3 Year Checkup

This morning Mom took Luke for his 3 year checkup. Other than a double ear infection he is doing fine. At his 2 year checkup the doctor made note of one of his eyes. It was something along the lines of one reacting slower to light than the other. We couldn't see any issue and the doctor didn't seemed overly concerned. She checked it again this time around and everything was fine so there's a trip to a specialist we won't have to make.

Luke's values in height and weight were:

• Height: 38 inches
• Weight 35.8 lbs

The height is the 70th percentile and weight is 90th percentile. Luke's height increased 2 inches over last year and weight increased just under 4 lbs. To compare against Alyce she was 37 inches and 30 lbs at 3 years. Luke is going to be quite the bruiser when he gets older.

What I don't get is how Luke's weight can be increasing. The kid isn't eating anything. His breakfast is usually pretty thin, eats crackers and cheese for lunch, and about half time time refuses to eat dinner. Maybe he's sneaking some candy in bed at night.  That or he's losing fat and gaining bone.

Finally he had one vaccination.

24 Month Checkup

With Luke now officially being a 2 year old he gets another wellness checkup visit with the doctor.  Talking to Mom this checkup didn't go as easily as the past ones.  Luke wanted to have no interaction with the doctor.  When she would reach out to touch him he would cry and reach for Mom.  The doctor couldn't even look at his toes without a negative reaction.  He had a different doctor than the normal one and that probably had something to do with it.

Luke appeared to be fine developmentally.  The doc found was that Luke had a double ear infection.  Mom and I didn't know he had one as he wasn't showing any outward signs.  I'm guessing it was just getting started and we would have seen it in a few days.  Or the doctor just needed to make a payment on her boat.  Also she was a little concerned about one of his eyes.  I'm not sure if it is an alignment issue like with Alyce or some near sightedness but we are to go to a specialist and have it check out.

Mom asked about Luke's screaming.  At times when he is really excited or wanting some attention he will pardon the term "scream like a girl".  His screams are silence destroying missiles that will pierce through any conversation and cause headaches if you get too close.  The doctor said that it is a boy thing and that it will go away when he learns more words.

Luke's scores in height and weight are:

• Height:  36 inches
• Weight: 32 lbs.

Both of those values are in the 90th percentile.  Comparing those to his 18 Month values he grew 2 1/2 inches and gained 2 lbs.  To compare against Alyce she was 35 3/4 inches and 25 lbs at 2 years.

The best part about Luke being 2 years old is that we can stop saying he is X months old.  After 18 months it is just kind of weird.  To go any further past 24 and gets even worse.  Luke is 33 months old, I think not.  Also, Luke now gets to eat peanut butter.  We didn't have any fears about peanut allergies and I even thing he might have had some peanuts, but doctors recommend staying away from them until 2 years of age.

To close Luke got a Hepatitis A vaccination.

18 Month Update

Earlier this week Mom brought Luke and Alyce in for their checkups.  Alyce was in for her 4 year and Luke for his 18 month.  Luke still continues to ride the upper end of the growth chart with a weight in the 90th percentile and height in the 80th.  At the 1 year mark his height was 95th and weight was in the 90 percentile.

• Height: 33 1/3 inches
• Weight: 29 lbs. 11.4 oz.
• Head 49 cm.

Looking at those numbers Luke is just over 4 lbs away from his sister.  Looking at Alyce's 2 year checkup her height was 35 3/4 inches and her weight was 25 lbs.  Sorry Alyce, I think your brother is going to be bigger than you.

Other than a flu shot that didn't yield any tears Luke's checkup was just fine with nothing major to report.

15 Month Update

Luke is roughly 15 months and that means yet another trip to the doctor for a checkup and more vaccinations.  This time around as part of the standard checkup they will draw some blood to check for anemia, white blood cell count, and lead expose.  This isn't a test for anything specific just a broad check to make sure he isn't afflicted by something we can't see.

Mom told me that he didn't cry for any of his vaccinations so that makes for a much less traumatic visit.

His vital statistics at 15 months keep him in the 90th percentile in height, weight, and head size.

• Weight: 27 lbs, 15.6 oz.
• Height 32 1/2 in.

To compare those numbers to his  1 Year Update Luke has gained 1.5 lbs and grown an inch.

The 1 Year Update

Mom brought Luke to the doctor today for his 1 year checkup.  On top of all of the height and weight measurements Luke had to get three vaccinations.  Apparently Mom had a new nurse today who wasn't very good at doing it as she took forever with each injection.  The experienced nurses set everything up and do all of them in rapid fire.  If done correctly they are putting on the band-aids before the first tear.  Luke was a trooper and once it was all done he was back to his old self.

One of Luke's vaccinations was for the Chicken Pox.  Even though it is a relatively harmless virus I can see why they protect against it; missed school, shingles, complications, etc.  All that being said I feel cheated that I had to go through it but the new generation doesn't.  Part of progress I guess, like having to get up to change the channel.

Now that Luke is 1 his diet also gets to change.  He now gets to drink whole milk instead of formula.  That is $25 every 5 days I don't have to spend.  It is also time we start the transition away from bottles to sippy cups.

Luke's height and weight continue to the "normal" channel.  His height is still in the 95th percentile but his weight is now in the 90th percentile!  10% of the baby population weights more than Luke!  This is a nice change from when Luke was off the charts heavy.  His head diameter is also in the 90th percentile.

• Weight:  26 lbs. 5 oz.
• Height: 31 1/2 inches
• Head:  48 cm.

Mom and Luke met me for lunch after the appointment and he doesn't seem any worse for wear.

4 Month Checkup

Mom just got finished taking Luke to his 4 month checkup and he is doing just fine. This time he was checked out by his real doctor and not the med student they have on staff. Luke received a few vaccinations that he wasn't a fan of but cheered back up soon after they were done.

Luke's height and weight continue to increase at an astounding rate.

At 4 Months:

• Height 26 3/4 inches: 95%
• Weight 21 lbs: 100+%

At his last checkup at 2 months Luke weighed 16 lbs and was 23 3/4 inches tall. That means in two months time he gained 5 lbs and grew three inches. The doctor said that even though his weight is off the charts she is pleased that his height increased to the 95th% from the 75th% two months ago. She went on to say that babies hit their peak around 4 - 6 months and that his weight gain should level off soon.

So what does this mean? Well I guess Mom and I are going to have to shop for a car seat this weekend. The limits of his current seat are 29 inches in length and 22 lbs in weight. So we have 2 1/4 inches and 1 lb until he out grows his seat.

In closing Luke is one of the biggest and heaviest babies ever. At least as far as statistics are concerned. I'm confident that his weight will level off. He is going longer between bottles and eating less when he gets one. You can't continue to add weight with less energy going in and more energy going out.

2 Month Checkup

Luke just had his two month checkup (even though he is 10 weeks) and he is continuing his meteoric rise in weight and height. Luke's current numbers are.

At 10 Weeks:

• Height 23 3/4 inches: 75%
• Weight 16 lbs, 1.6 oz. 95+%
• Head 42 cm 95%

Look back at his last checkup 5 Weeks we can see that his numbers continue to climb. His height dropped from the 90% to 75% and his weight increased a bit. While that is probably not what you want when you have a toddler or young adult it isn't anything to be concerned about from a newborn. To put his size into perspective he is wearing a 6 month old's clothing at 2 months.

One problem area that has arisen is that Mom and I need to get Luke to turn his head to the left some more. Apparently he is favoring turning to the right and if it continues he will eventually develop a flat spot on that side of his head. So we have to start feeding him in our right arm *ugh* and turning his head to the left while he sleeps.

This checkup is also the checkup where they tested his eyes for Strabismus. Strabismus is the problem we had with Alyce where her eyes didn't line up. Luckily Luke's eyes are just fine and doesn't require any additional care.

Beyond those two items Luke had a standard checkup with a few vaccinations and no other complications.

1 Month Checkup

Today Luke is 5 weeks old and had his 1 month checkup. Everything is going fine with no major issues to report. He is growing and gaining a lot of weight which explains why he has been so hungry.

At 5 Weeks:

• Height 22 3/4 inches: 90%
• Weight 11 lbs, 12.6 oz.: 90%
• Head 39 cm: 75%