Yes, Isaac will be 19 months old in a few days, but he just had his 18 month check up this week, and I thought I'd update all, because I know you are waiting on the edge of your seats wondering just how Perfect this kid is. And yes, confirming what we all know, he is perfect. Not to mention, unlike the 15 month appointment, he was a perfect angel this time, smiling and flirting with the nurses, med student, and doctor through the entire thing (with the exception of the final nurse carrying the poking instruments). He was first evaluated by a cute blonde 3rd year medical student, who I swear had to be like 22 years old. She looked so young. He sure did have eyes for her, but then again, she did look like a younger me (yes, I'm another year older since my last post, now putting me officially in my "late" 20s - I can hear 30 knockin'). She had him giggling and laughing in no time, but he still wouldn't give her a view of his teeth. Anytime she came near those lips, the clamped tight behind a sneaky little grin. His first dentist visit should be lots of fun.
Although he is technically perfect, there were a couple areas of concern yet again, things we just need to "keep an eye on". His lack of weight gain is rearing it's ugly head again. At 21.3 lbs he's only a few ounces heavier than his last visit 3 months ago. He's now officially fallen off the charts in weight. As far as height (22%tile) and head circumference (25%tile), he's fine. At least he doesn't have an above average head on a below average body and look like one of those bobble heads. But we need to get him to eat more. He's not a fan of food for some crazy reason. I cook for him daily, and I'm no frozen dinner, microwave, type mom/cook either, I cook the good stuff! Everyone loves my meals and typically walks away with an extra pound or two after a few of my meals, but not this kid. He will turn his nose up to anything - be it made from scratch sweet potato pancakes, homemade chicken soup, chicken marsala, balsalmic pork loin with real garlic mashed potatoes, he won't touch it unless he wants to, which isn't too often. If it's remotely close to the color green it's totally off limits - don't even get it near his tray or he'll have a meltdown and shove everything onto the floor and refuse to eat a bite of anything for days. Even sneaking the green in - hidden under his favorite pasta - his tongue will find it and push it out and won't sample another bite. He does love his milk though - be it from a cow or Mama, so the doc has suggested adding Carnation Instant Breakfast to his cup of milk he gets while I'm at work. However, this stuff is pure sugar! 20g of sugar in one packet and she wants him to have a whole packet everyday! Can you imagine what this kind of sugar high could do to an already hyper toddler? Of course, he loves the stuff, who wouldn't, it's like liquid candy. But, I've been doing some research, and I've decided I can make him high calorie smoothies that are much healthier using some healthy fatty foods such as peanut butter and avocados. So, on to experimenting with the smoothie maker - this should be a fun and tasty adventure, and will probably result in gaining a few extra pounds myself.
Additionally, the little guys lack of word power was a 'slight' concern, but nothing to panic about yet. He has about a 4 word vocabulary at this point - Mama, Dada, Joe, and dog (said with a significant hick twang to it - like 'dawwwg'). And he refuses to mimic sounds for some reason. This kid just has a mind of his own and wants to do things in his own time. If he doesn't want to say something, he isn't going to say it. But he sure can understand words. His favorite phrase is "Mama Milk" which is also his favorite treat, and you can say this to him in the middle of a huge hysterical meltdown and it brings instant smiles - but most be followed through on or then we're in for big trouble. He also knows the word "No" quite well, although often shows signs of selective hearing with this particular word. And he knows "outside" and "Bye-bye" pretty well too. So, it's not an issue of not hearing well or comprehending, it's an issue of stubborness I think. I'm sure in a month's time, I'll be begging him to shut up. We were concerned with the walking, but that sure has resolved itself - he's running everywhere now, and I know the same will hold true for the talking.
So, his next check-up shouldn't be until 2 years old, but they want to see him again in 2 months to check on his weight gain and vocab development, which I'm sure will be perfect by that time.
So, wish me luck in our eating and speaking adventures! I've just ordered the books "Deceptively Delicious," which has recipes for sneaking veggies into yummy meals to trick kids into eating them, and "Toddler Cafe" which promises to get even the pickiest toddler to eat healthy - I'll believe that when I see it.
Although he is technically perfect, there were a couple areas of concern yet again, things we just need to "keep an eye on". His lack of weight gain is rearing it's ugly head again. At 21.3 lbs he's only a few ounces heavier than his last visit 3 months ago. He's now officially fallen off the charts in weight. As far as height (22%tile) and head circumference (25%tile), he's fine. At least he doesn't have an above average head on a below average body and look like one of those bobble heads. But we need to get him to eat more. He's not a fan of food for some crazy reason. I cook for him daily, and I'm no frozen dinner, microwave, type mom/cook either, I cook the good stuff! Everyone loves my meals and typically walks away with an extra pound or two after a few of my meals, but not this kid. He will turn his nose up to anything - be it made from scratch sweet potato pancakes, homemade chicken soup, chicken marsala, balsalmic pork loin with real garlic mashed potatoes, he won't touch it unless he wants to, which isn't too often. If it's remotely close to the color green it's totally off limits - don't even get it near his tray or he'll have a meltdown and shove everything onto the floor and refuse to eat a bite of anything for days. Even sneaking the green in - hidden under his favorite pasta - his tongue will find it and push it out and won't sample another bite. He does love his milk though - be it from a cow or Mama, so the doc has suggested adding Carnation Instant Breakfast to his cup of milk he gets while I'm at work. However, this stuff is pure sugar! 20g of sugar in one packet and she wants him to have a whole packet everyday! Can you imagine what this kind of sugar high could do to an already hyper toddler? Of course, he loves the stuff, who wouldn't, it's like liquid candy. But, I've been doing some research, and I've decided I can make him high calorie smoothies that are much healthier using some healthy fatty foods such as peanut butter and avocados. So, on to experimenting with the smoothie maker - this should be a fun and tasty adventure, and will probably result in gaining a few extra pounds myself.
Additionally, the little guys lack of word power was a 'slight' concern, but nothing to panic about yet. He has about a 4 word vocabulary at this point - Mama, Dada, Joe, and dog (said with a significant hick twang to it - like 'dawwwg'). And he refuses to mimic sounds for some reason. This kid just has a mind of his own and wants to do things in his own time. If he doesn't want to say something, he isn't going to say it. But he sure can understand words. His favorite phrase is "Mama Milk" which is also his favorite treat, and you can say this to him in the middle of a huge hysterical meltdown and it brings instant smiles - but most be followed through on or then we're in for big trouble. He also knows the word "No" quite well, although often shows signs of selective hearing with this particular word. And he knows "outside" and "Bye-bye" pretty well too. So, it's not an issue of not hearing well or comprehending, it's an issue of stubborness I think. I'm sure in a month's time, I'll be begging him to shut up. We were concerned with the walking, but that sure has resolved itself - he's running everywhere now, and I know the same will hold true for the talking.
So, his next check-up shouldn't be until 2 years old, but they want to see him again in 2 months to check on his weight gain and vocab development, which I'm sure will be perfect by that time.
So, wish me luck in our eating and speaking adventures! I've just ordered the books "Deceptively Delicious," which has recipes for sneaking veggies into yummy meals to trick kids into eating them, and "Toddler Cafe" which promises to get even the pickiest toddler to eat healthy - I'll believe that when I see it.
