The Maddy Report: March

Madeline had her 4-month check-up yesterday.  It had been two months since her last visit, which seemed like forever to me.  She seems to be doing well and the doctor was pretty happy.  Here are the details...

•  Height:  She's a little above the median height on the achondroplasia chart and is following her own growth curve well (her measurements over time are all slightly above the median).
• Head circumference:  Again, she's above the median and has a good growth curve.  This is the one that always makes me nervous.  Dr. O again said that sometime in the future she might need to have an ultrasound to check for hydrocephalus, but she made it sound routine and nothing to be alarmed over.
• Weight:  Her weight gain has leveled off.  Her last three measurements didn't show much change and were like this: above the median, right on the median, below the median.  She's still within the normal range, but her weight's not increasing like her height and head circumference.  So Dr. O wants us to come back in a month to check her weight again.  This issue is frustrating for me because I'm already supplementing with formula, and she's STILL not gaining weight like they expect.  I can't force-feed the kid, and it's not like I'm withholding food from her.  Ugh.  Mike pointed out that Ben had a similar pattern and he's fine now.
• Cradle cap:  She's got some, a little on her head and a lot behind her ears of all places.  The doc said it's not harmful right now, but eventually Maddy will start picking at the stuff behind her ears so we should try using dandruff shampoo to get rid of it.
• Spine:  It's fine.  For the past few weeks I was convinced she was getting a hump on her lower back and that it was because I had her elevated too much or I was using the wrong kind of baby equipment.  But it was all in my head.  Dr. O assured me that any curvature that's there is normal.  Phew.
• Sleep:  Dr. O went over the results of the sleep study with us.  Sounds like nothing to be concerned about right now.  She has some apnea that's probably just because she's a baby and it's normal for them to have some irregular breathing.  And we got some saline solution to help with her congestion and that might help her sleep better.  What a relief to hear that sleep apnea's not some big, scary thing right now.
• Developmental milestones:  She's still scoring high in communication.  All the other areas are tied into her motor skills in some way, so the doctor wasn't surprised that she scored lower in those.  I told the doctor that I'm concerned that Maddy's not grabbing objects like toys and playing with them yet, but she said that's to be expected.  I think we're all interested in what happens at the first physical therapy session in tomorrow.  Pretty sure this is a new adventure for everyone involved: us, the doctor, and the physical therapist.

Well, I'm sure there are more updates but I'm not thinking clearly right now since Miss Maddy has been getting me up umpteen times a night this week.  Dr. O said she might be getting up frequently because she's not eating enough during the day.  Because, you know, I starve my baby.  Poor thing has to beg for food.  Speaking of food, the doc said that it's okay to introduce solids if she seems interested in us eating adult food (which she doesn't).  Hard to believe that in the next couple months she'll be on solid food already...time is flying.

Okay, I know most of you are just here for the photos, so here's your reward for reading the blah blah blah (or scrolling past it)...

The Ben Report: March

Figured it was time for an update on how Ben's doing.  For the last six weeks he's been going to a preschool for kids with developmental issues.  He qualified because of his speech delay.  He gets speech therapy there, and he gets to interact with other English-speaking kids.  And, boy, has his speech been improving!  The way he interacts with us has changed, too.  Before he started preschool he wouldn't talk about anything that happened in the past (we couldn't get him to talk about what he did earlier in the day or week).  He also had phrases that he would repeat but sometimes not in the right context.  Now we can ask him things like what he had for snack at preschool, and what they read about at circle time.  He also puts together sentences a lot more on his own, and he can ask for exactly what he wants more often.  Plus his vocabulary is really taking off; it seems like he knows more words each day.  His teachers say he's doing great in the class and have commented on how well-behaved and polite he is (I nearly choked when I heard that).  They said that he loves computer time in the classroom but does not throw a fit when the timer tell him his turn is over (again, is this MY kid?).  And of course they think he's just adorable.  So do his German bus drivers: they love seeing him and say he's just a great kid.  Ben's also loving the playtime with other kids his age.  Every day, he asks to play with "other kids."  Oh, and he now knows all the days of the week.  He sees the weekend as just those two days that "preschool is closed."  He can't wait for Monday when it's open again.

It can still be frustrating to get him to talk sometimes.  Here's part of a conversation from yesterday, after Mike and Ben went to the park and saw our friend Saundra walking her dog Jack:
   Mike: "Ben, tell Momma who you saw at the park today!"
   Ben: "Slide."
   Mike: "No, Ben.  Who did you see at the other park?"
   Ben: "Tire swing."
   Mike: (sighs) "No, Ben.  WHO did you see at the park?  Did you see a dog?"
   Ben: "Yes."
   Mike: "What was the dog's name?"
   Ben: "Woof."
   Mike: "No, did you see a dog named Spot?"
   Ben:  (half paying attention) "Yes."
   Mike: (sighs again) "No, Ben.  Did you see a dog named Jack?"
   Ben: (look of recognition) "Yes!"
   Mike: "That's right!  And did you see Saundra at the park?"
   Ben: "Yeah!  Saundra!"
Sometimes it's a little like pulling teeth.  But it's getting so much better.
Here are some pics of Ben in his natural habitat...

Teething

 Me trying to get a look at her bottom front gums.  She was very amused.

 She also discovered how much fun it is to chew on my fingers.  She bites down hard.

 Hard to see...but there are two white bumps there.

Another day.  Luckily she's not bothered by this every day (yet).

Sometimes chewing on this pacifier seems to ease her pain.

Four Months Old

Madeline is four months old today!  It has been a fun month of getting to see her become an active, alert baby.

 Since her birth, her hair has been the first thing strangers comment on.  It's a great conversation starter.  Now her signature mohawk is flattening out...

...but her hair still has a satisfying amount of flair.  She is very interested in colorful toys like this one but rarely reaches out to grab them yet.

She's more likely to grab her bottle and try to hold it by herself.

She's really interested in Daddy's beer so we let her have a swig.  Just kidding!  Ben was at least 6 months old before that happened.

(kidding again! sort of)

She is such a sweetheart of a kid.  She is chuckling and giggling more now.  She is so pleasant and happy, and most of the time it doesn't take us terribly long to figure out why she's upset and get her smiling again.  Except for those times when she screams and cries for an hour straight for no apparent reason, and then we cry right along with her.

 

Here's some more of what's been happening this past month:

• A physical therapist with early intervention services has come to the house to get the ball rolling on physical therapy.  She automatically qualifies because she has a genetic condition, and she's already behind in gross motor skills.  The PT has just done interviews and paperwork with us so far and she'll be starting regular visits soon.  She seems to have done some research on achondroplasia and understands that we shouldn't be setting any goals for Maddy achieving milestones (pushing her to do more than she's ready for could lead to injury) but we do need to keep an eye on her.  I told the  PT that I was concerned that Maddy isn't reaching for her toys and rattles, and she said that's something we can safely work on.
• We (finally) got a translated copy of the sleep study from February.  We haven't discussed it with the pediatrician yet - that's up next week - but from what we can tell from the report, there's nothing that we should be overly worried about at this point.  It does state that she definitely does have some degree of sleep apnea.  She continues to snore and have short bouts of sleeping during the day and night.  Many babies at this age start to develop a regular sleep routine, but she takes catnaps all through the day.  Since she sleeps much better when she's being held, I usually hold her for one nap each day to try to get her to sleep as long as possible.  At night, she only wakes up to eat...but she does so pretty frequently.
• Mike and I have been trying to educate ourselves on dwarfism.  We're each reading books on the subject.  Plus I found on online chat group that is a support group for parents of little people.  It's already been very helpful to just see the documents and advice that other people have posted.  I'm also reading blogs of families dealing with dwarfism, and I've had e-mail contact with a friend of a friend from the states whose daughter is like Madeline.  We're craving social support right now...thank goodness for the internet.
• Oh, I almost forgot...Madeline is teething already!  We can see two little white bumps where those first ones will be coming through and she's been drooling a ton.  I'll post pics later this week.  Poor Maddy, she refuses teething rings/toys and wet washcloths to chew on...all we can do is give her her favorite pacifier and rock her until she stops crying.  I'm pretty sure Ben started to teethe at this age, too.  And if I remember correctly, it took a looooong time for those teeth to come out.

Rolled Sleeves, Hemmed Pants

 When Madeline was wearing newborn clothes, we could get away with not altering the length of the pants and sleeves.  Now she's wearing 3-month clothes, and the difference in her limbs is starting to show.  I love this outfit, but her feet don't come anywhere near those cute little footies.

Nana hemmed these pants quite a bit before mailing the outfit to us.  They fit perfectly.  This is one of my favorite outfits for her.

 Here's another favorite, from Aunt Katie.  She got it because the pants (and matching jacket) are reversible and look great rolled.  Unrolled sleeves above...

 ...and here they are rolled.  Such a cute outfit.  I'm gonna wear it out in the wash.

Constant access to her hands is why we need to roll the sleeves.  Otherwise she eats her clothes.

A friend gave me a few sweaters like this, which are fantastic and I use all the time...but her arms get lost in the sleeves.  This one gets so stretched out that sometimes I have to roll the sleeves all the way up to her shoulders.  She doesn't care, as long as she's nice and warm.

Being Ben

Ben in a basket.

Wearing Mike's T-shirt from basic training.  It says "House of Pain" on the back.

Using paint at his easel for the first time.

After these doodles, all he wanted to paint was numbers and letters.

Even lions get runny noses.  And wipe them on their paws.

I couldn't assemble the new mobile for Madeline's crib without Ben jumping in.  He thought it was pretty awesome, with the rotating animals, lights and music.  He also thought it was his toy.  Then I installed it on the side of her crib and Ben tried to climb in to play with it some more.

Old MacDonald (sort of)

Here's an example of Ben interacting with Madeline...a little, anyway.  Ben has quite the sense of humor, just like his daddy.  He thinks it's hilarious to change songs mid-verse.  With "Old MacDonald" he likes to mismatch animals and their sounds.  Not sure which is his favorite song right now, Old MacDonald or the alphabet song.  He sings both of them day and night (literally...we hear him singing in his bed at night).

Maddy's Moods

Startled.  (We see this a lot.)

 

Excited.  (See those legs going?)

Angry.  (Related to the dreaded "tummy time.")

Serious.

Suspicious.

Calm.  Or bored.

Sneezy.

(Yeah, I know that's not really a mood but I liked the picture.)

Shocked.  (See also: Startled.)

Pleased as punch.

B is for Benjamin

 B is for "Benjamin."  B is also for "bullheaded."  Mike was out of the country this week, and I had the challenge of wrangling this cutie by myself for a while.  I tried to be patient, but I had limited success; at one point he said "no yell" and another time he told me to "calm down."  So I'm posting some adorable pictures of him to remind myself that he is really precious, too.

 Nana sent him a little luggage bag with a pillow and blanket for overnight trips.  He tore into that puppy real fast.

 If he only he were this eager to take a nap every day.

 Here we were cooking something and he was impatiently watching the timer I keep on the fridge.

 Possibly the biggest, brownest eyes on the planet.

Ratatouille was playing on TV, and he just couldn't watch it without wearing his galoshes.  Why?  Don't ask me, I just work here.

So Sleepy

 Tired...

...very tired...

...asleep.

 So cuddly.

Snoozing on the couch.  I didn't dare try to move her to the crib.

The mohawk in all its glory.

Swimming in a sea of crochet.

Touchdown!