#1.How can you get a baby to stop pooping so much. In the past week, he has been having between 8-12 full dirty diapers a DAY.
For a very nauseated pregnant mama, that is 12 times a day where I gag.
I did feed him an ungodly amount of raisins for 4 of those days, but other than that everything has been normal.
I know to feed prune juice to a baby that can't go, but should I feed him something to make him go less?
#2. How in the world do you hold a toddler down to change his diaper. Every. Single. Freaking. Time. I change his diaper he arches and screams and flips the whole time. I swear you burn at least 100 calories every time you change his diaper because you are wrestling him the whole time.
I've gotten to the point, especially because he goes so often, that I am tempted to just let him go twice in a diaper to cut down on the stressful changing sessions. I mean, sometimes I just don't want to change him. I want to quit, but as a good Mama, that is not an option.
I have tried keeping treats next to his diaper changer to give him and distract him. I've tried giving him a toy when we are up there. I play games with him...at least I try. I tickle him. I spank him. I lightly pinch his leg. He turns into a monster up there and cannot wrestle him anymore!
#3. To me, the WORST part of parenthood so far ( well maybe tied with lack of sleep) is feeding. It was fun when he would eat 4 puffs and call it a day. But at least 3 times a day, I am on my hands and knees scraping food off the floor because Barclay throws it in a 15 foot radius. How do people with carpets do it?!?!
So yes, cleaning up after food is awful but that's not my problem.
I am out of idea of things to feed Barclay. So far the only things he likes are:
-canned soup drained.
-veggie hot dogs.
-any carb or bread or cracker
-all fruit
-yogurt
-raisins (but after the diaper situation this week he is banned from them)
-Honey Bunches of Oats with rice milk, drained.
I'm out of ideas. He pretty much refuses to eat meat (he's like his Mama). He is lactose intolerant BAD so cannot have cheese. He is allergic to eggs (just eggs, not stuff with eggs in them). I cook soups from scratch and he barely touches them. I just cannot remember any easy childhood meals that don't have cheese in them! Mac and Cheese. Grilled Cheese. Etc.
Especially being nauseated and tired I barely can feed myself...and this has become such a burdensome chore to find foods Barclay will eat.
Any suggestions to any of these problems would be greatly appreciated!
UGH I made a comment, and it deleted itself. Okay, I don't eat healthily, but I was a very picky child, and Porter is too. You've probably tried a lot of these, and I included meal components and snacks. Here are some of the foods he eats/I cooperatively ate:
ReplyDelete- Steak (Seriously. He loves it.)
- Sandwich meats rolled up like a Fruit Roll-Up (that's the only description I can think of) -- No condiments or bread. Just meat.
- Mashed potatoes -- Porter calls them "magic." I know the better ones use milk, but I think Idaho Potatoes makes a mix where you just add water. It might call for adding milk. Not sure. Also, adding "magic" to the spoonful helps Porter eat food he doesn't like.
- PB&J sandwiches cut in triangles (corner to corner) or cookie cut (he might be a little young to care about that but I loved getting heart-shaped sandwiches in my lunchbox). Apple butter might be a healthier alternative to jelly or jam. I always loved it.
- Graham crackers
- Popsicles made of fruit juice. Can't remember the brand. But it sounds like you're not having trouble getting him to eat his fruits.
- Pinto beans. Maybe not now with the pooping and nausea, but my mom would make these and add ketchup when we were little, and we loved beans and cornbread nights. Lots of protein, and a 1-pound bag is 49 cents. Also lots of gas though. Porter hates them, but all of us loved them.
- Nilla Wafers
- Dry cereal, slightly sweetened (pre-sweetened, not just with sugar added because that's a mess)
- I LOVED boiled peanuts. Again, lots of protein, but lots of sodium too.
- Celery and/or carrots with peanut butter. I prefer ranch dressing now, but that's probably not a good idea since he's lactose intolerant.
- My parents referred to little green peas as "little green apps" (because they look like tiny Granny Smith apples) when I was little, and it made me want to eat them. Seems to work on Porter too.
That's all I can think of right now... Tried to come up with healthy stuff, but as a kid, I wouldn't touch squash, okra, broccoli (at least not without cheese), and a host of other healthy things. Hopefully you'll get something out of all that.
Your plea for advice on FB led me to read your blog entry & I felt like I could have written most of it myself. I don't know much about babies, but here's what's worked for us.
ReplyDelete1. I don't know of anything that you can feed him to slow down the poops, but limiting fruits/juices or any other fiber-y foods might help. He might just be a prolific pooper, though.
2. We have wrestling matches with almost every diaper change. I swear I break a sweat every time!! It sounds simple, but placing my hand on his chest & calmly, but firmly, saying no helps. But we almost always also give him something to play - and you would not believe the things I have allowed him to play with while changing his diaper, just to keep him still for 10 seconds!
3. We also have a "reluctant eater." I read a great book about feeding kids that was lent to me by a dietician at our church. One thing that the author kept emphasizing is this: It is my job, as the parent, to present nutritious snacks & meals to him regularly throughout the day. Period. It's his job to eat it & if he doesn't, it's ok to be hungry for a little while. It's not my job to cajole him into eating or to keep presenting foods until he eats. Now, I will admit that this is hard for me to do sometimes - I'm a little compulsive when it comes to feeding Bennett - yet I feel like it makes sense. I will say, though, that once he starts throwing food, we're done. I say - again, calmly but firmly - "When you throw food, Mommy knows you're all done!" and I take him out of the high chair. Even if he cries, he doesn't get food until the next meal/snacktime. It sounds mean, but he doesn't really throw food anymore.
Here are some of Bennett's current favorites - maybe Barclay will like them!
--Baked Chicken Nuggets (homemade) He wouldn't touch meat at all until I made these and he LOVES them. I'd be happy to share the recipe - they're super easy & freeze well.
-- Spaghetti (homemade, too) with finely chopped ground meat in it is a big favorite too. (it's easy to sneak veggies into this!)
-- Nutrigrain bars (not the most healthy, but not the worst either)
-- Lunchmeat (nitrate-free) with bread - He won't hardly eat it unless it's stacked with a piece of bread - I know Hormel Naturals is nitrate free, as well as a lot of Boars Head meats.
-- Frozen veggies, either steamed or boiled. He really loves the mixed veggies with corn, peas, & green beans.
I know it sounds crazy, but have you tried mixing some yogurt with the veggies? Also, a friend of mine sprinkles a little brown sugar onto her baby's veggies. Bennett is pretty good about the veggies, so we haven't tried it. What about making Broccoli Bread or Zucchini Bread? You could make them into little muffins. Not ideal, but would get some veggies into him.
Ok, that was a REALLY long comment, but hopefully something will help!
I second the PB&J -- though I just feed mine PB because the J part is messy... also, my kids adore some mashed potatoes, mini bagels, muffins, things of the sort... chicken nuggets may not be super healthy but they down those like its water!
ReplyDeleteon the changing wrestling match? let me know if you find a solution! Raziel still is rough sometimes, but he grew out of it after about 4 or 5 months of intense muscle building.
I so feel your pain on how to keep a baby still. Oh man. I'm not sure but I try to have a little pile of obscure objects to give to titus..just in time for him to throw one in the middle of a diaper change, I give him another...or give him a wipe and tell him to wipe his face (ha..yea right) and in the mornings and evenings I let him drink his sippy cup while I change him.
ReplyDeletehmm.. food without cheese...
how about spaghetti... like make the sauce and sneak in some veggies and then freeze it in little ziploc bags... or a avocado tortilla roll. Titus like sweet potatoes made cut up and baked (like fries without oil). He has also done pretty well with back beans and rice... but not sure if that would bring more potty issues.
To slow down the diapers I'd say give cheese, but since you can't I have no clue. Hang in there awesome mommy!
Sounds like you've gotten some good advice so far. As far as the poopie diapers, I'd be mindful of his juice intake, and only serve him one or two cups per day. I would also limit or stop the yogurt, fruit, and fiber until the poopies become more firm and less often. Make sure to give him Pedialyte to drink to help him stay hydrated and keep his electrolites. That many poopies a day can really drain him. Talk with your pediatrician too.
ReplyDeletePicky eaters don't exist in my family, but keep trying the whole grain foods and vegs. Visit the toddler food isle (near the baby food), they have some pastas and snacks that he may enjoy.
As for nausea, eat small meals throughout the day (like 6). Stick with water to drink. Maybe some caffeine free ginger ale. Saltines are GREAT!! Chicken noodle soup usually stays down pretty good, or just warmed chicken broth with some saltines. If it gets too bad, ask your doc for something. They may be able to prescribe you something if you're far enough along. Tums may help too.
Diaper changes: can you hang a mobile on your changing table? Maybe he would pay attention to that long enough for you to change him? Try giving him a mirror to look into. Mine have always responded well to songs. And it doesn't even have to be a kid song. Just start belting out your favorite tune when he starts to get fussy. Or better yet, just make up something silly! He'll be so shocked and amused, that you'll be done before he knows it! :0)
Good luck!
black beans and rice
ReplyDeletewhite hominy (alone or with things)
jelly sandwiches (I am assuming you don't feed him peanut butter yet?)
there are tons of dairy free cheeses, etc. My sisters son is allergic to dairy and she gets things at whole foods. Do you have one of those?
pasta...with anything over it. you can do just noodles a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper or put a sauce on it. Or cooked veggies, etc
as far as the going a thousand times a day, do you give him a lot of juice? if so, maybe lay off that for a few days...otherwise I have no ideas.
The dr told me to give Hannah yogurt to help with loose stools. I helps by giving the intestines good bacteria. Maybe try upping his milk...that slows down Hannah's business sometimes.
ReplyDeleteAs for food...just know I feel your pain. The only vegetable that Hannah will eat is green beans or black beans mixed with brown rice and taco sauce. There is a book out there called Deceptively Delicious that is supposed to have good ideas about sneaking veggies in their food.
I'm praying for you.
My daughter is 5, so I'm a little out of practice. When she was younger, she ate just about everything. Now, not so much. But, at the toddler stage, I fed her pretty much whatever we had for dinner. One of her favorites was spaghetti. I put just about anything we had for a meal in my little chopper. I put chicken breasts, spaghetti, any veggies I made, turkey.... really anything.... I put it in the chopper. Someone above mentioned lunchmeat. That was a favorite as well, cut up into small pieces or rolled. Also, Brooklyn has always loved pancakes. I would give her pancakes for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Use real maple syrup, not the fake high fructose corn syrup stuff. Maybe try some salads, including chicken salad, egg salad, tuna salad. Even though there's really not any nutritional value, ramen noodles have always been a favorite. I cook the noodles, drain them, then add the flavor pack. Serve them with some fruit.
ReplyDeleteAs for the frequent poops with little Barclay, as well as your nausea, my doctor always told me to follow the BRAT diet (Bananas Rice Applesauce Toast). I would try to incorporate some of the BRAT items into Barclay's diet each day.
Wrestling with a toddler is soooo tiring. I do remember those times. I would get so frustrated and just want to give up and let her run around naked. Try a toy with music that will grab his attention. Find a cartoon or show on TV that he may have interest in so that he can be involved in something else while you change him. Try tossing a cold cloth on his tummy so that he's more worried about getting rid of it... I know it's frustrating, but hang in there... he will outgrow this stage.
Hope you receive some advice that works for you... good luck.