Baby Growth Charts

Wells had his 4 month wellness check today. I'm always anxious to know how much my babies weigh. If there is one thing I would recommend for a new mom to be, it's a baby scale. There's no point in me having one now but I sure do wish I had, had one with all of my babies. So if you're a mom to be--register for a baby scale!! I remember when I was pregnant with Campbell, a fellow mom friend telling me I would be obsessed with knowing his weight all the time. Truer words were never spoken. I'm not necessarily obsessed with it but definitely always curious! All that to say, I was curious to know Wells' weight. I guessed he weighed around 11 pounds and I was exactly right--11 lbs, 6 oz to be exact. This puts him in the zero percentile. Hahaha!! I mean, my poor babies can't ever make it on the chart for weight. And they keep getting smaller. Wells weighs a few ounces less than Bennett did at this age and I didn't think any baby could get smaller than little baby Bennett.

I've talked on the subject of small babies before simply because I have so much experience with it as every single one of my babies haven't been "on the charts" for their weight. Thankfully, I have a pediatrician who has always assured me it is A-OK and I am so grateful. It's total common sense, if you think about it. Your baby is happy and smiley, sleeping 12 straight hours, and reaching all milestones appropriately--all signs of a well fed, healthy baby. Yet so many moms get so concerned when they see their baby is low on the charts. They worry they need to do something to fatten their baby up. My pediatrician has always said trying to make a baby gain weight is like trying to make them taller--not possible. And nothing bothers me more than a mother who says their baby is low on their charts so their ped recommended supplementing. I always want to say "find a new pediatrician." Not every person is the same size and babies are no different. I honestly wish we would do away with the stats because I feel like it causes some mothers unnecessary stress. I will never forget Campbell being a baby and, as a first me mom, I was concerned about him being so small. My mother talked common sense into me saying "thousands of years ago, there weren't growth charts and scales. Mothers weren't comparing their babies to other babies. They just fed their babies. So just feed your baby and don't worry about it." And a lightbulb went off in my head and I thought, yes! One million times yes. And since that moment, I have always just fed my babies and not worried about it.

I'll hop off my soapbox now. Haha! I knew when I was pregnant with him that Wells would be small. He'll end up weighing around 18 pounds on his first birthday, just like his big brothers. And he'll finally get on those charts around 9 months old. But again, I'm not concerned with them....I just find it intriguing that all of my boys have followed the exact same growth pattern!

Here is a really interesting article on growth charts that I read a while back. It's a quick read, very enlightening, and something I think all parents should take a look at! Click HERE to read it.