Andrew is about the pickiest, most finicky eater ever. By the time he was 2, he had us trained to cheer and congratulate him for eating even a cookie or some ice cream. A little progress has been made since then, mainly due to friends and peer pressure.
We got a book from the library about a kid who refused to eat his vegetables - even try them. It's called, "Just Try It". We had read it a few times and discussed how trying new things is good and you often find new foods that you like, when one night for dinner I made something that Andrew refused to try (no surprise). So, I asked him what he was willing to eat. He said, "you tell me". This is when I get to start naming things off in hopes of him saying yes to something. The difficulty is that if you name too many things that he doesn't want to eat, he gets upset and then the whole idea of eating is out the window.
Anyway, I mentioned a waffle (frozen) and he said yes. I asked if he wanted jam and he said grape, then he said he wanted ketchup. "What? You want ketchup instead of grape jam?" I asked.
"No," he said. "I want grape jam and ketchup on the side."
"Ooh." I said, trying to sound enthusiastic and hoping I, at least, didn't sound too disgusted.
So, I served it to him. I cut the waffle and poured some ketchup on the side of the plate, expecting that I was just wasting a bunch of ketchup.
Nope, Andrew dipped every bite of his grape jam waffle into the ketchup and ate the entire thing. To top it off, he wanted another one the next day, but this time with strawberry jam. I asked him if it tasted good and he said, "Just try it, mommy. It's good, you'll like it." Thankfully, I used the allergy-diet for Lizzie as my excuse to get out of trying it. But, I did get to eat my own words - they sure were tasty!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
The newborn 5 stage grief cycle
The 5 stage grief cycle describes the emotions that people feel when a loved one has died. Well, I am here to say that it applies to the beginning of life as well as the end.
1. Denial
When a baby is born, he sleeps most of the time and is just a joy to hold. The parents wonder, "why do people say this is hard? Others must not have prepared like we did." They are in sweet denial of the reality to come.
2. Anger
At some point, usually 2wks for me, the little bundle of joy begins to realize he is no longer in the womb and doesn't want to sleep anymore. This precious newborn begins to cry for no obvious reason and all the parents' preparations go out the window. They begin to feel angry at the parenting books with their fool-proof solutions. They begin feeling angry at those around them for breathing too loudly and waking the baby. They finally settle on being angry at the unseen alien who came and replaced their perfect darling with a crying, screaming child.
3. Bargaining
Eventually, the parents become putty in this innocent child's hands. They forget all their pre-determined rules like "getting on a schedule", "no children in our bed", or "my child won't use a pacifier". Instead, the parents break down and start begging and promising anything if the child would just calm down long enough for mom to get a shower.
4. Depression
By now, the baby is around 2 1/2mo old. The parents are too exhausted to be angry and their creativity for bargaining has been completely tapped out. They fall into a funk and realize that they will never be perfect parents and begin to question their own sanity and why they ever thought that having a child was preferable over having a dog. They feel even more depressed as they realize that their own parents aren't so incomprehensible anymore.
5. Acceptance
After our poor parents have been depressed, they are humbled enough to accept reality. No, they will never get enough sleep again. They begin to understand why their own parents did certain bizarre things and they accept that the real ruler of the house is this tiny infant that they so eagerly anticipated.
Our pure and innocent child's sovereignty has now been established and his parents' unconditional submission is assured. His 3 months of hard work has paid off for himself and for the good of all future siblings. He can now relax and get on a schedule, knowing full well that his parents are in the palm of his hand.
1. Denial
When a baby is born, he sleeps most of the time and is just a joy to hold. The parents wonder, "why do people say this is hard? Others must not have prepared like we did." They are in sweet denial of the reality to come.
2. Anger
At some point, usually 2wks for me, the little bundle of joy begins to realize he is no longer in the womb and doesn't want to sleep anymore. This precious newborn begins to cry for no obvious reason and all the parents' preparations go out the window. They begin to feel angry at the parenting books with their fool-proof solutions. They begin feeling angry at those around them for breathing too loudly and waking the baby. They finally settle on being angry at the unseen alien who came and replaced their perfect darling with a crying, screaming child.
3. Bargaining
Eventually, the parents become putty in this innocent child's hands. They forget all their pre-determined rules like "getting on a schedule", "no children in our bed", or "my child won't use a pacifier". Instead, the parents break down and start begging and promising anything if the child would just calm down long enough for mom to get a shower.
4. Depression
By now, the baby is around 2 1/2mo old. The parents are too exhausted to be angry and their creativity for bargaining has been completely tapped out. They fall into a funk and realize that they will never be perfect parents and begin to question their own sanity and why they ever thought that having a child was preferable over having a dog. They feel even more depressed as they realize that their own parents aren't so incomprehensible anymore.
5. Acceptance
After our poor parents have been depressed, they are humbled enough to accept reality. No, they will never get enough sleep again. They begin to understand why their own parents did certain bizarre things and they accept that the real ruler of the house is this tiny infant that they so eagerly anticipated.
Our pure and innocent child's sovereignty has now been established and his parents' unconditional submission is assured. His 3 months of hard work has paid off for himself and for the good of all future siblings. He can now relax and get on a schedule, knowing full well that his parents are in the palm of his hand.
Well, that one back-fired!
Lately, I have allowed Andrew to watch certain educational TV shows. They center around learning to read or learning good values. However, there is one thing he has learned that I am not pleased with.
One of the commercials that comes on often stars a certain "SmokerMan" and the theme song goes, "SmokerMan is the one who caaaaaannnnnnn't". The commercial shows smokerman in some super-hero scenario where he can't quite make the save because he wasn't able to breathe. It seems like a good concept to show kids that you lose your abilities if you smoke. Unfortunately, all Andrew is getting from the commercial is that SmokerMan is a cool super-hero.
It seems rather ironic that I am having to teach my 4yr old that smoking is bad all because he saw an anti-smoking commercial.
One of the commercials that comes on often stars a certain "SmokerMan" and the theme song goes, "SmokerMan is the one who caaaaaannnnnnn't". The commercial shows smokerman in some super-hero scenario where he can't quite make the save because he wasn't able to breathe. It seems like a good concept to show kids that you lose your abilities if you smoke. Unfortunately, all Andrew is getting from the commercial is that SmokerMan is a cool super-hero.
It seems rather ironic that I am having to teach my 4yr old that smoking is bad all because he saw an anti-smoking commercial.
Ode to Lizzie
When I discovered that I was pregnant with Lizzie, I was, of course, overjoyed but apprehensive. Would she be just as difficult, high-strung, and exhausting as Andrew and Rachael? Would she have food allergies like them? Would this be our last child? That question would be determined by the answers to the first questions.
Well, apparently Heavenly Father wants us to have more children because the only "yes" answer is in relation to the food allergies. Lizzie's allergies are just as severe as Andrew's were, but this time we were prepared and caught them at 2 1/2 wks. In all other ways, she is quite different from our first 2; she sleeps alot, is growing very quickly, and is a happy, calm baby.
When she is awake, she is very alert and loves to look around and be outside. Today she started cooing. It was so cute - she cooed while looking at me and was surprised to realize that she had made that sound. Her expression was so cute. She tried it again then smiled at her new-found ability. I smiled along with her.
Andrew and Rachael have also learned that they can make her laugh and they love to do silly things in an effort to get her response. They love her (yes, Rachael has finally accepted her) and it is heart-warming to see them interact.
All in all, I am so grateful for our latest bundle of joy and that my begging prayers for a calm baby were answered. Now, if I could just find some safe food to eat.... :)
Well, apparently Heavenly Father wants us to have more children because the only "yes" answer is in relation to the food allergies. Lizzie's allergies are just as severe as Andrew's were, but this time we were prepared and caught them at 2 1/2 wks. In all other ways, she is quite different from our first 2; she sleeps alot, is growing very quickly, and is a happy, calm baby.
When she is awake, she is very alert and loves to look around and be outside. Today she started cooing. It was so cute - she cooed while looking at me and was surprised to realize that she had made that sound. Her expression was so cute. She tried it again then smiled at her new-found ability. I smiled along with her.
Andrew and Rachael have also learned that they can make her laugh and they love to do silly things in an effort to get her response. They love her (yes, Rachael has finally accepted her) and it is heart-warming to see them interact.
All in all, I am so grateful for our latest bundle of joy and that my begging prayers for a calm baby were answered. Now, if I could just find some safe food to eat.... :)
Monday, May 11, 2009
My Mother's Day
I have been plagued by migraines since I was 6yrs old. At their worst, I was getting about 2/wk with a constant chronic headache anytime I was awake. We finally figured out what was wrong and since I've been on medication, I get them rarely. However, certain things will still set them off.
Mother's day for me started out very calm and relaxing - just as it should be. Mike helped get the kids dressed for church as I lolly-gagged all morning. Church was enjoyable, until it came to nurse Lizzie. Our church building is kinda old and the mother's room is rather small with a very high ceiling. There is a fluorescent light at the top and a ceiling fan under the light. They are controlled by the same switch. This wreaked havoc with me as the fan turning causes a slight strobe-light-like effect. Strobe lights give me nausea and migraines. I tried to just keep my eyes shut while I was nursing, but the strobe-throbbing was too intense and by the time I left the mother's room I was quite sick and desperate to get home. I made it through the last hour of church (Mike and I are Primary teachers together).
This is where the true gift of Mother's day came for me. I slept for 4hrs, Mike took care of everything. I woke up, still feeling sick and with a migraine. Mike made a fabulous steak dinner for me (I was hoping some iron/protein would help) and did all the clean-up. I crashed back in bed, still completely debilitated. By now my vision was mostly gone as well as my speech and I was just trying not to throw-up.
The kids were quiet, knowing that "mommy has a headache" and Mike got them to bed and the house picked-up (no small feat). I finally had to take some drugs around midnight. The whole time, Mike was nothing but loving and concerned.
It is quite humbling to be debilitated by such a small thing as a fan set under a light. What a blessing to have a husband who can take care of everything when my body fails me!
It wasn't exactly a typical "perfect" mother's day, but it reminded me how truly blessed I am.
Mother's day for me started out very calm and relaxing - just as it should be. Mike helped get the kids dressed for church as I lolly-gagged all morning. Church was enjoyable, until it came to nurse Lizzie. Our church building is kinda old and the mother's room is rather small with a very high ceiling. There is a fluorescent light at the top and a ceiling fan under the light. They are controlled by the same switch. This wreaked havoc with me as the fan turning causes a slight strobe-light-like effect. Strobe lights give me nausea and migraines. I tried to just keep my eyes shut while I was nursing, but the strobe-throbbing was too intense and by the time I left the mother's room I was quite sick and desperate to get home. I made it through the last hour of church (Mike and I are Primary teachers together).
This is where the true gift of Mother's day came for me. I slept for 4hrs, Mike took care of everything. I woke up, still feeling sick and with a migraine. Mike made a fabulous steak dinner for me (I was hoping some iron/protein would help) and did all the clean-up. I crashed back in bed, still completely debilitated. By now my vision was mostly gone as well as my speech and I was just trying not to throw-up.
The kids were quiet, knowing that "mommy has a headache" and Mike got them to bed and the house picked-up (no small feat). I finally had to take some drugs around midnight. The whole time, Mike was nothing but loving and concerned.
It is quite humbling to be debilitated by such a small thing as a fan set under a light. What a blessing to have a husband who can take care of everything when my body fails me!
It wasn't exactly a typical "perfect" mother's day, but it reminded me how truly blessed I am.
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