Baby Size Usual????

[Shelz]

My baby girl is 10 weeks old today and everyone says how big she is.
She weighed 9lb 7 oz when she was born and at 8.5 weeks weighed in at 6.22 kg - 13lb 11 oz. Is this too large for her age?? :confused:

[Lallas' Mum]

Dear Shelz,

Your darling bub was a larger bub when she was born so it will take a little while before she evens out with other kids her age. As long as she is making healthy weight gains all is fine. You can chart her weight in the back of her child health care book and it will show if she is gaining too much or too little.

Both my sons were quite large to begin with (4.77kg & 5.01kg) so I know what it is like to have tonnes of people constantly tell you how big your children are. It can be a little hurtful at times when people make these sort of comments as it makes you feel like your baby is some kind of freak of nature.

My second son is not quite 6 weeks old and this time last week he weighed 6.374kgs. He looks like a lot of 3-4 month old babies. My eldest son who was a large bub is nearly 20 mths old & is only 12kgs - so they do usually even out.

Rest assured they are plenty of other Mums out there with big bubs and your little darling is perfectly normal.

Take care

Tracey
Mum to large bubs Alec:) & Zak:)

[Chickadee]

I think you can't win whether you have a bub that's bigger or smaller than average. Other people are always going to comment. I got often got comments about how small my daughter was and wanted to scream "But I DO feed her & she's fine!!"

Like Tracey said, if you chart your daughters weight it will likely reassure you. If she started on a 90% line then she's always going to be up there at the top of the curves and no need for you to worry. The only cause for concern would be if she suddenly drops weight or is gradually increasing (for example, moving from a 70% to 90% curve). You'll see from the shape of the curve too that bubs put on a lot of weight quickly but the weight gain slows down by the first birthday.

Martha

[Chickadee]

Oh, just noticed you're in New Zealand! In Aus we get a little yellow book at birth that tracks bub's health and has growth charts in it. In case you don't have something similar, you can find growth charts here: http://www.kidsgrowth.com/stages/growthcharts.cfm

These are generally based on American studies, and because bubs are gradually getting bigger at birth, might be slightly out of date. So they're just a guide really. And looking at it, your daughter appears to be right on track! :)

[Shelz]

Thanks Martha M and Lallas Mum,
Just I think it's just the comments of other people - Tru is my third baby (2nd girl) my first one was 9lb 2oz but don't remember being worried about his weight. Probably because he was a boy!!! My next child was 7lb 7oz and a girl.
Yes I have a NZ plunket book and she is in the larger growth percentage - her weight has been steady so I guess I shouldn't worry. :)

[petster]

Hi Shelz

My baby is a "bigger" baby too! At 8 weeks she was 6.06kg, and I think she's over 7kg now, at 12 weeks. She wasn't big born - only 3.54kg, but was a piggy gutz from day 1. She put on 150g in hospital in 1 day - sounds unbelievable... It makes me feel so proud - it's my breastmilk that has nurtured her. I must admit to worrying sometimes though - she has 3 chins and cheeks like a basset hound! But she just looks so healthy! I figure if they are happy, bugger what anyone else thinks... :D

Cheers!

[Kamaikia]

my son was only 6lb at birth but grew quickly - he is now 7 months and aroung 11kg. I am told daily how big he is and am learnign to ignore it. Nearly all of the children in my family are large then they tend to thin out at around 12 - 18 months. we need to remember that all babies are different, they grow at a completly different rate and as they get older there bodies will develop differently. And anyway I have alot more baby to love and cuddly :p