I like to eat, eat, eat....

....apples and bananas. I think it's hilarious that Caleb's favorite song is about eating, especially since he won't eat either apples or bananas. But, it's really cute to hear him sing it!

He had his feeding clinic appt today. He now weighs 25 pounds, 12 oz and is 34.4 inches tall!! He gained 1 pound and 1/2 an inch in 3 months. I, of course, think this is amazing, they on the other hand didn't. I always leave that clinic feeling down. They still think it's possible for us to get more food into him during the day. At our last appt, he was getting 45% of his calories from his night time bottles. Now it's only 17% (mostly due to the fact that he's drinking whole milk and not his high calorie formula, but also because he's eating more at meal time). I think that's a huge improvement, they don't. I realize he shouldn't be getting up so much at night (in fact I have been working on a post about it), however their theory of "if he eats more during the day he won't get up at night" is bogus. He DOES eat during the day, really well actually.

He has a new dietitian, who kept suggesting things that we are already doing/have already tried in the past. This is something that really irritates me: READ HIS CHART PLEASE!! We've been going there for 2 years!! His GI doc also told me she was going to start him on Periactin, which is a appetite stimulant we tried last year. READ THE CHART, he was already on that and it made his liver enzymes sky rocket (she should have known that!) Then she suggested that maybe we should start him on Progesterone injections to try and increase his appetite. She nonchalantly adds, "Although it hasn't been studied in kids this small." Umm, no thanks! So then she told me we need to make another appt with the behavioral psychologist to help get him to drink more during his meals. Caleb has never been able to handle large amounts of food at one time, or he vomits. For instance, even when he started to eat purees really well, he could never finish a 4 oz tub of food, or 4 oz of whatever I blended up. (Isaac on the other hand finishes off the entire tub, plus oatmeal every meal!) I tried to explain that after he eats almost an entire package or Easy Mac or an entire hot dog and strawberries, or a scrambled egg and cheese, he's NOT going to be able to drink 4 oz of milk too. I don't think it's because of his behavior/appetite, I just don't think his tummy can handle that much at once.

They were also concerned that I still have to feed him and that he has to watch a movie in order to get enough food into him. That has always been part of our "feeding plan," so I am not sure why it's all of a sudden a big deal. I realize that most kids feed themselves, but they probably never had an issue with food before. He can feed himself, but he will only eat a couple bites and say he's "all done." It's been part of his routine that I feed him first and he feeds himself towards the end. And I have no problem with him watching TV while eating if it means he'll eat! Like I said before, meal times are going a million times better than in the past, but he still has a long way to go.

Geez, I didn't realize how angry I was about all of this. I guess I went in knowing how well he's been eating, and then saw his weight gain and expected them to be singing praises. (he had only gained 4 oz the previous appt!) Maybe that's why I was so let down. Anyway, I still think he's doing great and am very happy that we don't have to go back for 4-6 months.

The good news about his appt was that his liver "feels" like it's back to it's normal size. He had his labs drawn, so it will be interesting to see what his liver enzymes are this time. One appt down, 3 more to go...

Proof that he does eat:

The whole plate was full of noodles when he started!