Day 17: Speeding it Up!

Today was another great day!  Naomi ate like a rock start and daddy is having a steep learning curve in dealing with her mealtime behaviors, she is still an expert in stalling but she is eating and drinking completely normal portions for kids her age.  She still needs lots of coaching but I am hopeful that she will before too terribly long be eating with direction that is typical to what her peers need.

This afternoon the surgical nurse practitioner came by to chat with us about Naomi's g-tube removal and we've changed plans again.  A really good change, instead of next Friday, Naomi's tube will come out this Friday, in two days, before she leaves the hospital!  This means she'll miss her last day of feeding therapy but everyone agreed she doesn't need it.  At this point the only help, feeding wise, they might be able offer is in helping with meals with the whole family and possibly some tips on getting her to eat again after surgery when she isn't feeling so hot.  I am a little anxious but mostly just excited.

I spent a little bit of time today taking a trip down memory lane.  I was reading some of my old posts on Naomi's Caring Bridge site.  I read one post about an old GI doctor telling us that she would have her tube until she was at least seven or eight and going home and crying since my baby was only two, I couldn't imagine seven or eight, I still can't.  I read a post from two and half years ago about Naomi going to feeding therapy and us working with blueberries and how excited I got because she didn't freak out that they were on the table in front of her and for the first time she willingly let them touch her face, she squished them in her hair, and some of the juice ended up in her mouth and a blueberry did too, she didn't eat a thing and I was elated!  What a long way she has come!  Just 17 months ago I wrote a post about being excited that she drank half an ounce in one sitting, today she drank at least 7 ounces at every meal.

I shed tears again today, that seems to be my theme this week and they were very happy tears.

Naomi and I were looking at old pictures of her on my Facebook today.  She really got a kick out of us sharing the story of how she got here, her story.  At the end I told her about the one doctor telling us she would have her tube until she was even or eight years and she smiled covered her mouth and giggled and said "We really tricked her."  Yes we did, my dear.

Day 17  17.1 kg...nothing through the tube!

Playing her favorite game, Candyland!