2-month checkup

Oscar's two-month checkup was Wednesday and he's doing great. He weighed in at 12 lbs. 11 oz. (54th percentile); his length is 23.5 inches (51st percentile) and his head measures 41 cm/16.2" (56th percentile).

We're going to submit a stool sample next week because there is still a little bit of blood in his stool despite my dairy-free diet. His pediatrician isn't concerned because he's so healthy and happy otherwise, but she wants to make sure there's not anything else unusual going on.

We're foregoing his immunizations for now and will likely stick to an alternative vaccine schedule suggested by the pediatrician. We made the decision after discussing the issue with friends, coworkers, nurses, Oscar's pediatrician and lactation consultants. The main factors in our decision are that Oscar's exclusively breastfed and therefor has a more robust immune system than formula-fed babies and that he won't be exposed to many other kids because he's not in daycare, church, etc.

Good bye, DQ Blizzards

And probably good riddance. Last week, we saw Oscar's pediatrician because we'd noticed a tiny bit of blood in his stool. The pediatrician suspects that it's a reaction to the milk protein in my diet. Apparently it's common for infants to be unable to digest dairy until they're 6 months old or so. It's not an indication of a later milk allergy for Oscar, thank goodness.

So it means I'm off dairy for the next several months. So far, it's OK. The downside: all the frozen meals we stocked up on for the postpartum period have cheese or cream sauces; I haven't been able to find soy ice cream yet (thanks to Angela for recommending some good brands, though!); cheese substitutes suck; my DQ Blizzard Fan Club coupon expired. The upside: we have our CSA (community supported agriculture) fruits and veggies, giving us lots of healthy meal options; Adam is a very willing and capable chef who feeds me well sans dairy; I'm not getting all the bad parts of the dairy I usually eat (cholesterol, fats and stuff).

It can take up to two weeks for the blood to disappear from the diapers, but so far, so good. Oscar's two-month check up is on July 2, so we'll know more then.