Feeling like home

We moved last week. Just into a bigger apartment. It's familiar, yet totally different.

Still unpacking though. It's feeling more and more like home as we go.
Kaylee cut a tooth on moving day and then got a nasty diaper rash, yet still managed a 5 oz gain in the last 2 weeks! (she also grew in length and her head grew!!!)

Our favorite snacks this week: corn puffs (not very high calorie) and lucky charms.

Dinner tonight: Beef soup (got to get some veggies in the kids - the beef is a bonus too although neither will eat pieces of the beef they still get some in the broth!) We'll up the calories with butter or oil and add noodles and barley.

Schedule

My skinnies have to eat often. About every 2 hours. So with 2 kids, a cat, fish, myself and husband it seems I'm always feeding somebody! We're now running on a decent schedule though so I don't have to feel like a short order cook too much.
We get up at 7 and have breakfast at 7:30 - 8:00 (an example meal: mini pancakes with butter and some cereal)
Around 10 or 10:30 a snack. (Ritz bits or nilla cookies and fruit - i'm going to try the cream cheese and nilla cookies soon!)
Lunch is at 11:30 or 12 (grilled cheese, veggie sticks, fruit cup w/whipped cream)
A snack for J around 2:30 or 3 (no later or dinner could be ruined) Sometimes K wakes up from her nap early enough, some days she just starts on her dinner early. I try to feed her what we're having, but if she's hungry I'll make her a toddler meal (like cheese ravioli with butter on top) and also feed her some of our dinner when we sit down.
Dinner 5:30 or 6ish.
Before bed snack at 7 (yogurt cup or pudding are the current favorites. It used to be shakes)
K always has her toddler milk with meals and snacks. J gets 4-6oz of juice a day and then water or vitamin d milk (sometimes with carnation or hersheys syrup)

I've been told it's ok to limit meal times. Snacks are 15 minutes, meals 30-40 minutes - we are trying to get better at enforcing this as J seems to take FOREVER to eat (as in 1/2 of a sandwich took him 45 minutes the other day) I just have to let go of the idea of them "starving" if they don't eat now. (I should see my own schedule! They eat frequently enough!) And also with J snacks aren't given unless he's eaten at least a good portion of the previous meal and never too close to the next meal. We figure he's old enough to start getting the concept and should develop some more "normal" eating patterns (this is hard with K still eating on a toddler's schedule though). Plus he's starting to want just snacks not meals - though he has done GREAT the last few days!
We're not on a strict schedule by any means - some days no morning snack is given, once in awhile it's late when we have dinner so no before bed snack. It just all depends on the day and every one's appetite.

We also always try to eat as a family. Well it's always me sitting down with the kids - G's schedule means he misses breakfast and lunch or dinner depending if he's days or nights. Yes, my meals are often cold but I'm getting used to it.

Little overwhelmed

All these doctors and therapies and things. Oh. Some days I'm feeling so overwhelmed. SO much to keep straight, so much to worry about/try not to worry about. And we still don't have any answers - not that we were looking. We thought our kids were just small, now the doctors have us worrying and re thinking and thinking "what if we're wrong and there is a problem we've missed?"
James is jealous. Kaylee always has appointments and stuff - and everyone's so good at trying to include him and stuff, but it's plain as day he's a green monster. Kaylee can't make a peep without him shouting to draw attention to himself. But K needs the attention - she needs PT so she can strengthen her legs and walk. We try so hard to give J special attention or things to do during it, but it doesn't seem to be helping. And Mommy needs some quiet time and space! But when I carve out a bit of quiet time that's when I start thinking and worrying!
I try to keep my own jealousy at bay as well. I'm jealous of the parents of "normal" kids who have only one doctor (Not a Pediatrician AND a developmental specialist, a nutritionist/dietitian, a Neurogenetics doctor, and an endocrinologist as well as a physical therapist, and occupational therapist.) Of parents of normal kids who fit into the smallest size swim diapers before they're 1 1/2. Of parents that have never been to Riley Hospital for Children, parents who haven't had to hear their baby scream while having blood drawn.
I'm hanging in here on a skinny little string. Trying to keep my wits about me and hold my head up. Trusting it will all be ok. I just need to be allowed to have my off days here and there.


With that - one of K's favorite meals: Avocado! (it's green!) she loves it with cheese, chicken and tortilla pieces.

Side Note: Kaylee "graduated" from OT this week!

For the love of cheese

Cheese. It's K's go to food. She LOVES it - she even says it!
So we eat Grilled cheese sandwiches (butter both sides of the bread) J likes to dip his in mustard or ranch or ketchup.
We have many shapes of snack cheeses (mostly colby jack, but also mild cheddar and mozzarella)
Cheese and potato cubes
Mac & Cheese with extra butter (and heavy cream or half and half) and toss in some cooked veggies. (yep I make the blue boxed stuff and the microwave stuff. I am NOT a short order cook and this makes me feel like I'm not.)
We're going to buy some ritz bits this week and see how those are.
Cheese melted over veggies would be good - but K's not quite there yet. J will eat cheese and pasta and veggies.

High Calorie Drinks

While we try to avoid letting our kids have a totally liquid diet, we do give shakes as a snack after dinner. They're an excellent way to get extra calories in and they don't have to be totally junk. You can use yogurt or sherbert or milk. Here are some of our favorites:
Oreo Madness:
Milk
Packet of chocolate or vanilla carnation instant breakfast
Crushed up Oreos
Ice cream - vanilla or chocolate
Hershey's syrup or fudge
Blend and enjoy - ok so this one has a lot of "Junk" in it, but it's so good!

Strawberry:
Milk and CIB Strawberry or vanilla
Ice cream - we like vanilla with strawberry chunks
Cut up strawberries

I have so many of these drink recipes it makes my head spin. I will post more in upcoming days!

Well this is fun

So Kaylee's bloodwork from her first visit with the Developmental specialist came back and her lactate pyruviate came back as elevated, not a huge surprised based on the fact that her muscle tone is low. Not dramatically low, but on the lowest end of normal. So we were sent to a Neurogenetics doctor. Scary. He mentioned mitochondrial disease and also possible supplements - it was hard to keep track with a crying baby. Anyway he ordered more blood work and urine tests. Some of that came back. Her lactate is still elevated but he wants to wait for the rest of the results before he decides what to do and what that means for us. One of her hormone levels came back weird too so now we have an appointment with a pediatric endocrinologist. WEEEEE.
Physical therapy is going well. She is a pull up pro and is getting really good at cruising! Occupational therapy is coming to an end already as she no longer gags while eating.


WIth all of that I'm still pushing along struggling to get a picky, willful 4 year old to eat his dinners (smothered in calories) and teaching our sprite thumbalina to try everything.

Our favorite snack this week: Pudding eaten with nilla wafers instead of a spoon. ANd that pudding can be made with heavy cream instead of milk, or with half and half. Or with half one of those things and half milk. It can also be topped with whipped cream or cool whip. Yum.

Lesson 1 - Dip!

Never let them eat things plain. Always dip, cover and smother.
Bread gets buttered (sometimes on both sides if I can get away with it)
Fruit gets dipped in cream cheese, cool whip, yogurt
Veggies are good in ranch, veggie dip, cheese.
Pretzels go good in dip and so do graham crackers (Pudding makes an awesome dip! Go an extra step and top it with whipped cream first.)
Soup gets butter or cream depending on the soup and the kid.
Pasta gets sauce or butter. Sometimes cheese.
Glass of milk? Just add carnation instant breakfast (for older babies)
Jello and coolwhip are great.
Fries are awesome with ranch (and cheese too) But if that's not your style ketchup adds calories too.
Potatoes = butter, sour cream & bacon bits, Cheese if you're feeling like some dairy. If you want mashed potatoes make it with butter and heavy cream or half and half!
Avocados are good but only 1 of my kids likes them
Eggs are wonderful with heavy cream and cheese.

More ideas soon. We're busy here setting up PT and OT appointments - and enjoying some nice weather for the time being!