Four Month Developmental Update...

Well the big developmental appointment has come and gone. I'm still recovering and I even had a helper with me! :) Taking the babies out for more than 30-45 minutes at a time is a task and requires lots of prep. I was so anxious about the appointment that I woke up an hour before the babies, 5am, and started into overdrive. The prep and organization that went into the appointment didn't cause nearly as much anxiety as worrying about their naps. They really needed to be well-rested and naps don't go very well at our house. SURPRISINGLY, all three babies slept for about two hours that morning which was great because I was able to get SO much stuff done and they were definitely ready to go and show off for the doctor.

The babies corrected age is almost six months but since they were born early, developmentally their age is adjusted to be four months. When they all discharged from the NICU they received a referral to see a developmental pediatrician. There are NO shots given at this appointment for which I'm grateful. Those will be coming in a couple weeks. This particular pediatrician spends individual time with each baby and tests different areas to see where each baby is at according to their adjusted or corrected age. The different areas are gross/fine motor and receptive/expressive language.

She tested how well the babies tracked objects, how expressive they were with smiling/laughing/cooing, how they interacted with her and if they paid attention to her while she spoke, whether they turned to the sound of a bell, their ability to hold up their heads, roll over, sit, and whether they grabbed/reached for objects hanging above them. Then she did height, weight, and head measurements. I had fed the babies pureed carrots a couple hours before the appointment but all the josseling around during the evaluations caused all of them to spit up what they had eaten. So they had carrots and formula all over themselves. Gross. That's why they wear onesies everyday at home instead of actual outfits. The spitting is out of control. That's also why I have considered wearing a poncho because I am CONSTANTLY covered. I have more laundry then they do usually. Anyway, I kept apologizing to her that they had carrots all over them like it was some big deal or something. Obviously it wasn't. I want my babes to be in pristine condition when we go out! I'm learning that is not a reality. :)

Moving on. Here are the results of the evaluations. I feel they are more subjective than anything. For example, Caleb goes to town underneath the activity gym with grabbing everything that is hanging. When she dangled a red ring above him he just layed there. Like he was totally not amused by her toy. So of course he scored low in that area when REALLY it is probably one of his strongest areas. He's so good with his hands. It was hilarious though. Just totally gave her a blank stare.

Their weights were taken WITH clothes and with FULL diapers which, I believe, can add at least a few ounces. Also,the percentiles are with their corrected age.


CALEB:

Gross Motor: 5 months
Receptive Language: 5 months
Fine Motor: 4 months
Expressive Language: 4 months

Weight: 18 pounds (50-75th percentile)
Length: 25.5 inches (10-25th percentile)
Head: 45 cm (90th percentile)

His height is no longer keeping up with his head growth. Ha! Yeah he is almost hitting the weight limit on his car seat. I'm looking into buying another one. NEVER thought that would be the case.


ZACHARY:

Gross Motor: 4-5 months
Receptive Language: 5 months
Fine Motor: 4 months
Expressive Language: 4 months

Weight: 13 lbs 6 oz (10th percentile)
Length: 24 inches (10-25th percentile)
Head: 41.5 (50th percentile)

We did talk about the shape of his head and the fact that his ears are not even. She didn't seem concerned and made no recommendations for him to be evaluated by a cranial specialist. I mean, I'd like him to have a nice head shape just because he's a boy and won't have long locks to cover up irregularities. I'd like him to be able to shave his head and not feel weird that one side of his head is flatter than the other. HOWEVER, I sleep him on the side that isn't as far forward and it has helped IMMENSELY in evening him out. His unevenness used to be much worse so I'm happy with the progress and all we can do it keep working with him.


LEAH:

Gross Motor: 4-5 months
Receptive Language: 5 months
Fine Motor: 4 months
Expressive Language: 4 months

Weight: 14 lbs 10 oz (50th percentile)
Length: 24 inches (50th percentile)
Head: 41.5 cm (90th percentile)

I'm hoping she grows hair soon because she has an unusually large head. She does have ONE REALLY long hair. Don't know how or when that happened but I hope it is a sign that more hair is coming! She hasn't really found her voice yet and SOMETIMES gives me a laugh. Other than that though she is very observational and quiet.

Basically all the babies are making steady gains in growth and nice progress with their development. Keeping right up with their adjusted age of 4 months. No further evaluations were needed and we'll go back at their one year birthday to see how they're doing. I'm definitely happy with the results and am constantly impressed with how quickly the babies learn and how much they absorb from their environment. She did encourage us to use their names as often as we can and also work on their sitting abilities as they are all getting closer to sitting on their own.

Here they all are in the octopus outfits showing off their Bumbo skills before the appointment. Lighting wasn't good because it was 6:30am. I thought I'd get more pictures at the appointment but that didn't happen. Plus they had carrots all over themselves which doesn't make for a very cute picture.


Lastly, I have a serious question. Are gowns for boys more on the....femmy side? I'm never sure but sometimes they seem to look so comfortable so why should the boys miss out?? I'm really am curious though if gowns on boys are kind of weird.