Nutrition Visit #2

I don't know why I have to keep telling myself this OVER and OVER again. I need to just let go. His whole life is going to be a wait and see...

but I think as mom, well, we just tend to worry.

So let's just get off to the first concern right off the bat. His head circumference was 17 5/16" which is up 5/16" in just TWO weeks! I just put a call into the doctor to see what her thoughts were. We aren't scheduled to see the Cranial Specialist until May 11. And our next weight/measurement check with Dr. Hanson isn't until May 7.

Please pray for my sweet boy's head. I know it is supposed to grow, but it appears to be growing a little too fast of a pace.

His weight was 13 lbs. 8 oz. (increased from two weeks ago, up 9.1 oz.) so GAIN is good, but it wasn't as much as we were hoping. So new weight gain program: Aim for 4 bottles of breast milk fortified to 27 kcal/oz with Neosure each day (So now we are back to what we were discharged from the hospital on), REALLY trying to feed 100 ml (a little over 3 oz. each bottle). We have been fortifying bottles in the evenings, but he sometimes won't finish the whole bottle because he's getting sleepy. So we have to get creative to try and get him to finish, finish, finish! His overall gain wasn't ideal, but it's just a little below the 50th percentile curve (on preemie chart).

Of course with this...now I am racking my brain trying to figure out trends, what was different, what we can maybe do differently moving forward to try and maximize his intake. We nurse during the day, so it's hard to know what he's gaining, and she still says stick with that (as opposed to pumping and just giving bottles to know how much he's taking...we aren't to this point yet).

With growing older, he should be wanting more volumes, so that's odd too because he really only eats 2 to 3 oz. per feeding. So more things to watch for. He is still having wet diapers, but will need to watch for dehydration too. Especially now that he's pooping more.

Now that is what has increased! Maybe a little too much too...we were giving juice before (1/2 to 1 oz a day), but now the dietician said stop that and we'll just try water. Now the pipes are cleaned out, and so if just water helps, that's better. I feel better about that too. He has never pooped this much in his life, which is concerning as to how he stored all of that up for a week/ week and a half at a time. Hopefully we can find a eating/pooping pattern that is just right for Beckett so that he GAINS, GAINS, GAINS!

Length increased a significant amount too! He measured 24 5/8" (up 3/4").

He has become more mobile. Add "SCOOTING" to his list of can do's! Yep, he kind of looks like he does a half back bend, and then before I know it, he is perpendicular to where I left him. Silly Beckett.