Where is all that food going????

Our little Jakey is evidently too skinny. He was at the 10th percentile at his 9-month checkup, down from the 50% percentile at his 6-month, and the percentile for his height and head circumference have also dropped drastically. The pediatrician gave us some ideas for bulking him up (we can give him dairy now, just no cow's milk yet). So we've added fatty Greek yogurt, cheese, ice cream (some good egg-free options out there; I like Blue Bell :), butter, and LOTS of protein to his diet. I've also ramped up my pump output with fenugreek and curry. I smell like maple syrup, but the milk is a'flowin'. In spite of our efforts, Jake hasn't gained even an ounce since we ramped up his diet. Which begs the question - where in the heck is all that food going?

Jake has taken to these measures just fine. He LOVES cheese, bacon, chicken, pasta and just about anything else we put in front of him, and he drinks plenty of my milk at daycare. We've added butter to just about anything we can, and we make sure he has plenty of time to sit in his high chair and eat during dinnertime. In spite of the mountain of food I find in his high chair when he's done eating, a good deal of it does make it into his tummy. And there's not much I can do about the coordination issue that leads to the mess, especially since Jake refuses to eat anything from a spoon.

I feel like we're at a crossroads. We can go overkill on trying to get Jake to eat more, likely leading to issues with healthy eating habits down the road. Or we can take this in stride and just wait for things to get better. I'm going with the latter of course, but I dread the weight-check appointment with our pediatrician in a few weeks. I just hope she realizes we're not starving our child. At least I hope we're not.