Charlotte (17 1/2 months) & Jocelyn (16 days)

I am going to do my best and be more faithful with updating the blog. My goal is to do it monthly at least and update as to what the girls are up to. Then I will have a record of what is happening when. Today both girls had "well" visits at the doctor so I have lots of stats to include.

Charlotte

Today was Charlotte's 18 month visit. She wasn't a big fan of being naked and examined by the doctor. The doctor said it is typical for there to be a lot of protesting at this visit, and protest she did! While the doctor was examining her she kept signing, "all done, all done". Charlotte was done, but unfortunately the doctor was not.

Charlotte's stats:

Weight: 25lbs 1 oz (65th percentile)

Height: 31 1/4 inches (40th percentile)

Head: 19 (90th percentile)

Charlotte currently signs the following words: more, please, candy, all done, milk, drink, bath and eat.

She is able to identify the following body parts: nose, mouth, ears, hair, feet, toes, and eyes.

She says the following animal sounds consistently: dog, cow, and bird and depending on the day, will also make chicken, bear, cat, and sheep sounds.

Her expressive vocabulary is growing rapidly, she says; ball, hi, bye, up, down, daddy, baby, bounce, and bath. She also says, "wherdigo" which is actually, "where did it go?" all smashed into one word. It is too funny!

Charlotte's favorite things to do right now are listen to music (especially Wheels on the Bus), spin in circles, kiss on Jocelyn, and look at books.

She is changing so much everyday, it is so much fun to watch her become more independent. With that independence is also coming a little a bit of stubbornness and disobedience, but overall, she is doing very well as she adjusts to being a big sister.

Jocelyn
Jocelyn did well at the doctor's office. She fussed a little while the doctor poked at her, but not too bad at all.

Jocelyn's stats:

Weight: 8lbs 2 ounces (50th percentile)

Height: 21 1/2 inches (90th percentile)

Head: 14 3/4 inches (80th percentile)

The doctor was very impressed with her weight gain. I'm not surprised since she has been nursing like a champ from day one. She had gained 10 ounces in just under two weeks. Jocelyn's eye has been quite goopy the last few days so the doctor prescribed some eye drops that we'll start tonight. Charlotte had similar problems as a newborn.

We do have a prayer request. Both the pediatrician in the hospital and our own pediatrician noted a "click" in one of Jocelyn's hips. They are uncertain if this is related to "relaxin", a hormone babies get from their mother while in the womb, or if she may have a condition called hip dysplasia. The doctor noted today that it seemed somewhat better, but wanted to go ahead with an ultrasound on her hip that she had already scheduled for July 19th. We are not too concerned at this point because the doctor seems to just want to "rule it out" as opposed to "confirm" a diagnosis. According to the pediatrician, the condition is very difficult to treat and very complicated if not treated early in life (prior to 6 months of age) so an early diagnosis is important. We are hopeful the ultrasound will show positive growth and development of her hips.

All in all we are settling in to being a family of four and feel extremely blessed with our sweet family.