Clair's 9-month appointment

Clair had her 9-month appointment today.

Before the shot: I LOVE the doctor! After the shot: I HATE the doctor!!

She is 29 inches tall and weighs 17 lbs., 12 oz., which is only 3 oz. more than she was at her 6-month-appointment.

I figured this would be the case, as she really has tapered off with her bottles. It happened almost right after her 6-month-appointment, actually. She just had little-to-no interest in her bottle. She was happy to eat soft food, but not much of it, honestly. But she even refused to drink much milk before bedtime or when she woke up after fasting all night. She was happy and healthy so I didn't bother the doctor, and he said today my instincts were just right. You can't make kids eat, and as long as she was healthy and happy, then there was no reason to worry.

In his opinion, Clair started out a much bigger baby than her genetics really mean for her to be as a child/person. In other words, her disinterest in eating was her body's way of evening itself out. So even though she started out 7 lbs., 14 oz. at birth (pretty big for a 38-weeker) she's likely to be a smallish person, he said. More Cary than Dean, but probably somewhere in between.

She also has a pretty gross nasal infection, which explains her constant need for suctioning -- and her fitful sleeping -- so he prescribed antibiotics. He also said I might need to check with my doctor about this horribleness that is lingering in me. Yeah, sometime between now and when the kids go to college, I'll have time for that. Aaaa-choo!

In all other things, Clairzee is perfect -- even ahead of the game. She's crawling, cruising, babbling, and waving. She's a master at pincer grip and is alert, social and cute as can be.

And, clutch the pearls, she doesn't have to come back until she's a YEAR OLD!

This is seriously moving so fast, people. I know I say that all the time, but I truly can't get over how fast time is moving with her. A YEAR?? With the holidays coming, we all know how fast that time goes; before we know it it'll be the New Year, and then bing, bang, boom -- February!

Excuse me while I go look at baby pictures of Clair and scream and cry and pull my hair out. Thanks.

9-month-checkup

The boys had their 9-month-checkup today. It was pretty uneventful, even considering the fact that there was a shot involved! (Last of the Hep B series.)

Here's the basics:

Cary weighs 18 lbs., 5 oz. and is 27 and 3/4 inches long.
Dean weighs 20 lbs., 15 oz. and is 29 and 1/4 inches long.
(When do we stop saying "long" and start saying "tall?" I guess when they can stand?)

Both boys are doing so well, Dr. Bodnar says the boys should be completely age appropriate (in terms of their relative prematurity) by age 1. Whoo-hooo!! I feel really good about that, but I don't know if I'll ever completely stop wondering if prematurity may be affecting them in some way. It might become more and more faint over time...like, it'll be a vapor of a worry as opposed to a huge cloud hanging over my head. But I have a feeling it will always be there just a little bit.

I also learned today that the boys can now eat table food, like 100-percent of the time. Wow! This is a big one for me. I mean, babies eat baby food, right? Hence the name. So this is more proof that my babies are growing up, and fast!

It also poses a bit of a complication. I hate to say this, but baby food is easy! It comes already prepared, in the right consistency and portion size. We buy the organic kind, so it's healthy and not too seasoned or buttery or sweet (the way I like all my foods). Giving my boys table food means I'm going to have to actually prepare their food. When they started on solids a few months ago, I honestly tried to be the kind of mom who made their food. I boiled the sweet potatoes and mashed and froze them in huge Tupperware dishes they could never ever hope to finish. I baked the spaghetti squash, and it turned out too stringy for them to eat without choking half to death. I cooked and mashed frozen peas, but didn't know I needed to de-hull them first. They hated those!

In the end, I determined that it took way too much time and was a major pain (Just my opinion. I really do applaud moms who can and do prepare their baby's food).

But now, developmentally, they don't need the baby food, so I guess I have to step up my game.
The doctor suggested a baby food grinder or food processor, neither of which do we own. So I guess we'll buy one this weekend. Do we need one of those? Advice, please.

I sound whiny, but actually, I'm sorta looking forward to introducing them to real foods. Lester says we're going out for breakfast on Saturday. I see a waffle in my boys' future! And in mine!
Yummmmm!