Oh, the Horror!!

Today we took Matthew and Anna for their well-child/baby exams. I thought it would be a great idea to schedule them together to save on time. I now think it was a terrible idea. Rob likes it, but I think I'd rather have time to focus on each child individually. The doctor seemed to have fun with the whole family in the room, so he and the kids had a great time!! (He has three children within a four year span as well, so at least he understands!)

Anyway, Anna was first, so we went back to have her weighed and measured. She is 25 1/2 inches long and 15lbs 15oz, putting her solidly in the 90th percentile for both. Her head measured in the 65th percentile. She is just one big baby girl!! She eats 30 oz a day, so she's not overeating. It just proves that some of us were born with the genes to be more loveable and squishy than others (so there.) She smiled and cooed and showed off. Before the doctor came in, the boys joined us so he could examine the kids together. Yikes.

Matthew had already been weighed and measured, 37lbs and 43 inches. We finally have an explanation for why he seems to be so skinny. He weight is at the 50th percentile, but his height is at the 95th. We were told not to worry about him, so we won't. :) He got through his exam just fine, although he and Ben decided that the exam table was a jungle gym. Ben also discovered the lights...repeatedly....and had to be put into the stroller. We brought Matthew's Leapster, so that calmed him down a bit.

Our concern with Anna was formula brand and her cradle cap. I switched her to the Parent's Choice brand, which is half the cost of Similac. I brought him the labels to have him check the vitamins and minerals and stuff, and he said the switch was fine. $12 a can as opposed to $25 a can....hmmm.....really, a no-brainer unless you have to use the expensive stuff. (I spoke with a mom recently who has a baby with severe allergies and his formula is $60 a can!!) To paraphrase a formula company "Breast is best, but if you have to use formula, go with Parent's Choice!!!"

Then, it was shot time. Matthew went first. He had four of them to get and he did not fair well. One was supposed to go into the fat on his arm.....yeah, right! The kid doesn't have any fat on his body, let alone his arm, so that didn't go over well. My little drama king let everyone in Watertown know that he DID NOT LIKE SHOTS!!! That upset Anna, who cried before she even got her shots!! She screamed and screamed with her three pokes, then I fed her a bottle and she conked right out.

And then the Litwillers went to McDonald's and made it all better. And now the two poked ones are sleeping....the short-term benefit to immunizations.

Can't wait until we get flu shots! (Which we ARE getting this year b/c I want to prevent the madness that was our sick season last year!!!)