Eat, Baby, Eat

It's been a huge challenge, how do we feed Baby GL.  From the beginning we've battled how to get the proper nutrition for Baby GL.  He wasn't good at taking a bottle at the beginning so we had to skip even working much on it for quite some time.  Now, when we thought we were through all our battles we are coming back to needing to skip it again. Baby GL just doesn't want to take enough to thrive without a g-tube feeding.  We've had even more issues with his reflux so when we do get a good feeding it just comes right back up.  The challenges are never ending, so it seems.

The newest recommendation by the pediatrician is to add some rice cereal to the formula to thicken it up.  Well, that just added more challenges.  It was so thick it was difficult to get through the bottle. The end result was a screaming, hungry child. I finally gave up and brought out the feeding pump and fed him the rest of the bottle though the tube.

We need to get though these challenges in order for Baby GL to grow. His weight today was 10lbs 12oz, which is only a 4oz gain in a week. We hope for an ounce a day and with the vomiting and not eating we are hitting a brick wall in progression.

Aside from all the feeding challenges, Baby GL is doing great.  There's been a concern about his reoccurring cough.  We had a chest x-ray done just to rule out pneumonia and we did.  His lungs look pretty good, actually.  We have been told to just keep doing what we're doing. I have a feeling the reflux is playing a role in the cough.

Thanksgiving went very well.  No turkey for Baby GL, not even his sweet potato.  With the battling we've had with feedings I've been too distracted to remember trying solid foods again.  I don't think he's missed it too much.  As long as he has something to chew on he's pretty satisfied.  We're ready for that first tooth anytime now.

Our day to day now is to just get him fed and keep him entertained. He still loves his bouncer and I got him a large FAO Schwartz plush lion that he just adores.  He loves to look at it and play with it's face.  It seems to keep his attention well.  I think we're getting more laughs from Baby GL now, too.  He's full of smiles but it's that belly jiggling laugh I'm waiting for.