3.25.2013

In Case I Ever Led You to Believe I Was Perfect...Part Two.


This Little Mister is giving us a run for our money at nights.
I have no one to blame...but me.
No birth mother, no bad habits that he came with.

Nope, just me and the bad habits I started.

With Little Miss, I won't be the one to blame for her rotted teeth if she has them
because of milk given at bedtime.
She came that way and who were we to change up her routine
after being removed from her home at the young age of one.
That was traumatic enough.
But after about 3 months we did break that bad habit.

But Little Mister, I will be completely to blame for any rotted teeth.
You see...about 6 months ago the middle of the night waking was killing me.
And getting him up to hold him to feed him was too stimulating.
We'd be awake for over an hour.

In came the hurry up, make bottle and hand off to mister in his crib
before he would wake up in full wailing cry.

Now...I'm paying the price.
And if he has rotted teeth, I'm the only one to blame.
Darn foster mom!

But we are making progress.
Little Mister switched to milk over the weekend.
No more formula.
It was on his own terms.
He made the decision.
Would throw any bottle at me that had formula.
But give him milk only and he would suck it down.
With the switch came a water bottle stuck in his crib
 for any in the middle of the night waking.

And it is working.
We are also pumping him full of yogurt right before bed.
As much as he will eat to help fill up his tummy.
The past two nights...he has slept until 5:00 am.
I've heard him wake around 3:00 and suck on the water.
But no crying. No real waking.
In the morning, I notice it was really just a suck.
He isn't starving anymore in the middle of the night.

And oh...he isn't a good eater.
He is very protective of his throat.
He has sensory issues related to his diagnosis.
Mostly affecting his upper body.
He eats very little and is very picky.
Chews and spits out so much food.
So we knew he was starving in the middle of the night.
Which was why I was so bad with all the bottles in the night.
Can you blame me?
I didn't want him starving and crying and me ignoring him.

We have been working with a feeding therapist.
Did you know they existed?
I didn't. 
She comes to our house each week and helps with Little Mister's
feeding in the morning.

We brush his cheeks, nose, chin and then lips with a toothbrush
before meals to help stimulate the senses.

She set goals for our family.
And her first goal...to get him to sleep through the night.
I loved her instantly!

We are almost there.
She will be so proud of him. Of me.
Because you see, it was just last week I admitted to her
that I wasn't holding him for his middle of the night feedings.
I was handing him a bottle. In bed. Oh the horror.

I might have made it seem that I was getting up and holding him.
Just to save face. The first few visits.

But she handled it well, and we changed up the plan,
now that she new the truth!
I'm nowhere near perfect.



5 comments:

  1. The ONLY way to get my eldest to sleep was to hand him a bottle in the middle of the night, and then the sippy cup. He was 9 months old before any of that started and I was so happy to get a full nights sleep I did not care a bit about books and teeth, just give me sleep. Anyway that boy has lovely teeth, no rotting at all and he never had any ear infections from it either. And we all slept so much better. The end.

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    Replies
    1. This made me feel so so good. Thank you!! no ear infections here either. keeping fingers crossed on the teeth. ;)

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  2. As always, honest real and AWESOME. You are Mom and a great one - all your kiddos are lucky to have you!

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  3. Oh I so totally hear you. Ella is Little Mister to a T. Except...she is TWO. And my FIFTH KID! You'd think I would know better? We so suck at this part of parenting. The sleeping/eating thing. The good news is that all of our older kids now sleep and eat so apparently the damage isn't permanent. ;) Anyway, she too, is a terrible eater and then we know she is hungry in the night...so there have been bottles but I have finally decided to "woman" up and started substituting almond milk in her bottle. She drinks a couple of sips but doesn't like it nearly as much as cows milk and lo and behold...there has been a LOT more eating going on! Like 80% more eating. I am hopeful...cautiously.... I have been considering looking into feeding therapy very seriously if the phasing out of the milk bottles doesn't solve the issue. To me this is the worst part of baby/toddlerdom. I can handle the tantrums but the eating/sleeping issues are a killer. Hang in there! You are a compassionate mom, there are a lot worse things.

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