Anyone got a "standard" baby?

[BabyOrSanta]

I'm just wondering if anyone has got a "normal" baby by HV standards?

One that does exactly the right amount of wet nappies, dirty nappies, feeds, sleeps for the "right" amount of time etc?

Eg The HV asked if she had had 6 wet nappies in 24 hours.
A) I didn't know I should be counting and
B) she'd done more than that, I'm sure

Had she had 8 feeds in 24 hours?
When I started writing them down she'd had 9 plus some comfort sucking but other days has less.

I'm not overly worried (except for the current thrush problem and no weight gain over 4 days) but I'm just wondering if anyone has a perfectly normal baby? Also, do you write everything down?

Mine did loads of feeds and nappies when newborn and I didn't have a clue how many so wrote it down for the first week or two so I could answer when anyone asked. As soon as they saw there was a good boring list going on they didn't ask much more!

I think they should warn all sleep deprived parents that they should count nappies etc.
The first two weeks were mainly thinking about my pillow and biscuits (and DD of course...). But when they ask difficult questions such as "how many dirty nappies has she had?"... no idea. I changed them but that's all I can tell you.

And I plan on doing some sort of spreadsheet with complex graphs... that'll teach 'em!

I think the nappies is a minimum number to check they aren't dehydrated. It's a bit arbitrary, DD could have 3 a day or 10 a day depending on how often I changed her. I could never count DDs feeds as I didn't know when they ended and a new one began, they sort of rolled into continuous snacking!

Oh God, I've never wished for someone to be 'average' so hard as when I had DD.

As much as I'd love her to be a genius of some description at some point, I am more than happy with 'average' until she's at least 3.

Average size, weight, average age to walk and talk, average skills, average everything. That'd be perfect.

I spent the first month of DD's life writing EVERYTHING she did down in the Tiddler Tracker book, I tracked every nappy, feed, sleep... and then totted-up my columns each night and worried.

The bottom line with babies is, you know when something's wrong. They don't keep it a secret. The key things I keep an eye on with DD now (at her age) are:

1. Is she weeing? (sometimes she'd poo 8 times a day, sometimes nothing for a week)
2. Is she happy?
3. Is her temperature okay?

If the answer to those is 'yes' then I don't worry. Of course when they're very little you keep an eye on their weight too. But sometimes they have hungry days, sometimes less so. I don't think I ever knew whether DD had put on weight on a daily or weekly basis.

But YES to graphs, make lots of graphs, that'd make me happy.

ps all the above 'don't worry' bit is a lie - I'm sitting here secretly worrying that DD hasn't yet woken up from her lunchtime nap. It's been 2.5 hours, it's usually 2. I've checked her umpteen times including her temperature, she's just sleeping.

Worrying, that is literally what parents spend their time doing (until she goes to bed, then I watch videos of her).

OBSESSED!

It was the feeding for me. Breast feeding class “they feed every 2 hrs and sleep the rest of the time”... nope. I got a cluster feeding baby Who ate for 6 hrs straight once and was awake for 9 hrs without a nap!!!
Refund- miss sold! (Only kidding)

Oh yeah, I totally want a refund! This one's faulty too!
And Bending it's true. DD could have one nappy a day. Yes, she'd be very sore and leaking and it wouldn't be good. Or I could wake my sleeping baby no chance and check her every 10 minutes and change her at every dribble. She would have many more nappies a day then...
Please note: I change her frequently! I do not advocate one nappy per day!

Our PHN (Irish HV) was horrified when DD was a week old that we weren't logging the amount of formula she took at each feed. No-one had told us to. When she was 9 months old, the PHN commented sarkily when we carried DD in for her assessment that she was 'obviously well used to being carried'. She was hardly likely to sprint in the door under her own steam at 9 months old! I swear they do it just to mess with new parents' heads - as if you don't have enough to worry about!

Why on earth are they looking at weight gain over such a short period? Has there been a problem?

arbrighton I think it was because of the new year holiday etc. Midwife weighed on Friday, discharged me, HV first visit Wednesday so just how it fell. Also means I have to have an "extra" HV appointment as she hadn't gained (although she's def grown!)

NotAPuffin it is funny that they don't tell you but then expect you to know! And you feel like you can't say "I don't know", you have to give a proper answer.

I remember the midwife visiting after DS was born. She asked if he'd done any dirty nappies, then asked if she could see one. DH and I just looked at her I said you can but we'd have to fish one out of the outside bin. She said no, that's fine

To be honest, I do think the HVs are even a bit about some of the boxes they have to tick and about the repetitive questions - ours has a full A4 page of tick boxes and she just ticks them off as we chat as we've covered most of it when talking about section one...

Yes. DS1 was a 'standard' baby. Feed every 3 hours from birth (BF) slept through the night from 4 months. Changed to FF at 6 months.

DS2 is 14 months, still hasn't slept through the night. Is on a low percentile. Difficult pregnancy. Constant chest infections. Had sepsis as a newborn. Eats well, but isn't gaining a much as he should be. Very able physically, but no sign of speech yet.

I resent my HV, as when I have a concern she is so blasé but other things that do not concern me, she insists are a matter of urgency.

You can't win.

Looking for weight gain over 4 days is probably futile. A full bladder and just been fed before the first measurement and an empty bladder and just about to feed before the second might well look like no weight gain.

HV asked me when DD was 6 months if I brushed her (2) teeth regularly.

Yes, yes I do.

You know, in between sleepless nights, mad days and also wrestling a 3 year old.

If a baby has Teeth they need brushing !! Just as susceptible
To decay as older children's teeth .