Feeding Update

We've been at this feeding thing for a month. Mary Ellen has tried rice cereal, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, squash, banana, and avocado. She's not actually a fan of any of them, but I think she dislikes avocado the least. Her sleep has never fully recovered, (yes, I thought it had, but turns out that was a mean trick) but we're getting there. I've upped the feedings to twice a day, which I think is making a difference in her attitude and in her sleep.

Our hope (and what we'd been telling Mary Ellen) was that Grandma was going to get her to eat. We just knew it. Grandma tried. She rocked. She coaxed. She put Mary Ellen in her arms and snuggled her in close and finally managed to get her to swallow some of her food. She also helped me figure out how to mix some foods to make the consistency more palatable. But none of these things delivered the fix we'd been hoping for. It's okay, Grandma. You did your best!

Mom did get to witness Mary Ellen's best example of eating, where she grabbed my hand (which was holding the spoon) and shoved it into her mouth. Mom and I just looked at each other. Really kid? You're okay if you do it yourself, huh? I thought maybe that was the trick, that I just needed to let her help, but no. It was a one-shot deal.

I still find myself singing, dancing, making faces, and doing anything short of standing on my head to trick this kid into opening her mouth so that I can get some food in there. Once the food's in her mouth, she does okay and even occasionally swallows some of it. But other than that one instance, she's yet to voluntarily open her mouth to accept food. We're having fun with it at least, since she loves all of the silly attention that she's getting. Once she starts to put up a fuss, I pack up the bib and wipe her down. I refuse to make this stressful for either of us, and I am seeing some progress. I'm no longer worried and have just come to realize that at this point, food isn't really her thing.

But it's okay, Baby. Someday, when we finally let Grandpa give you ice cream, you'll see how fun this eating thing can be.