Amelia is little. We knew she was little, but it is surprising how small she is according to those kid growth charts. Currently, she’s slightly above the 10th percentile for both height and weight. She weighs just about 17 pounds and is 26.8 inches tall. She’s not a big kid.
But our doctor does not seem concerned because Amelia has no trouble sleeping through the night and is obviously thriving. The doctor seemed to indicate that she’s likely on the small side because she’s so active. And it isn’t as though Ian and I are giants. Otherwise, the doctor said Amelia seems perfect. I’m sure that’s what she tells all her patients, but in this case we think it’s true!
I took the opportunity while we were at the doctor’s to ask her if it’d be ok if we skip the chicken pox vaccine that is routinely given at one year. I am not convinced it is an essential vaccine for all kids, and our doctor agreed to hold off administering it to Amelia. She suggested that if Amelia still hasn’t gotten the chicken pox by the time she goes to kindergarten, we could think about giving it to her then. This seems fair to me.
We’ve been going to the pool as often as we can, now that it is warmer. Amelia is enjoying it more and more each day! Yesterday all she wanted to do was splash and splash and splash with her hands and kick her feet. She really seems to love it and I don’t mind it either. Both Ian and I have been avoiding chlorinated pools since we stopped swimming competitively and/or lifeguarding. But, it is actually nice to enjoy a dip in the afternoons. Plus, it seems like our pool is not too crowded. I’m not sure whether people are staying away because of the weather or everyone is on vacation. Whatever the reason, I am not complaining!
I think, *think* the chicken pox vaccine will help protect her from shingles later in life. If she doesn’t have the vaccine, and doesn’t get the pox (due to others around her being vaccinated) she may be at risk for shingles later. Check with your doctor. To me, that alone is a reason to do it.
Having chicken pox protects you from getting shingles later in life. So it stands to reason that getting the vaccine would as well, although I don’t think the vaccine has been around long enough to know for sure. There is also a vaccine now to prevent against shingles in case you don’t get chicken pox when you are young.