Sunday, May 4, 2008

Triumph and trial

Triumph:
Kadin was due for a haircut and I was not looking forward to it. His past haircuts have all been a struggle; basically me holding him tight while Jeremy buzzes him as fast as he can. There is lots of screaming, lots of hair flying, and usually some pretty crazy spots on Kadin's head. So today as we were looking forward to the "big moment" I was trying to think of ways that we could eliminate or at least lessen the trauma. So, I decided to tap into the hypnotic power of the TV and hope that would distract him enough. So we put on "Monsters Inc." sat him down and let him get into it. Then Jeremy started up the clippers, which initally started a meltdown, but he just let them run close by Kadin's ear so he could get used to the sound. After he got okay with that, Jeremy started to cut. Initially, Kadin jumped and started to get upset, but after I started talking to him and got him back focused on the movie, he did great! He sat quietly and let Jeremy buzz him and we actually got to get around his ears and the back of his neck, which we usually end up getting with scissors over the next couple days in bits and pieces. After we were done, he got really excited and said "I did it!" and "All done!" I was so proud of him!

Trial:
The most frustrating thing for me lately has been Kadin's eating, or lack of it. He is the pickiest eater! The list of acceptable foods are as follows:
1. peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
2. bananas
3. Cheerios
4. fruit snacks
5. Gogurt yogurt
6. string cheese
7. chocolate
8. mac and cheese
That list used to be longer and include some vegetables! I cannot even get him to put new things in his mouth to try them! I cannot count the number of times I have tried to sneak chicken into his mac and cheese, but he always finds it and then he won't touch any of the rest of the food. I have tried funny shapes, colored foods, bite size pieces . . . I am out of ideas! I really don't know what to do. I am worried about whether he is getting all the nutrition he needs and making sure he is healthy. Any suggestions?

4 comments:

Michaelangelo said...

Chocolate instant breakfast drink mix-- protein and vitamins in a yummy chocolatey drink :) Works every time for my kids. That's what they get when they ask for chocolate milk. I also have a great recipe for a shake that has spinach in it but you'd never know it- I'll look it up and send it to you. My kids would drink gallons of that if I let them. Umm, what else... try whole wheat bread for the PB&J's, add extra cheese to the mac and cheese. You can also add squished carrots and peas to things like spaghetti sauce if you can get him to try that. Pretty much, feeding my kids is the biggest challenge that I never thought I would have. My mom says it's just a phase that they'll grow out of and not to stress about it- they'll eat when they get hungry. Just put healthy options on his plate and let him eat it or not. :) Good luck!

Andi Sherwood said...

I wish I had some suggestion for you but I don't. Like the other commenter said (I really don't think their actual name is michaelangelo :)), put some healthy options out there but in the end, they'll eat when they are hungry.

The rule at our house is that you eat what's for dinner or you go to bed hungry. The end. But I've never actually worried about Justis not getting enough - he doesn't look like he's missed too many meals. :) If you are worried about getting enough nutrition into him, healthy drinks such as the shake may be a good way to get some extra nutrients in there. :) Sorry I don't have any great pearls of wisdom on this one!

:)

Cari said...

Uh I think Jacob and Kadin are kindred spirits! That is just about Jacobs list of foods too. I use to be paranoid, but at least he is eating!!!! I used to try the whole put at least some healthy foods out there for him to see ... and eat if he wanted too, but he just picked those and chucked them across the room before I could yell JACOB! You do what you can as a mom, it will get better!!!

Karalee said...

We were very blessed with Karston who would eat anything except for bread and tortilla's. He has since grown to love them and eats just about everything. Then we had Makaila. She eats ok, but she is a picky eater. She'll love something one day and hate it the next. I never know and will either have to make her something different, or make her go hungry. :( We are trying to train her.

We have some friends though who's son's won't eat anything more than pb&j, mac & cheese, chicken nuggets, cold cereal and corn dogs. (Not even juice, chocolate milk or ice cream.) Their dr. suggested kids multi vitamins. If you shop Costco, I just got the coupon book and they have $2 off the Gummy Vites. It's something I'm probably going to do for Makaila.