"Nice Doctor"

Malachi went to see Dr. Hofman today for his two year check-up - following are my notes in no particular order on what we discussed:

Eyes
We noted that Malachi is inconsistent with identifying his colors.  Hofman said by age 4 he ought to have them straight.  I didn't realize we were so progressive practicing colors already!

Ears
One ear looks a bit gunky, like one of the tubes may be falling out.  The other is clear and looks great.

Nose, Mouth, Back, Reflexes, Privates - check, check, check, check, check

Autism Screening
Clear

Language
Hofman asked if he is using 50 words or more.  I'm pretty sure he has 4x or more that many - he's such a singer and chatty little boy!  Now it's time to work on the 3 P's - pronouns, plurals, and prepositions.  We were encouraged to speak with Malachi like Mr. Rogers would have.

Potty
2 years and 4 months is average for boys.  We have a little training potty that we ask if he wants to use.  He usually says no.  Hofman suggested we don't ask, but state- and to go straight for sitting on the big potty.

Sleeping
No problems there at all.  Malachi likes going down for naps and going to bed at night.

Pacifier
He can keep it.  At times, he'll give it to me or KC if he doesn't want or need it.  We only really give it to him when he asks for it and also when he goes to sleep.

TV
None before 2 (we broke that a little at around 21 months).  Now that he's 2, I guess 1 hour a day is the accepted maximum, but I'm not really comfortable with even that much - probably because with both KC and I working nearly all week, our time with him is limited and precious.  A couple times a week he gets a 15-20 minute music video time - usually with KC.  Sometimes it's Justin Beiber with Ludacris - other times it's Will-I-am with Elmo.

Percentiles
Malachi is just a bit on the thin side of average (43rd).  He has a rather big head (82nd).  He's not nearly as tall as he used to be (28th).

Arms
I discovered recently that Ki has Keratosis pilaris or "chicken skin" on the backs of his upper arms.  I was actually rather pleased to find this, because it is something that I remember my brother Michael had and must have somehow been passed down genetically for Malachi to have it.  It's completely harmless (little red bumps) and will probably never go away.  If Ki were to ever itch at it, we could just apply some 1% hydrocortisone cream.

Eating
Time to start watching fats, taking extra care to avoid/moderate trans fats and high fructose corn syrup.  Time to switch from 2% to skim milk.  Also time for KC and I to get our cholestoral checked...  It's a bit tricky coordinating Malachi's appetite with dinner time, particulary since KC and I don't get home until after 5:30pm typically to start preparing a meal.  This probably means improved meal planning on my part and also working to not feed the hungry boy until dinner is ready (so long as it isn't much after 6pm).  The goal of course is to sit down together for dinner as a family, even if it's just me and Ki.

Immunizations
Malachi had his 2nd round of HepA today - remedied with a few tears, a Garfield bandaid, a turtle sticker and a little toy frog to take home.  Next will be a visit to the flu clinic this fall - now that he's two, he can have the mist instead of a shot.  I keep an Excel file to track the whats and whens of all his immunizations.  I like having it all in one place that I can find easily if needed.

Swimming
Though we are more confident in Malachi to do many things on his own, Hofman strongly encouraged us to take special precautions with him around water at this age.

Big Brother
Keep it casual.  Hofman shared that Malachi may regress a bit with a new sibling, but the less we draw extra or forced attention to the event, the easier the transition will be.  Hofman of course was delighted with the news of new patient.