Monday, January 23, 2006

Edward never misses a meal. I might prefer to sleep through one or two of them, particularly those pre-dawn calls, but he lets me know when the tank has reached empty again, never more than about three hours after the last meal. But that's pretty much all he's supposed to do at this stage--eat and sleep to facilitate growth. And boy is it working!

At today's one month checkup, Edward weighed in at a whopping 7.5 pounds! He also gained about an inch in height (length?) and in head circumference. He's not topping the charts or anything, but he's definitely on his way to catching up from his early entry to the world. This week was his original due date so I guess it's not surprising that he's reached the size of a fairly average full-term baby. His doctor was very impressed. She said his weight gain averages out to about 50 grams (almost two ounces) per day, about double what she would expect from a breastfed baby. He now has great chubby cheeks and is getting some rolls in the thigh area. She also noted that he has "elbow dimples."

Here he's sitting in his aquarium chair (minus the aquarium activity bar) flanked by the special blanket sent by our friends the Rubins. (We had to adjust the straps on the chair and in his carseat to accommodate his expanding waistline.) He's spending more time awake these days--usually a good two hours in the afternoon and then also some time in the evening. Lucky for us he hasn't made 3 a.m. his wide awake time! He makes lots of faces and waves his arms and hands in front of his face. It's funny to think that as he sees this object wave by he has no idea that it's attached to him or that he controls its movement. Lots to learn in the weeks and months ahead!