Scrawny Boy

Ok. I am really getting sick of this.

We visited the dr today for what I had hoped was Ethan's last weight check. Although he is getting taller right on schedule, the boy has only managed to gain about an ounce a month, instead of the six he should be gaining. To give you some perspective on that, he gained about a third of a pound since his last weigh in, but should have gained three pounds. Arrgh! Back on the high calorie, high fat, high protein diet. They even want us to mix half whole milk and half cream in his cups for a few weeks.

Because I've been so annoyed that we've had to keep doing all this, I asked why this is such a problem. Especially because the dr agrees with me that he is just adjusting to be the tall, scrawny kid we expect him to be. I got a great explanation this time. At first, the problem was his drop in both height and weight on the growth charts. Then, his height leveled off at well above 50th percentile, but his weight kept dropping. Now that he's hovering barely above 25th in weight, they start worrying about his body getting (or not properly using) everything it needs. Particularly the fats he needs for neural development. (That would be for brain and nerve function for my husband who complains that I use big medical words.)

At this point, he is clearly still developing normally. He is ridiculously smart, so no problems there yet, and his physical development is right where it should be. But because we're back on the diet, we are also back to the monthly check-ups. (They want to make sure he gains, but doesn't get the chance to put on any unhealthy weight.)

At least this time I can join him in some of his yummy indulgences. Although there is clearly more of me (in more places than just my belly), my weight isn't going up either. Edward is following in his brother's footsteps at this point. Growing so fast, I can't manage to keep up with the both of us! Hopefully when he slows down in a few years, it's not as much as his older brother.