately 20lbs at 9 months.  My second, approximately 17lbs.  Hmmm......  I can't help it - I'm chuckling.  This is too funny!

I'll be back soon with the 'official' results.

Steady Progress

Since Josiah's EI assessment, things have been moving steadily along.

Last week, Josiah met with D for physical therapy.  Once again, he was (apparently) out to impress.  D repeatedly put him on his tummy; he repeatedly tolerated it.  D was thrilled, again.  Josiah performs tummy tricks like a trooper.  He has started to utilize weight bearing in his arms, as shown here:

He is also starting to pull his legs under him.  These are two great steps towards crawling.

Although I don't have pictures yet, Josiah has started "side sitting."  He hates it, but is started to "feel" it.  I'll get some pics soon.

Josiah worked with K this week, if you can call it work.  For the first time ever, Josiah genuinely appeared to be 'lazy'.  He showed no interest in working.  It was hysterical!  He didn't want to roll over.  He didn't want to cooperate with tummy time.  He wanted no part of his session.  He was interested in casual play, feeding, and sleeping....too funny :)

I'm still waiting on the detailed notes from the assessment; I will post once available.

Meanwhile, I weighed Josiah yesterday.  It's only an estimate BUT he weighed in at approximately 13.6 lbs.  It's a definite weight gain.

Josiah will attend his first DS Clinic tomorrow.  We only have vague information regarding what will transpire there.  I'll look forward to telling you all about it.....