Eating Camp Day 16

Hello from Eating Camp! Things are moving right along. We have a few new things:

We dropped another bottle. We are now down to 2 a day. One a nap time one at bed time. They dropped it because he didn't need all those calories, but he does need the fluids, so I'm having to make sure and give him water/juice a few times a day to make up for the 8 oz. we lost with that bottle. We're supposed to do about 10 oz. a day outside of meals. This is fine, the trick is they don't want it to be too demanding for him to have to take that. They want to keep the demand and the "hard stuff" for his meal times. So, they don't want to struggle with bottles all day trying to get the fluids. Today I gave him just 2 oz. 5 times a day and that seemed to be ok. He will usually take that much without much difficulty so I don't feel like we're asking him to do too much. They just don't want him to be "working" in and out of meals and if I can keep up with it like I need to and remember to do it, the 2 oz. at a time should work fine.

He has gained 2 lbs. since we've been here!!

He is eating great, very little refusals, and his volume is good. The drinking is coming along. He is doing a good job opening his mouth and accepting it, he just has to get used to something coming out. He kind of bites at it and almost looks like a little bottle calf. Its kinda funny. He's learning and today's intake sheet showed that he took more like 20-30 mls each meal. Before today, he'd have at least 1 or 2 meals where he only took 10-15. We're getting there. That will just be a slow boat. BUT the biggest thing is he's not refusing it, so I'm thrilled about that. As these meal drinking numbers go up, we'll have to do less and less outside of meals.

I am now sitting in the room while they feed him. Probably Monday I will start feeding him while the watch and help me and that is the beginning of the end!

Speaking of the end, as of right now, our plan is to leave here and head home next Thursday!!! So that means we will be here about 4 weeks instead of 6!!! YIPPEEEEE!!! I guess there is a chance it could be sooner. I have already been trained on most of the protocol, so if I don't need 3 days worth of help from them then maybe we can cut another day off or something. We'll see. Another week doesn't sound bad.....unless its night time. Last night at 2 am with a restless non sleeping uncomfortable floppy squirmy 2 year old, a growing belly, a tiny bed, and way too bright lights out our window another week seemed like a LOOOOOOOOOONG time!!

Kory is actually coming Thursday after work to be here Friday so that he can watch and learn how this routine works. I don't want to be the only one that knows how to feed him and I don't really want to be the one to teach Kory. So he'll get to be here and watch the pros do it and have an extra long weekend here with us!!

My mom headed home today to get ready to go to my cousin's wedding in Florida. We were sad to see her leave! She will come back next Tuesday unless we go home sooner than Thursday. I have lots of reasons to be sad that she is gone and so does Kanyon, but I think Kanyon's biggest reason is because she will miss this:


klp loves to be outside and so they just walk 'round and 'round the outside of the hospital. I could do that with him, but I try to only go a lap or 2 at a time so as not to "over do it" so he's glad to have mom go much longer. She counts the laps and brought her pedometer back with her this week so she could count the miles she walks. She's getting exercise, he's happy outside. Its just perfect!

I usually walk the first lap with them, then head inside. They stop by the window every now and then to wave to me. Kanyon will be sad tomorrow when we can't do this. It sure does help the time pass when he gets restless inside.

Yesterday when I put him down for his nap, he was already asleep in my lap. This is how he stuck when I put him in his bed!!! So cute! He didn't stay like that long, but I did have time to snap a pic!

This was a long one...sorry! I am heading to bed in hopes of only waking up to roll my belly over!! I will be on my own here tomorrow so we're praying for a day of Kanyon's contentment playing and not forcing mommy to work too hard!! I think we can do it!