I´m working on various posts for the past few weeks...a visit to Poppy´s and the beach. Adding pictures takes time...so for now, here´s a weight update.
The soil has been fertile in the garden of Natalie and Abby. They have made great strides in the past few months. They are most definately drinking more milk-formula. They still usually get 3-4 bottles a day and are taking 7-9 ounces each time. I honestly never thought I'd see the day. They also seem to be eating real food better, at least some of the time. Typically, they eat well in front of others, at the beach, for instance, thus making me look like a big, fat liar when I complain they don't eat. They also eat well in the car. They will usually consume a whole chicken nugget happy meal (6 nuggets and apples) between them. I do sometimes find pieces of chicken in their seats, but I think they eat most of it - at least 2 whole nuggets each. Now, should I put the same meal in front of them at the table...they'd eat half that. So, the solution I've come up with is this: we should move to the beach with all our family and live in our car. Really, with the third seat down, I could be quite comfortable. It might be a little cramped for Ben though.
Their "favorite" foods vary. Favorite is relative to what day it is. A favorite today might be rejected tomorrow. Sausage does remain a consistent winner. Bread, in just about any form, is also highly desired. They love apples and grapes and will chow down on these. Corn is also pretty reliable. They love to eat corn on the cob, especially Natalie. She's quite thorough. Chicken nuggets, of course, work pretty well. McDonalds and newly discovered, Burger King's "chicken fries" go over well. They will usually eat nuggets at home as well, just not as many. Soup is very popular. Actually, they will take a bite of almost anything if you call it "swoup". Ya-ya's chicken soup with rice aka "baby crack" reigns in first place with other forms of chicken/rice close behind. I have also had success with broccoli soup, clam chowder, broccoli and cheddar (Natalie actually likes broccoli pretty well), and other creamy soups. Of course, that presents a little dilemma. Remember, we think they have a milk intolerance. And, obviously, all of the above contain milk in some form. But, they'll eat it. And other than the continued bumps on their arms (which don't seem to itch or bother them in any way), they don't seem to have any other symptoms or distress. So, we've been chancing it.
On the subject of milk...I'm beginning to wonder about that. They were on Pediasure when they were having such a hard time. I've since learned that Pediasure can wreck havoc on kids with reflux and can be tough in general. So, now, I'm wondering if it was the Pediasure all along and not the milk. They seem to tolerate other forms of milk just fine.
In any case, we should learn more in a few weeks. Natalie and Abby have an appointment with a pediatric allergist in two weeks. I'm hopeful we will learn something to help the bumps on their arms. I'm also hopeful we will NOT discover it's something like a wheat or gultin which is in all kinds of things.
Now, on to the good news.... I weighed the girls today with happy results.
Natalie weighed in at 23# 11.5oz. A month ago, on Oct 7th, she weighed 22# 6.5oz. So, this is a great gain of over a pound in a month, One pound, 5 ounces, to be exact. Abby has also gained weight beautifully. Today, she reached a new milestone: 24 pounds! and 2 ounces... On October 7th, she weighed 22# 13.5oz for a gain of one pound, 4.5 ozs.
We are thrilled with their continued gain, but also recognize that most of their calories are still coming from formula. They are drinking about 30 ounces or more of milk a day which is 900 calories. If we took that away, they would have half of that in just food. Remember, they are supposed to get about 1200 calories a day. By the way, I think this is an incredible amount. I mean, adults survive on 1200 calories a day. What I want to know is how in the world "normal" toddlers consume this many calories without eating junk all day long. If I fed them the way I want: fruits, veggies, baked or grilled chicken, fish (NOT chicken nuggets, juice, fried chicken SKIN, cookies, ice cream, etc.), I don't know how any toddler eats that much. I would love to hear from parents of regular eaters how many calories their kids eat....
I said at 24 pounds, we would start losing the bottles. It's actually not just the bottles; it's the amount of formula they consume as well. I would like to see only 16-20 ounces of formula from a straw cup. I'm going to wait a few more days and let Natalie hit the 24 pound mark, and then start cutting back on bottles and offering milk in their straw cup. Being at my mema's so much will actually make this easier. They are out of routine a bit, and I don't do 4 bottles there. I just can't do it all by myself. So hopefully, being out of routine will help them not balk against a change in routine.
Okay - that's enough about food and weight...I'll work on those picture posts now:-)
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