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| Just a few days old. |
Delta was born in September of 2007 a full term healthy baby girl. She weighed in at 6 pound 14 ounces and was 19 inches long. She seemed perfect in every way. She had two beautiful dimples, something the doctor noticed in the delivery room and dark, thick eyelashes. She was truly a beautiful newborn. She was also a very easy going newborn, which is a requirement when you are the fourth child.
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| My nephew, 2 months and Delta 4 months. My nephew was off the top of the growth charts. |
As an infant Delta's development was completely normal. She smiled in her first few weeks, laughed around 10 weeks and cooed right on time. She quickly learned to roll over and the delighted in getting everyone's attention. She was definitely on the small side but always continued growing right along the 25th percentile of the growth charts. At 3 months and again at 5 months she had RSV, a respiratory virus that is mild in most but particularly rough in infants. Both times she was quite ill and required antibiotics and inhaled and injected steroids to recover. This was when we first noticed she was funny about things in her mouth. Every time we tried to give her medicine by dropper she would vomit as soon as the dropper went in her mouth. The medical assistants at the pediatrician's office didn't believe me, they insisted that I was giving it to her wrong. I then brought her into the office and offered her to them to give her medicine. It was quickly realized that Delta wasn't going to get any medicine by mouth and the doctor ordered injections for her medications. Delta recovered both times and thankfully has never had the infection again since.
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| At about 8 months. |
At Delta's six month check up it was noticed that she had "fallen off" the growth charts for weight but she had been sick so no one thought much of it. We were just told to bring her back next month to weigh her again. At six months we also started introducing baby foods and cereals. Delta was very excited to eat but didn't seem to know what to do with it. We'd spoon the food into her happy smiling mouth and she would just sit there while most of it ran down her face. It takes babies awhile to learn to eat so we never though much of it. We also tried to introduce a cup at this time as she had never taken a bottle and I wanted an occasional break from her. With her being so little and not really eating much of the solid foods I felt as if I couldn't leave her for more than an hour or so. She was highly unimpressed with a cup so we quickly gave that up. At seven months and again at eight and nine months Delta was still underweight but she was following the curve of the growth chart, just below it so everyone was content. Around eight or nine months we decided to give Delta table food as the pureed food wasn't happening. She loved it! We were so excited to see her eat something besides breastmilk and whatever she accidentally swallowed of the purees. Delta continued to love the table foods and grow on her curve below the growth charts for the rest of her first year.
To be continued.... Soon I hope.
