GI checkup

Yesterday we had a follow up appointment with GI.  This is the doctor that basically regulates Sadie's weight gain and helps us maintain her diet.  You'd think he also manages her feeding tube and stuff...but no, if we have a problem with that we have to go see the surgeon who did the surgery.  Our GI doctor only manages what GOES IN the feeding tube.

I had a really annoying morning yesterday that started with Sadie waking up WAAAAYYYY too early, then an important phone call that I couldn't ignore as I was trying to buckle her in her carseat and she's gagging and throwing up, then going to the wrong part of the hospital, then having an annoying parking garage security guard (that I yelled at)...so I checked us in and then sat sniffling, trying to hold back the tears as we waited to be called back!!  And when the nurses asked me how my morning's going so far...I lost it and cried all over the place!!

Ohhhhhh, pregnancy hormones, how you make life interesting.

When the doctor came in, he was accompanied by the nutritionist (I know now to make sure and ask for her at our appointment).  He mentioned that he hadn't seen us since January, so I told him that Dr. Wendy wants us to weigh in every 3-4 months and so does he, so we're alternating in order to minimize doctor visits.  He was like, "well, our scales are different..."  I think he was more annoyed that Dr. Wendy hadn't left him any notes from our last visit or communicated this schedule with him.

So, then he voiced his concern that Sadie had lost weight.  And when it came out that she's not on formula, but doing a blenderized diet, he sort of blamed me (passive-aggressively) for not feeding my child well enough.  He said, "we don't usually condone a blenderized diet..."  I said, "well, I don't usually like my kid to be on formula..."  But I reassured him that Wendy knows about Sadie's diet and is okay with it, and that made him feel a little better, I think.  Still, he can say what he wants, but I know it's better to feed my kid real food than formula from a can.

Then as we talked it came out that Sadie's not really getting tube feeds, she's mostly eating by mouth.  I told him that she gets one tube feed in the morning, usually while she's still asleep, but she eats 5 pureed meals a day and then only gets water by tube.  And suddenly I'm not that bad of a mother for giving my child real food, because she's eating it by mouth anyway!!

Anyway, the conclusion was that I'm filling her with fruits and vegetables, and those are NOT calorie rich.  So, I need to start including more calorie dense foods.  They gave me some suggestions... milk with her meals instead of water, 1-2 Tbs of olive oil added to her food daily, more of the following; chicken, pasta, beans, eggs, nuts, etc.  I thought this was a good idea and felt like it was a good suggestion.  The doctor also recommended that Sadie take a daily vitamin, which I was going to ask about anyway, so we got her one already.

When he asked about coming back for a follow up, I told him we were going in to see Wendy in October when the new baby is born, so we were going to just do Sadie's follow up then at the same time.  He seemed less annoyed about that than at the beginning of the appointment, and just said that he'd get together with Dr. Wendy and they'd come up with a plan.  (haha!!  I already have a plan and it's working just fine...)  I think he likes to feel more in control than he knows he is.  Ultimately, I am in control, but he's working hard to try to maintain that he is.  Whatever.

So, overall, it wasn't a great appointment, but I'm glad we went and weighed in, because Sadie does need to be getting more calories, and we wouldn't have known that if we didn't go.  And I don't know what a normal toddler this age eats in a day (the nutritionist kept saying, "think about what a normal kid this age eats..." Finally I was like, "I've never had a kid this age before, I don't really know what they eat!"), so we're just doing our best as we go to figure things out and adjust as needed.  Our feeding therapist said this is a great time to start introducing things like scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, mushed pastas, etc.  So here we go!!

PS. I'd really like to see Sadie break the 30lb mark at her next weigh-in.  I told her that if her little brother can gain 5-6lbs in the next 3 months, she can at least do 3lbs!!!

Please tell me... what does your typical 2-year-old eat on a daily basis???