I recently looked up why clinicians use WHO standards through age 2 and CDC standards after age 2 - here's what the internet has to say:
Clinicians often use the CDC growth charts as standards on how young children should grow. However the CDC growth charts are references; they identify how typical children in the US did grow during a specific time period. Typical growth patterns may not be ideal growth patterns. The WHO growth charts are standards; they identify how children should grow when provided optimal conditions.
Health: Bennett's eye gunk disappeared after about a week of erythromycin use. He still has cradle cap, and some dry skin patches so our ped wants us to try soy formula for awhile, just in case he has a milk allergy. He still has reflux which we try to manage with the Zantac, but it really depends on the day.
Sleep: Ditto Month 2. He's pretty predictable. He's still in our room it the rock n play at night, and we've been putting him in that more frequently during nap time (rather than in the swing) and he's been doing well.
Clothes/Diaper Size: We are transitioning out of 3 month clothes and in to 6 month clothes. It really depends on the brand though. Mostly the 3 month pajamas are too short for him - some of them I have literally had to squeeze him in, and pick him up to stretch out the length! I'm trying to get one last day in some of my favorites, so it's not suddenly too small and I'm crying because he's growing too fast.
Diet: Bennett is still bottle fed (probably don't have to continue saying that, since I'll never get a sudden influx of breastmilk! haha) and on formula. We are on a couple different kinds at this point. We use Gentlease for his gas, Reguline to get him pooping, and now we're going to try Soy to see if he has a milk allergy.
Our pediatrician gave us the ok to start attempting solid foods with him. He's sitting supported comfortably in the bumbo for short periods of time (which is what we did with Callie as well) so we'll see if he makes any effort to eat from a spoon. We're not in a rush. I don't think Callie ate from a spoon until 6 months or so. Mainly I think we might just start putting rice cereal in his bottles to see if that helps with his reflux.
Baby Gear Love: We have enjoyed having Bennett at the dining table with us in his bumbo! He gets pretty fussy when we leave him on the ground on his play mat and he can't see us. He also still loves his swing and can sit and just chill in that thing for a good hour or so. He sleeps well in his rock n play, and he's done well out and about in the Ergo!
Nicknames: Nothing really new here. Baby Bennett, Bubs, and Benny Bear may be the winners for a while.
Favorite Songs/Lullabies: I still sing "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" for bedtime, along with a smattering of other common lullabies
Milestones/Firsts:
- He LEGIT laughed this month. I got a REALLY good giggle session out of him with bicycle legs AND John caught it on video!
- Bennett has also rolled over from back to front, though not consistently or with any sort of predictability. And I'm pretty sure he's only rolled on soft surfaces, like the couch ottoman, and not on the floor. BUT he did roll over, so it counts as a first!
- He got his bottom two front teeth! They are supposed to come in between 6-10 months, but he got them a few weeks ago. Crazy! And I just KNEW he was teething, too, even though it seemed WAY too early! Mama knows best.
- We went to the beach for the first time this past month. We went dow to Salishan for a board game retreat for Bryann. Vince and Monika came to keep me company and hang out, and it was a miserable rainy weekend, but we made it down to the beach for about 15 minutes and saw harbor seals (!!!) before it started pelting us with hail and we had to go back to the house.
Likes: He LOVES his mama and dada and sister. We all get big smiles when he sees us and we play with him. He likes being at the table for dinner with us. He loves his swing and his pacifier, and he still likes being swaddled for naps and bedtime.
Dislikes: He seriously dislikes being tired, or being gassy. Or being left alone where he can't see us. But that's about it!
Things I Don't Want to Forget: The things I have memories around this month are more to do with Callie. She really likes a few songs lately - "This Is My Fight Song" and "I Can Make Your Hands Clap" so one night we are listening to music and she puts on one of Bennett's swaddle blankets to wear as a cape and starts doing laps around the kitchen island and asks me to chase her. So I put a "cape" on too, and chance her around the island. Then Bryann joins in and grabs a cape and is chasing us all. And we're all laughing nearly hysterically, running around the island chasing each other. <3
