Mums of lightweight bubs who eat like sparrows!

[Soph]

Just looking for some similar stories to make sure I'm not alone! Lucie has always eaten like a sparrow/mouse and was only 3.06kg born, now at 11 months is only 8.5kg and still eats next to nothing. Not sure how she can survive on just air! She's mega active - started crawling at 5.5 months and was walking before 10 months, and happy and looks healthy (apart from being tiny). I guess it's just her, a lean mean pocket rocket! Anyone else have little active ones?

[cindyb]

I do!!!
Boy do the MCHN make you feel like a bad parent though! Tori was 3.034 kg at birth and was sitting at 3 mnths and crawling at 4.5mnth and just short of walking now at nearly 10 months and only weighs 7.5kg.
She is not keen on food at all but then will have a good day where I cant get it in fast enough. She had been losing weight over the past few months but is now just over what she weighed at 7.5months yet has grown 5cm. She is long and skinny and everyone comments on it!
I keep saying she is over active and is burning off what she gets into her way to fast and the health nurses have given me another few weeks to see how I go with fattening her up and otherwise will be sending us to a paediatrician for tests etc. I'm not keen on that. she is a very happy baby and just doesnt sit still for a second!
Its good to know I'm not the only one with a skinny active baby. Feeding her solids has become quite an artform and at the same time a big stress as she definately wont let anyone else give it to her but me.At one stage I was offering it 6 times a day and getting a tiny bit in each time. The health nurse doubted that I was even giving it to her and thought I was just breast feeding her. I have found now that if she wont eat I can sometimes get formula into her but only about 60lm at a time. Ithink she has a small belly!!
What have you tried to get your munchkin to fatten up?

[Soph]

Yay Cindy another mum who knows all about it! I agree - the MCHN always make me feel bad and DH doesn't really get it. They always go through what she eats, she is just mega fussy. She won't take anything from a spoon now - it's finger food only! I always had to battle to get the milk into her, now milk is kinda ok, solids are a bit slow. I think some babies are just small and sparrow like. What sort of tests will the paed do?

I wasn't massive myself - 9.5kg at 12 months and DH was less than 8kg at 12 months himself (and also would live on air!), so genetically I guess she's never going to be huge (although we are average heights now, me about 175cm and DH about 179cm). I mean you can't force them to eat can you, and goodness knows we try to get food into them!

To try and fatten her up I try and give her a lot of cheese and dairy, although she's not overly keen. Cheese on toast for lunch is a bit of a regular (having said that she is off bread atm though ).

I think it's pretty normal for these skinnies to be active very early too (Kirsty77 is Sept mums is another with one like ours!). And as everyone keeps telling me, she's so happy and developmentally way ahead, so there can't be too much wrong with them! I guess they'll thank their skinny genes when they're 21!

All the best and it's a relief to find someone else in the same boat. Let me know what happens, and I hope you don't have to see the paed.

[Soph]

Just had to add Cindy that Tori looks adorable in her pic too - certainly doesn't look anywhere near sick! Not sure if you have a paed, but if you go down that path I found an amazing one in Lismore of all places (we moved down this way from Brissie at the beginning of the year). People travel from Mackay and places to see this guy, who is just the best - the GC isn't too far away I guess. If you want his name let me know.

[BellyBelly]

Marisa has always been petite and the pressure is enormous for weight gain, especially when they are younger. But luckily in all my naivety, I knew she was happy, healthy and very active so she must be okay. She was breastfed for two years and that's all she really liked, unless is was covered in chocolate :S It hasn't been a problem developmentally as she has always been ahead with milestones too and was a shocking sleeper!!! I had no idea how she could function, but she needed very little obviously!

The one bit of advice I would say to those who have healthy bubs but get pressure about this stuff is that when you go to the MCHN, it takes lightweights and heavyweights for those charts to get an average weight So don't beat yourself up over it! It is very frustrating when they wont eat much but a healthy baby wont starve itself. I think it will help with the introduction of breastfed growth charts too.

[Soph]

Ah fantastic point Kelly!!!!!!!! Of course! Those MCHNs sometimes need to be reminded of these things.

Theresa - hope you sort out the issues soon, you poor things, it must be a tough time but at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Gotta run Lucie has just woken and scoffed a strawberry - maybe she'll eat another one, quick!

[Kirsty77]

Just thought I'd pop in to say......go the skinny minnies!!!hehehe

You know our story Soph.........My little girl never ate much, never took the ml's they said she should be.....I've stopped weighing her as it was doing my head in sooooo badly! But all the lack of food hasn't stopped her from crawling at 6mths and walking at 9mths!!!

[Amity]

And Alex is the same, he's three and a bith and weighs a skinny minnie 14.5 kilos...

All I can say is thank goodness for Pumpkin Patch and their adjustable waist pants! Especially once they're toilet trained and the nappy won't help their pants stay up!

[*Rae*]

Soph -Ella eats heaps but only weighs 7kgs and turns one in 2 weeks!!!!!!! The pead says she's healthy though so i guess i'll have to accept that she's just petite. I was the same...still am really when i was 12 i had to see a pead re asthma and was told i weighed as much as the average 4 yr old - lol...so Ella follows in mummy's footsteps!

[KarlaO]

Isobel is nearly 4, and weighs 15 kilos. She's always been small, but is another one who reached milestones early. She is happy & healthy, so we don't make a big issue of it, give her lots of full fat dairy, and she plays away all day!

[cindyb]

Divvy - I agree on the pumpkin patch pants, if it wasnt for them my girl would have very cold ankles!! I find that some of the Dymples (bigW) have the adjustable waist too and are a bit easier on the purse. If I went by toris waist she would still be a 000 but we need the 0 for the length,I have taken in alot of her pants in the waist. It would be a bugger not having the nappy to help with holding up the pants though!

Wheatie - I'm not sure what the paediatrician would test for or do, just hopingthat we dont have to go there

[Soph]

Ahhh sounds like there are quite a few skinny minnies around - yay!

Rae - I totally didn't realise that Ella was one too. Yay for another August skinny!

Was chatting to a friend last night and saying how strangers always say stuff like 'She's so tiny, she shouldn't be walking yet...' and she came up with a great comeback. Now my response will be 'We want her to be a marathon runner - we have her on a diet and in training atm.' Hehehehhehehe

[nikbrad]

My girlfriend has a 2.5 year old who eats next to nothing. She is light in weight, doesn't need a lot of sleep and the pead's aren't worried about her as she is happy, talking, playing etc and they think eventually she will eat when she is ready. She literally lives on the smallest amount of food over a week ie 2 weetbix a day. It has been a constant worry for her mum but she has all the energy in the world - must be good air she's breathing!

[Kirsty77]

ROFL!Soph thats a classic...hmm might have to steal that for when people say that about Gemma!hehehe