I can see his ribs and spine :(

[UntoldAngel]

Mr P is happy, alert, babbling, rolling, chewing everything he can get his hands on, interacting etc etc Sleeping okay still, although had about a week and a half of waking up between 4 and 5am for the day, but slept through last night so fingers crossed for tonight. He is feeding every two hours throughout the day and producing wet nappies, and at least one poo nappy a day.
BUT I don't think he is gaining weight We have only done the recommended checkups, except at the start after being discharged from hospital as we needed to ensure his weight gain continued, but I don't think he would be much heavier than 5.5kg IF THAT! When I got on the scales with him at mum's a couple of weeks ago he was about 5.2kg. He is now 5months old. I have to go into town on Monday for an appointment with the social worker, so I might see if I can get him weighed, measured etc but I'm kinda worried they will tell me that we need to do formula top ups or start food I don't want to do top ups, or go to formula, and I don't want to start food until at least next month because I don't think he is ready for it yet.
Now the reason I don't think he is gaining weight is that I was watching him when he was sleeping today, and you can see his ribs (front and back) and his little spine... I don't want to deprive him, but I'm pretty sure that he is getting a belly full every time he feeds because I let him lead when he wants to feed and when he's had enough. Surely he would be looking for more if he wasn't getting enough.
And apparently the IL's have mentioned his weight gain to DH again today

I don't know what to do and feel like a terrible mother because my baby is skin and bones

[Michelle71]

My little man was born at 36w3d and weighed 2.72kg. He is now just 5kg at 18 weeks but developmentally he is doing well. You little man's output sounds good as does his development. Some babies just grow slower that others but do get him checked for your peace of mind.

[~Kim~]

Exactly what Michelle said. Belle, he sounds like he's going great guns babe.
If I hadn't been in an eerily similar situation to you I might think differently, but I understand your angst.
FWIW I have never had one of those chubby babes. Both mine were/are skin and bones and always have been. They start to slow down the weight gain too. Trust you gut hun.

[UntoldAngel]

My gut says I'm doing a terrible job at being a mother
He was born at 39+2 weighing 3.1kg and dropped to 2.7kg by day 3...

I guess I'm worried too because he is getting more active that you see kids start to lose the baby chub, but he hasn't got any to lose ITMS

[~Kim~]

No you are not a terrible mother wouldn't worry.

[AngelPants]

:Hug: hun we had the same thing with Mr c a couple of months ago. we ended up putting him on top ups for a few weeks but then weaned him off them when his weight gain picked up. He's still a skinny minny tho. Don't think ur milk isn't good enough or past 8 weeks it doesn't matter if u bf or gd. bf is going to be better for u n parker than ff with few exceptions. If he's happy & developing he's prob just a skinny 1 but if ur concerned I would talk to the doc about it. try not to stress over it too much lovely.


oh & tell ur IL to take a hike. the last thing u need is them breathing down ur neck.

[Trillian]

I think you're doing a wonderful job . One thing you could consider though is perhaps try to give him some more feeds? Not all bubs will be screaming the house down for a feed, so maybe try to squeeze in another one or two if you can and see if that helps? Plus the weather is getting warmer now anyway, so it wont hurt to give him more fluids.

[*Sparklez*]

as long as he is happy n isnt lacking in anything which by what u describe he is on healthy little boy i would shrug off any other suggestions that u need to do more..
like i said my son is 4 n only 18kg but he is as healthy as can be..
listen to ur heart not the voice of others... that will always make u second guess things

[onthefly]

Yeah, he's good!
Some people get way too caught up in the numbers on the scale - it is not the only (or necessarily best ) indication that your baby is growing well.

[Kazbah]

One thing my friend did was take weekly photos of her baby - the same day each week. He was also a small bub, but looking at the weekly photos and seeing him growing is amazing!!! We didn't notice him growing, getting bigger - but the photos certainly did!

[peanutter]

must be stressful.

can you get into your maternal health care nurse centre to get extra weighs done?

not sure what advice to give ... but thinking of you! and it sounds like you're doing a great job, based on his ins and outs

[~Serenity~]

Serenity was born at 32 weeks 1.5kg and is 12 months and about 7.5 kg if you're really worried go to the health nurse xxx

[beckoes]

DD is 27 months and has only JUST tipped 11 kgs....i swear she has been stuck at 10kgs for a year! She is SKINNY, to the point where i have people ask me if she is sick. you can see every rib. BUT she is happy and healthy and eats like a horse!
I have a fantastic GP but when DD was about 5 month and we went in for an vacsinations i saw another GP as ours was away, she told me she liked fat babies and that my DD needed top up and to start on baby rice....i was upset but i decided to wait till my normal GP was back before i did anything, when i saw her she actually scoffed when i told her. "you have a happy healthy baby, shes just lean, dont change anything'' were her words!
Sometimes its hard not to take every measurment under the sun and analise them all, i stopped weighing DD about a year ago casue i was getting too focused on her lack of weight gain, she eats like an adult (more than me sometimes ) it just doesnt stick on her...wish i had her metabolism!

You know your son, if you can see that he is happy, eating, doing all the right things, dont let a line on a graph tell you how heavy he should be! and certainly DONT do anything you feel isnt right for him...i.e. top ups/solids. Little roly poly babies are reasuring for us as parents but some babies are just lean. if he showed other signs, like being really grumpy, sickly, crying all the time, refusing milk etc then id be worried. otherwise, be confident that you are doing a great job! which you are!I hope you see a good doc/MCHN who puts your mind at ease. hugs to you

[*Sparklez*]

i think he sounds like his doing great.. like pp if ur worried ask ur health care nurse or social worker to weigh him up n let u know my son is similar too his 4 in jan n weighs 18 kg but he is tall n skinny like his dad.. but he also has a very fast metabolism.. gl hun n ur not a bad mum u sound like ur doing all the right things...

[Sammiejane]

You know, Some people are thin and some are not. I gain weight just by looking at food, my DH has to eat junk food non stop to gain weight.
My DD takes after her dad, she has never been a cubby baby, i have always seen her ribs and spine. She was BF on demand and was always in the 25%ile when she was weighed (although she was born at 3.8kg)

I would be inclined to say that if you baby is not looking for food, giving him extra is not going to benefit him.

Try not to worry, babies are exceptionally capable of letting us know when there is something wrong!

[onthefly]

Stop this bad mummy talk! Lots of wet nappies is the best sign that he's getting plenty of milk. 2hourly feeds is good - how many would he be having?

I could see DS's ribs at that age, still can! He's a slight little thing, is all. What about his face, arms and legs? Good covering on there?
Really sounds like he's doing fine - if you're worried and don't want to be automatically told to go to formula, then give the ABA a call, or speak to an LC. They know what's normal for breastfed babies and can give you advice and reassurance.

[UntoldAngel]

Stop this bad mummy talk! Lots of wet nappies is the best sign that he's getting plenty of milk. 2hourly feeds is good - how many would he be having?

Up at 6 in bed by 8 so about 8 feeds, maybe a couple less depending on if he sleeps through the day.
His arms and legs have actually filled out since he was born, he use to have skin rolls instead of fat rolls and his face has filled out too, so I know that he is fine.... I must stop listening to people who say otherwise!

[~Lashes~]

I must stop listening to people who say otherwise!

YES YOU MUST!!! i recently took my daughter to the health nurse for a 9 month check, was told i am over feeding her, and her head is to big. now if she was my first baby i would probably burst in to tears and been a compleate mess, but i know she only eats and has a bottle when SHE wants them, and her big head comes from my side. to look at her she is proprtioned very well, the chubb fits in with the "big" head. pffft to them! if he is a happy baby, and sleeping well, dont worry about a thing, my first born was a thin bub, he still fited in 000 at 7 months old. dont worry he might chubb up when he starts solids, then you can stick it in her face!! you see him everyday and know yourself if he is happy and healthy, go with that, not what someone said who saw him for 5 mins and made a judgement on the scales.