The new "New Moms" thread!

[jennyL]

Well some of my food concerns were answered when I got to his daycare today. We got a letter and they are restructering the classes so instead of just moving based on age there will be a little overlap for different skill sets. So in Noah's case instead of just moving to the next room at 12 months and being giving only people food, sippy cups, and napping on a map he gets more of a transition period so he'll have until he's 18 months to master all of those skills. He already walks so thats not a huge one for him but some of the kids at 12 months don't walk yet and they were put in the next room so it was an issue. Now he'll have more time to get adjusted. Woohoo it is more money since the price isn't going down until he moves to the next room but I'm only seeing good things in this change. I hope that it works out that way.

 

[beckmrk04]

Ugh- Vaylie is a picky eater too. I just bought the book "Food Fights: Winning the Nutritional Challenges of Parenthood Armed with Insight, Humor, and a bottle of Ketchup"- I'm hoping it will have some good ideas, I just bought it this weekend so I'm not very far into it, but what I have read so far has been good and comforting!

Vaylie eats noodles (spaghetti, mac'n'cheese), chicken, chicken nuggets, FWIES (french fries- she thinks they are the best thing on the whole damn planet), etc. She does eat basically every kind of fruit there is, but she won't touch a vegetable- not even corn.

So, right now I shoot for fairly balanced weeks. She won't eat cheese unless it's melted, so we'll do grilled cheese or "quesadillas." She eats yogurt and drinks milk. She eats all sorts of fruit, so that's no big deal. When I do give her juice, I buy the V8 kind that has a full serving of fruits and a full serving of veggies in each cup. We do a lot of chicken (I cook a bunch at once so I have it all week). She eats hot dogs (I buy turkey dogs and try to convince myself that they aren't AS bad ). I bake french fries. And all things get dipped in ketchup (Thanks to my mother for starting that messy habit).

I need to get better about not making separate meals for Vaylie. It's on my discussion list for our 2 year appt next month at the Ped's office.

But, Denise- I hear ya about being frustrated. I always envisioned that I would have a kid that wasn't picky, a kid who liked to try new and different things. But, alas, it doesn't seem to be that way so far. And then again, toddlers are notoriously picky anyway. One day they like something, the next day they act like it's poison. So, who knows.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Hang in there, Denise.

I've heard that it can take as many as 30 (!!) times trying something before it stops being "new" and a child (or an adult for that matter) can really know if they like it or not. Like others have said, we just keep trying to offer Owen new things. We always have a couple things on hand that are familiar favorites of his, but we start by giving him some of what we're eating. If he doesn't like that, then we introduce some of his favorites. And sometimes he even rejects that! One day he'll LOVE pesto pasta and stuff it in like he hasn't been fed in weeks, and the next day he acts like we've offered him poision.

Our Ped. said that this is totally normal. Two things are going on:
1. He's exerting control in one of the only places he can - food. He can control how much and what he eats, so he does. It's part of his growing independence.
2. A 1 yr old needs a lot less food than an infant, so the amount that he eats will drop off dramatically. He might eat a ton one meal, but next to nothing for the rest of the day, or one day he might eat a lot and the next day he won't eat anything - it's perfectly normal. Our Ped. said to look at what he's eating over a week, rather than day by day, and don't worry if one day all he'll eat are cherrios and cheese...it will balance out over several days.

So far Owen has been really good about trying new things, but he doesn't always want more of it. He'll usually give everything a try for two or three bites, but after that he'll throw what he doesn't want off his tray. I'd love for that habit to go away! Our floor looks like a disaster area after every meal and snack time!

 

[Jen_in_NH]

Good luck Denise! Christopher is good about what he eats, but is a bit particular about it. Chicken, peas, and carrots are all good, but in a chicken pot pie, no way. Apparently he does not like sauce of any kind

He's been sick now for 2 weeks. We brought him back to the doctor today, and he has a sinus infection We've been really babying him, and my parents have been here spoiling him, and now he's having quite the shock that everything goes back to normal today. He's screaming bloody murder in his crib right now that no one will rock with him for 1/2 hour. He normally goes to bed just fine on his own, but my Mom likes to rock him, so she did. And now he has no intention of sleeping by himself. HELP! I'm trying to sit here and pay no attention to his temper tantrum, but I really want to go pick him up...

Wish me luck

 

[Pollito916]

Looks like everyone had lots of good advice on toddlers and eating! One thing our old pediatrician mentioned that really made me feel better is that they will eat when they are hungry. If he's hungry enough, he will try whatever you put in front of him, and he will not starve.

Jenny - that sounds like a good change at your daycare!

Jen - That's too bad about Christopher being sick for so long, it must be tough on you that he won't go to sleep. It's funny that Christopher doesn't like sauce of any kind - Alex is the opposite, he likes every sauce and wants "ketchup" on everything. He calls all sauces "ketchup," so we have white ketchup (ranch), yellow ketchup (mustard), red ketchup (original), etc.

********************

Since DH has been working nights for almost a week now, I have been the one putting Alex to bed every night. He goes to bed fine every night, but the last 3 nights, he has gotten up within 10 minutes and starts screaming, "blankie, blankie" then when I go in there he lies down and wants me to cover him with his blankie again. And he will repeat this 3-5 times a night! If I ignore him for 5 minutes, he starts screaming hysterically to the point where he is coughing and choking. I was at my wit's end last night and didn't think I could deal with it anymore.

Tonight I put him to bed about 40 minutes ago, and so far not a peep! I hope this little streak is over! Other than that, I actually kind of like having DH gone at night, b/c I can get more things done, put Alex to bed at bedtime more consistently, and watch the shows I want to on tv. We also go outside and get more exercise b/c when DH worked early mornings he would be exhausted by the evening when I got home from work and not want to go out and do anything, but not want to be alone either. I'll probably start to miss him by the end of the week, but at least he will be home during the day on the weekends, and I will work from home a couple of days a week, so I think it will be close to the same amount of time as before. Until he finds a second job anyway.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

So with all this talk about food, I had to share a fun discovery we made tonight...

Neither DH or I were feeling up to making dinner tonight, and I was going a little stir-crazy being cooped up inside all day, so we went out to a little family-run restaruant near one of the universities. It's called "Wrap This" and has mostly mediterranean wraps, along with some basic burgers and fries.

DH and I got a few different things to share, and then cut up little bits and gave them to Owen. He dutifully tried the lamb gyro meat, the two different kinds of wrap bread, the chicken schwarma (sp?), the feta cheese, the tomatoes...and then got a taste of the olives. The child dropped everything else and began hunting around for more olives, frantically signing "more". He ate every olive we gave him - black, green, didn't matter - and still signed for more.

So DH went to the counter and asked if we could buy some more olives. The woman working there thought we were nuts to feed a baby olives, but we said he really loves them and wants more, so she talked with the owner and they decided to just give us a little cup of olives for free. Turns out our crazy son loves olives! How nuts is that?! The child threw french fries off his tray in favor of OLIVES!

I wonder how long this new "favorite" will last...

 

[Pollito916]

Alex loves olives too! It's so weird b/c I don't even like them, but the kid loves them. I think it's the saltiness or acidity, b/c he likes lemons too. Another food he loves that I am just "meh" about is beans. He loves any kind of beans and will just eat a plate full of them!

 

[beckmrk04]

Pollito- That's funny about the different ketchups. And Vaylie has been acting the SAME way about going to bed!!! I am going nuts. I wish I had never cut the darn paci's. Well- the other day she declared them "ucky" and tossed 3 of them into the trash. Well, stupid me: I thought this was some sort of breakthrough, but it must have just been temporary insanity because the night before last she SCREAMED and cried for an hour. Nothing would calm her down. She wasn't asking for her pacis, but it was the first night without them completely. So last night, I told DH- get the "emergency" paci, cut the tip off, and just give it to her. And you know what? She was pretty much fine (a little fussy). She doesn't even put it in her mouth- she just wants to hold it. I guess it's a security thing for her that apparently is about more than just sucking on the paci. Kids...

Bethany- Olives- who knew? Vaylie clamps her mouth shut at the sight of anything new, although she did eat fesh blueberries last night and she hasn't had those in quite some time. But she is constantly begging for "fwuit"- it's all she wants to eat.

I was reading that Food Fights book last night and I am making a vow to stop being a short order cook. It says in there (the book was written by two Pediatricians) that 1) it's ok to serve something and if your child refuses to eat it, you can rest assured that they won't starve from skipping a meal. Just have their same dinner ready later or have something else healthy available. 2) Kids will eat when they are hungry. 3) Kids quickly learn to refuse something new if they know that you'll just fix them what they really want (hot dogs, nuggets, fruit- these are Vaylie's most frequent requests).

So, I have to muster up my resolve.
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today is totally icy and crappy outside- all the schools in the area are closed. Hopefully, this will mean that work will be slow today.

 

[k_reile]

Good luck Denise! Christopher is good about what he eats, but is a bit particular about it. Chicken, peas, and carrots are all good, but in a chicken pot pie, no way. Apparently he does not like sauce of any kind

He's been sick now for 2 weeks. We brought him back to the doctor today, and he has a sinus infection We've been really babying him, and my parents have been here spoiling him, and now he's having quite the shock that everything goes back to normal today. He's screaming bloody murder in his crib right now that no one will rock with him for 1/2 hour. He normally goes to bed just fine on his own, but my Mom likes to rock him, so she did. And now he has no intention of sleeping by himself. HELP! I'm trying to sit here and pay no attention to his temper tantrum, but I really want to go pick him up...

Wish me luck

My mom did this with my newphew when she had him for the weekend. He loves chicken, carrots, potatoes, bread...so she made chicken pot pie...would not touch it...we figured he must not like the sauce with it.

Caleb has been sick too. I took him to the doctor this morning since he woke himself up coughing. Since he is only 3 mos old and I am a first time mom I was afraid it was RSV and did not want to take any chances. I kept on asking my MIL what I should do (since she takes care of him during the day and sees him the most) and she thought that the doctor would not give him anything because he is so young and not running a fever, but I should probably go just to ease my mind. Well he just has a cold...no ear infection and nothing in his chest. He actually did give me some medicine (Triametic) but it is only to help with his discomfort not to heal anything. He said to keep him elevated at night (in his carseat which he sleeps in anyways due to acid reflux) and to use the cool mist humidifier which both we were doing anyways. For being sick...he is in a pretty good mood, which is helpful on mommy.
Tommorow we go see the pediatric GI specialist and hopefully he will take him off the prevacid since I think the acid reflux is getting much better. He is now a much happier baby so I think he is definitely feeling better. And after this cold is gone...he is going back to sleeping in his craddle and eventually in his own room (though that I think about it...it will be very wierd not to have him in our room anymore)

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Becky, I hope Vaylie makes the transition to no-paci soon for you. I've managed to get Owen to only have a binky for sleeping and when we're out and he's really tired or upset, but he loves them enough that he will try to get into the diaper bags or reach through the slats of the crib to get them out. A couple times I've left the room for a few seconds and when I come back he's got a binky in his mouth. The funny thing is he always looks guilty about it! He'll hand it back over to me without protest, like he knows he's not supposed to have it.

Unfortunately, his bedtime trick is to throw all of his binkies out of the crib, then stand and scream until someone comes in and gives them back to him. Sometimes he wakes up in the night and can't find a binky, and then he whimpers and fusses until he finds one or we go in and give him one.

So I'm a little worried that in a year or so we're going to go through what you are experiencing with Vaylie now. I'd like him to be done with binkies by age 2, but I guess we'll see.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Caleb has been sick too. I took him to the doctor this morning since he woke himself up coughing. Since he is only 3 mos old and I am a first time mom I was afraid it was RSV and did not want to take any chances. I kept on asking my MIL what I should do (since she takes care of him during the day and sees him the most) and she thought that the doctor would not give him anything because he is so young and not running a fever, but I should probably go just to ease my mind. Well he just has a cold...no ear infection and nothing in his chest. He actually did give me some medicine (Triametic) but it is only to help with his discomfort not to heal anything. He said to keep him elevated at night (in his carseat which he sleeps in anyways due to acid reflux) and to use the cool mist humidifier which both we were doing anyways. For being sick...he is in a pretty good mood, which is helpful on mommy.
Tommorow we go see the pediatric GI specialist and hopefully he will take him off the prevacid since I think the acid reflux is getting much better. He is now a much happier baby so I think he is definitely feeling better. And after this cold is gone...he is going back to sleeping in his craddle and eventually in his own room (though that I think about it...it will be very wierd not to have him in our room anymore)

Sorry Caleb has been sick! Owen got his first cold at 5 weeks old, and I was really worried about him. Poor bug sounded so miserable coughing. One trick we found was to run a hot shower and close the bathroom doors and sit with Owen in the warm, steamy room. It really helped him breathe better when he was all congested and coughing.

I hope Caleb is well enough to go off the prevacid. Sounds like he's really improving!

 

[k_reile]

Sorry Caleb has been sick! Owen got his first cold at 5 weeks old, and I was really worried about him. Poor bug sounded so miserable coughing. One trick we found was to run a hot shower and close the bathroom doors and sit with Owen in the warm, steamy room. It really helped him breathe better when he was all congested and coughing.

I hope Caleb is well enough to go off the prevacid. Sounds like he's really improving!

thanks...I will try that. Yes Caleb is getting to be soo much better. There for awhile we seriously thought he was going to be an only child! He started having problems with acid reflux or an milk allergy (they never tested--I just went off dairy) at 2 weeks old and refused to even sleep laying down...so he has been sleeping at all times in his car seat ever since. But he sleeps good in the car seat so I can't complain and started sleeping through the night at 5 wks and consistently at 10 weeks. So at least momma is getting a full nights rest now.

 

[beckmrk04]

I'm back on my "I'm-going-to-plan-weekly-menus-and-STICK-WITH-IT" kick. We rely far too often on fast food/take-out. I know we'd eat healthier and save money if I would plan in advance. Every night I get home and we have to have the dreaded "What's for dinner?" conversation- it goes like this:

"What's for dinner?"

"I don't know. What do you want?"

"I don't know. Do we even have anything?"

"I don't know..."

(you get the picture). By then, I'm annoyed and tired and not really feeling like cooking a meal. Vicious cycle.

I need to get ORGANIZED ladies. I feel all cluttered. My house has too much clutter. And paper. And I need to institute some systems for 1) ending the dreaded "What's for dinner?" conundrum; 2) paying bills- I'm awful and put it off and then I forget about some of them, when really if I had a system I'd just pay the bill and move on but I am literally THAT disorganized; and 3) fitting in healthy acitivities/exercise- I need to move more and sit less, and I'd like to have fun doing it.

WHEW. That's a tall list, I know, but these are my goals for 2009.

I feel better having laid it all out. Now I just have to get to work figuring out how to go about all of this.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

I need to get ORGANIZED ladies. I feel all cluttered. My house has too much clutter. And paper. And I need to institute some systems for 1) ending the dreaded "What's for dinner?" conundrum; 2) paying bills- I'm awful and put it off and then I forget about some of them, when really if I had a system I'd just pay the bill and move on but I am literally THAT disorganized; and 3) fitting in healthy acitivities/exercise- I need to move more and sit less, and I'd like to have fun doing it.

WHEW. That's a tall list, I know, but these are my goals for 2009.

I feel better having laid it all out. Now I just have to get to work figuring out how to go about all of this.

Let me know if you figure out how to get organized...I've been trying for years and could use some tips! Seriously, I'm really good at coming up with the ideas to get organized, like the plans on how to do it, but I'm awful at actually getting it done. It's just crazy! Like I developed this great filing system, all color-coded and everything, but I never filed the papers.

Although we did get the paying-the-bills thing figured out. I open all the mail, and I put bills on DH's computer keyboard. He keeps his checkbook, a box of envelopes, stamps and address labels in a photo storage box next to his computer. When he sits down to play Lord of the Rings online and sees a bill, he pays the bill while he's loading the game. Then he gives me the envelope and I make sure it gets in the mail the next day. Works great for us! He hates going through the mail but doesn't mind writing the checks, and I can never find my checkbook when I need to pay a bill, so he's all organized for that.

Okay, binky boy just chucked his binkies out of the crib and is yelling for me to come and give them back to him. Sigh. Time to go rescue my baby from his self-induced misery.

 

[kellyf2626]

Politto - LOVE all of Alex's ketchups....that is way too cute! Brady is also obsessed with ketchup and will put it on everything!!

Becky - We are getting snow and ice all day tomorrow. Most likely the kids will have no school....looks like Brady and I will have what we call "pj day"...just relaxing at home playing toys all day. Oh, and DH and I have almost the same dinner conversation most nights. Neither of us really "cook", so we usually end-up making baked chicken, rice, and corn....like 4x a week. Very boring, but I guess healthy too.

K_Reile - Sorry Caleb has been sick! I'm actually surprised that your ped recommended a cold medicine. The cool-mist humidifier works wonders for Brady. We have a Vicks one where you can put those Vicks-pads right in the top which also seem to help. They sell the plug-in type as well which my girlfriend uses that work well too. Glad to hear his reflux is better...sounds like you had a rough entry into mommy-hood! Your next child should be a breeze (and by the same idea, mine should be hell-on-wheels! )

Jen - Poor Christopher. After Brady started feeling better after his ear infection, he was quite used to us running to him whenever he whimpered or cried. It was a rough few days trying to get back on the regular routine.

********************************************************

Tomorrow may be take-down-decorations day around here. I feel like I will feel much more organized...although the decorations really aren't the reason this place is messy. It's the 4 trillion toys littered throughout the house. And what does he like to play with the best? His belt. I posted a funny video of him "wearing" his belt on his blog if you want to see it.... www.nhbradyboy.blogspot.com

 

[Jen_in_NH]

Hi everyone

Christopher was just admitted to the pediatric ICU at Dartmouth with diabetes and DKA. He was really not feeling well today, and just drinking all the time. I finally checked his blood sugar at home, and it was 550. So we'll be here for a while getting it unde control, and then getting him started on insulin and such. Wish us lots of luck.

Jen

 

[kellyf2626]

Hi everyone

Christopher was just admitted to the pediatric ICU at Dartmouth with diabetes and DKA. He was really not feeling well today, and just drinking all the time. I finally checked his blood sugar at home, and it was 550. So we'll be here for a while getting it unde control, and then getting him started on insulin and such. Wish us lots of luck.

Jen

Oh Jen!!! I hope poor Christopher is ok!!! Has he always been diabetic? Or is this a new diagnosis?? Poor little kiddo....he has been through a lot in the past few weeks. Dartmouth is a great hospital...at least you know he is getting the best. Please keep us posted...I will be thinking and praying for you!

 

[k_reile]

Hi everyone

Christopher was just admitted to the pediatric ICU at Dartmouth with diabetes and DKA. He was really not feeling well today, and just drinking all the time. I finally checked his blood sugar at home, and it was 550. So we'll be here for a while getting it unde control, and then getting him started on insulin and such. Wish us lots of luck.

Jen

Hope you feel better Christopher.

 

[7beasley]

Oh God Jen...I am so sorry to hear about Christopher. Hugs and prayers coming your way. What is DKA? Poor little guy. I am sorry you and him have to go through this...

Hi to all...sorry for the quick post and run...I will check back soon for a longer post!!

-Nicole

 

[beckmrk04]

Hi everyone

Christopher was just admitted to the pediatric ICU at Dartmouth with diabetes and DKA. He was really not feeling well today, and just drinking all the time. I finally checked his blood sugar at home, and it was 550. So we'll be here for a while getting it unde control, and then getting him started on insulin and such. Wish us lots of luck.

Jen

I am thinking of you and Christopher!

Did you know about the diabetes? Poor kid! Poor mom!