Size Isn't Everything

Friday is weigh-in day for Emily (makes her sound like a little boxer!). I take her to the clinic at the town hall, where she gets popped on the scales, and then a health visitor comes over and we chat about anything which might be of concern. For a few weeks now I've been mentioning that she doesn't seem to be putting weight on very fast, but no-else has seemed that worried. Until today. For the last few visits she'd managed a gain of about 4oz each time, but this week she only managed 1oz, which is really not very much at all. This means she's slipping from one growth curve down to another - she started life between the 25th and the 50th, but is now down between the 2nd and the 9th. The advice is to feed her more (every 2 - 2.5 hours, bloody hell!) or move onto formula. So, we'll be instituting a full on feeding regime this week to see if that makes a difference. And if not, then the bosoms will have failed, and we'll have to start mixing breast-feeding with bottles. Sigh....it's ironic really, since I had loads of problems feeding Isabel (very very very painful!) but she put on weight like a trooper. This time - no pain, but no gain. That sounds awfully familiar somehow.....

Apart from low weight gain being a worry in itself, there is a separate issue which is really getting on my tits. Pardon the pun. People stop in the street to coo over Emily ("what a lovely baby!" etc - which clearly I agree with). They also often say "isn't she tiny, how old is she?", and when I tell them she's coming up on 12 weeks they always look surprised. First I had annoying comments about having a small bump when I was pregnant, and these are being followed by similar comments now she's out. One day some unsuspecting soul is going to say something and get their head bitten off, chewed thoroughly, and spat back down their neck. At least I've warned the readers of this blog - comments about size not welcomed in this neck of the woods, thanks!

Small, but perfectly formed

Emily the boxer getting a massage from her manager