3 years and 9 months

Wednesday L had her 3 year visit and R had his 9 month doctor's visit. All is well with both of them, of course.

I will go off memory, which is weak these days and tell you that L is following her curve for weight (30 lbs, 50th percentile) and has grown 3 inches (now almost 38 inches) in 3 months to make her jump to the 70th percentile for height. She passed everything with flying colors. The doctor even mentioned that most 3 year olds can't jump as far as L did. I guess following A around has some benefits!

L got her second HepB vaccine and took it like a true 3 year old. She made the choice to sit alone so I asked her to give me her hands so I could hold them. She let me hold her hands together rather tightly and did not make a peep during the injection. She let the nurse use a bandaid even to cover the hole. L said she was good because that is how 3 year olds handle things. (Don't ask how long she screamed and cried that evening because her leg hurt. Apparently we are just a tough 3 year old in public.)

R is still growing. The nurse measured him twice, only because when it read 30 inches she didn't believe it. Needless to say he is still off the charts for height. Weight on the other hand is dropping. Now that he is crawling and cruising, he is only 21.7 lbs which is more around the 50th percentile. The doctor was astonished at how much milk he still drinks and how well he is doing chewing food. She said to start him on proteins so we will begin with chicken soon. Today he had real oatmeal and loved it. The only negative from the appointment was that he doesn't say "mama" and "dada". He will babble bababa, gagaga, and yayaya but we need to work harder on other consonants. Mostly he uses "Ahga" and then charges head first into you. If you say dada or mama to him he usually laughs. I think he laughs because he knows he is in charge of mama and dada. He got his second vaccine, the one for whooping cough, and didn't flinch during the injection. What a trooper!

After the doctor's appointment, we headed to the basement for his blood draw. You know how they say it hurts us more than them? It is true for me. It took them 3 tries to draw his blood and they dug the needle around his arm for a while each time before giving up. R did not make a peep. I was about to cry but he just sat there in my lap watching the nurses, there were 3 of them working on him. We should get the results back in a week or so for his lead levels and hemoglobin count. Dad commented on how cute he looked with his blue truck bands on his elbows. Not sure that the cuteness factor was worth the pain, my pain since R didn't really care.

Just to add something about A, he is doing well in school. He came home yesterday with some new Karate moves. He now does two fancy jump kicks learned from a classmate at recess. Joy oh joy, he learns just as much at recess as in class. He is off for two weeks for the winter break. I am looking for fun stuff to do with all three children and most things are more fun with visitors! Hint, Hint to all of you!!!!