What has Teryn been up to these days? Let me tell you.....
He is walking!!! Well, almost. He walks strong and proud if he's walking to someone. He has yet to just walk everywhere he wants to go. Crawling is still more stable so he takes the easy way out.
He is interacting more with his toys- -especially his little pal "Scout"! He dances with him, talks to him, hugs him, and snuggles with him. It's adorable.
He loves books! He would actually prefer to look at them by himself too. His patience runs short with those of us slow-page-turning folk.
He gives kisses! Nothing better than an open-mouthed, slobbery kiss!
He has learned how to knock! He is on my hip everywhere I go in the apartment complex, so he's caught on to the idea of knocking to get the attention of someone on the other side of the door. Yesterday Tyson played with him while I took a nap and I heard him come to the hall door and "knock knock knock"....."knock knock knock". So cute!
He loves to be outside, which isn't new, but he's figured out that the door knob opens the door to go outside. He climbs up to the door and rattles the knob, begging to go outside. I'll have to start locking it before long!
He loves grapes!! If he knows they're available, he won't eat anything else.
Which brings me to my next point. And I need your help with this. He does not eat. Well, he eats, but meagerly. You saw from his 12 month stats that he has only gained 12 pounds in 12 months. I can accept the fact that he is a featherweight....but I can't accept the fact I know he would be otherwise if he would just eat. We have family meals and we try to feed him what's on our plate as well as giving his own finger foods, but he will take a few bites here and there, then swipe everything to the floor and throw a fit when we try to feed him more. He just wants to play and play and play.....but then nighttime hits and he wakes hungry in the night!!! That's the hardest part about it. He doesn't get enough sleep because he is uncomfortably hungry! Then, we are trying to wean him from his bottle- -but how else do we feed him at 1:00 in the morning? Tyson mentioned we should take him to the kitchen and sit him in his high chair for a real meal so he understands where eating takes place. I agree, but the realistic mother in me knows Teryn would not be happy about that and it would just make for an out-of-control tantrum. I don't think any mother wants to set herself up for that in the middle of the night. So alas, I give him a bottle (sometimes two) to fill him up until morning, but then it's the same cycle over, and over, and over again. Meager eating, fit throwing, insufficient napping, interrupted sleeping. All things combined = one miserable baby. And all you mothers know what that means. One miserable mommy.
I just want my happy baby back, and I know he would be so much more comfortable and happy if he would sleep, and I know he would sleep better if he would just eat.
Can anyone share any light on this subject? Personal experiences, "If I were yous...", or any other hope-giving words? I would greatly appreciate it.
A few videos of Teryn's latest. Enjoy!
First steps! (Not very first, but soon thereafter)
Fun in the tub!
Playing with the hall door. A daily occurence.
Here are a few of my thoughts...
ReplyDelete1. Do you think he doesn't like the taste of some of the food? He obviously likes grapes, so he is aware of what tastes good to him and what doesn't. Maybe he's a picky eater (for now) and although it may seem boring to eat the same thing over and over, he might be content eating the same thing. ???
2. How often are you feeding him? I asked my pediatrician a few questions about Lynli's eating habits as we are transitioning to solids and she told me to feed her more meals a day because she wouldn't eat as much in one sitting. So, although it seems Teryn isn't eating very much, maybe he just needs more meals in smaller portions to get his calories during the day as opposed to nighttime.
Hope this helps some, or at least initiates another direction for thought process so you can figure out how to help your little man- who is very handsome by the way! :)
I feel like I am reading my own journal!!! That is/was my Vevie. Here is what I did.
ReplyDelete1. Don't feed him at night. Make him cry it out. You will be grateful for it. He doesn't need to eat at night and maybe it will help him eat more during the day. He is getting food at night, filling his belly - why eat during the day??
2. I don't know if you already do this but this next one REALLY helped us. I feed Veva breakfast before she gets a drink of milk. She would fill up on milk in the morning then not eat breakfast. At a year old I started putting a little more emphasis on meals and eating solids and less emphasis on the drinking a bottle every so many hours.
3. get rid of the bottle. Bottles tend to encourage guzzling lots of liquid all at once filling the belly. Their stomach is tiny. They still need sufficient liquid throughout the day but give it at meal times and in between in a regular cup or a little sippy.
4. Snack time. Veva would skips meals knowing that snacks were in the cupboard and she could beg for one very shortly. Not any more. We have set times of day that we eat meals and have snacks. Other than that, kitchen is closed. If she chooses not to eat dinner then unfortunately she chooses to go to bed hungry. If she wakes up hungry in the night it will not be a fun night for us, but a good learning experience for her.
Those are my suggestions
I wish so badly that I had some good advice for you but I don't. Because you see Hadley was/is the exact same way. She only weighed 17 lbs at a year and refused to eat anything all she wanted was her bottle, I guess what I am trying to tell you is not to fret about it because I did and lost sleep at night worrying about her not eating. Eventually things will get better it did for me and I can't even remember how, they all go through different phases and "this too shall pass" enjoy him while he's your baby because they grow up too fast!
ReplyDeleteGrrr blogger deleted my first comment!
ReplyDeleteI hope this doesnt get too long winded but here are my thoughts..
He is BUSY! He is walking, exploring, learning at a rapid rate- its hard to get them to sit and eat! I wish I could tell you the large number of bloggers I read who are saying the exact same things about their 1 year olds Pretty much EVERY child goes through this. Its hard because we watch them shoot up so quickly the first few weeks and months then they slow way down. Ryan also gained 12 lbs in 12 months and most of that was in the first 6 months.
Just like adults kids come in all different shapes and sizes. He will average out at some point but be SO GRATEFUL that he already has the natural gift of portion control. When his body gives him "full tummy" cues he listens to them instead of stuffing himself full. That may be 4 bites one day and a whole sandwich the next. Dont force him to eat. At this age food isnt emotional or a power struggle. If hes hungry, he will eat til hes not anymore simple as that.
With all that said some things that helped Ryan eat when he was in the mood was- 3 meals a day in his high chair! no walking around munchin all day. Example for dinner- I would give him veggies first, then chicken, followed by rice or whatever. The "least" desirable food first and so on. The nights I got lazy and threw it all on the tray he got over whelmed and wouldnt eat much at all.
ditch the bottle cold turkey. he might hate it for a few days but he will get over it and love sippy cups soon enough!
give him a bedtime snack like warm apple sauce that seems to be our fav. its calming and fills up his tummy so I dont worry about him in the middle of the night.
But when it comes down to it, dont force food. He isnt starving, hes growing and developing at a normal rate hes just tiny and that is GREAT. imagine the life struggles he would have if he was already off the charts. He is healthy, love every min of it!