Food is yummy, food with texture is yucky

We are still working on Addy's food texture issues.  At the recommendation of the new OT, we have tried adding new flavors and textures to some of Miss Sunshine's favorite foods.  So far:

• cinnamon is out (burns her skin)
• Ritz crackers have a big thumbs up (mmmmmm, salty, buttery deliciousness)
• cracker crumbs have a big thumbs down (even crunched up Ritz crackers are not going well; something about the texture doesn't agree with Addy)
• brown sugar is iffy (has that sand-like cracker crumb texture that she doesn't like, but it is so sweet and delicious if it's stirred into something)
• garlic salt is interesting and improves the taste of peas (I said "improves," not "transforms them into a little green bit of Heaven on a spoon")
• over-cooked pasta is a surprising winner, provided Mommy monitors how many pieces Addy has put in her mouth

In other therapy-related news, Addy is just starting to do some comando crawling (using her arms to pull herself forward).  It's pretty funny to watch because she uses both arms together instead of alternating right then left; she looks like she's doing "the worm."  We're also looking forward to getting a mobile stander in the near future so that Addy can work on strengthening her legs.  Watch out world, Addy's gonna be walking before you know it!

Operation "Cutest Penguin Ever" Update (9-25)

Hat: check
Body: check (well, mostly "check".  I need to add the elastic at the bottom and the hook-n-loop at the shoulders.  But it's done enough for Addy to model it for me!)
Jump suit: nada
Footies: nada
Fish: also nada

I do it myself!!

Addy really likes to drink from Mommy's water glass...

Operation "Cutest Penguin Ever" update (9-23)

Addy is modeling the latest progress on the "Cutest Penguin Ever" costume. Still have the jumpsuit, penguin body, footies, and fish to go, but the hat is so super cute!

"C" is for "cup" (and "cup" is for everything)

Addy has a new favorite word: cup! It means "cup", "cat", "look at me, I'm being cute", "more", "cracker", "neat, I can say 'cup'", etc.

Operation "Cutest Penguin Ever" update (9/18)

Step 1: Pattern acquisition. Status=complete.

Step 2: Fabric acquisition. Status=complete.

Step 3: Pattern modification, layout, and cutting. Status=started, but not complete. I know which pieces I need to use, modified the one piece that needed it (let's face it: a duck bill would look just silly on a penguin), and which pieces get cut from each fabric. But nary a pin left my pin box this weekend, so this step is still mostly incomplete. I also figured out which steps in the instructions need to be done not-as-written. More on that when I get into it and actually determine how to do those steps.

Step 4: Costume fabrication. Status=not started.

Step 5: Fitting and adjustments. Status=not started.

Step 6: Accessories. Status=not started, but it is taking a surprising amount of self control to work on Step 3 and not jump ahead to this step! The fish are going to be freaking awesome!!

Alpha cat

I'm sure this will be a common theme over the next several years, but Addy is getting so big! She's been scooting (still mostly backward), rolling over, and sitting like a total pro, and in the last couple of days has been getting really good at getting herself swapped between them with ease if still slightly lacking in grace and finesse. She's starting to show interest in going forward, too, so we just have to work on her bicep curls. (Not really, but the PT did show us how to encourage Addy to pull instead of push with her arms.)

Merry, our opinionated cat who was not really fond of Addy's arrival, seems to have decided that Addy is the new alpha cat in our house. It is almost impossible to keep her more then 5 feet from Addy, and she is surprisingly patient with the not-very-gentle love that Little Miss Sunshine shows her. The other 2 cats don't really seem to care one way or the other about Addy, but Merry is taking no chances and is trying to secure her place as #2 in the pride.

Real vinyl works even better

I had gotten a couple of yards of "athletic wear" vinyl last weekend when I was out at the fabric store. Aside from the lack of cute, girly prints, it seemed like a better permanent solution for the highchair cover problem. So far it's working out fabulously. The prints on the tablecloths were starting to fleck off and leave stains on both Addy and the highchair. Plus, the new cover should be durable enough to put in the washing machine if necessary.

In related news, I talked to the EI coordinator this morning and asked if we could please work with a different OT/ST, so that's in the works. I'm trying to approach the behavior aspect of the gagging as a communication problem (instead of boredom), so I'm trying to implement some baby sign language to help LMS communicate with us. I suspect this makes me a bigger crystal-gripping hippie than the first OT.

I need to channel Donald Trump

We're working on revising the plan for how to manage and minimize Addy's gagging/vomiting. I feel like it would be best if we discontinue working with this particular OT and either Mommy will get an OT degree this year or we will find someone who is a better fit with our family. This whole teaching Addy that dinner time is play time and that the goal is not to eat but to make as big a mess as possible thing has done more harm than good in my opinion, not to mention the shocking decrease in food intake, which is causing all kinds of problems in terms of both bowel maintenance and general well-being. And as scary as it is, I'm pretty sure that Addy is starting to use the whole "don't make eye-contact if they're doing things you don't like" trick on us.

In other news, Miss Sunshine seems to be cutting another tooth or 2 this week. Maybe by Halloween they'll be pushed through enough to show up in pictures!

Operation "Cutest Penguin Ever" update

Step 1: Pattern acquisition. Status=complete (link). We're starting with the duck pattern, and adjusting from there.

Step 2: Fabric acquisition. Status=complete. Battled my way through the crowd of crafting crazies who decided that a little bit of rain wasn't going to keep them at home this afternoon.

Step 3: Pattern modification, layout, and cutting. Status=not started. This is always my least favorite step...

Step 4: Costume fabrication. Status=not started.

Step 5: Fitting and adjustments. Status=not started.

Step 6: Accessories. Status=not started. What self-respecting penguin leaves home without at least a couple of fish and a Trick-or-Treat bag?

Pesky organic hippies

Addy had her first ever round of hives yesterday, followed by a second small round this morning. Both times they appeared right after experiencing food. Yesterday's rash was discovered while cleaning up the aftermath of using a spoon to explore the back of her throat, so I suspected it might be a stress-triggered reaction, but based on this morning's face-only-and-barf-free rash, I think we've narrowed down the real source: the delicious, organic, patented mix of 6 probiotics, made with real hippies yogurt seems to be giving the red-headed wonder contact dermatitis. Dislike!

Halloween costume

Addy's Halloween costume for this year is going to be Cutest Penguin Ever. (Actually, that was going to be her costume regardless of the poll results.) Now Mommy just needs to get to the fabric store in that brief window between food experiences...