6 Month Check-Up

My baby is already 6 months old!! I just can’t believe it! And he is growing like a weed. This last month I started him on solid foods, and by solid I mean pureed of course. Up to this point he has eaten single grain rice cereal, sweet potatoes, avocados and drinks prune/apple juice. He seems to be a good eater so far. His growth proves it. At his 6 month check-up he weighed in at 17lbs, 15oz. and is 27.63 inches long! Wow! On a typically developing baby’s growth chart he is in the 55th percentile for weight and 85th for height! On a Down syndrome growth chart he is off the charts in both height and weight!

He seems to be a pretty good sleeper at night. However, I do have some concerns with him getting enough deep sleep. When Jeremy and I attended the DSAMT conference in April they discussed the common sleep issues for people with Down syndrome. One of them being Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). I guess this occurs in around 45% of people with Down syndrome and can be the cause for many health concerns that are acquired as they age. Click here to learn more about OSA in Down syndrome. I think Liam has shown some signs of OSA because of some of the noises he makes while sleeping and how he sleeps with his neck bent back a lot of the time. I discussed my concerns with our pediatrician and he made an appointment for us to meet with a sleep specialist next week. We will then have a sleep study done on him sometime this summer to find out if he does have OSA. I’ll keep you posted.

On another note, I was thinking about all the places Liam has already been in the first 6 months of his life! He has been on 4 road trips and 1 plane ride. He’s been to GA, KY, OH, MT, MN (if you count the airport), and Ontario, Canada! We have been busy these last 6 months and it’s not about to slow down. Liam is a great traveler so we are taking advantage of that, along with Jeremy’s frequent flier miles, and going to spend some time with our families. It’s nice that he is free to fly for now!

Here is a picture of my big boy testing out the umbrella stroller. This will really come in handy for me in the airport next week! Doesn’t he make this stroller look small;)!?