There is a light at the end of the tunnel! After months of struggling with Liam and food, he's now starting to eat solid (non pureed) foods. I'm the only mom in the world who got giddy when her little boy ate a whole chicken nugget at McDonald's along with a couple of fries and a few spoonfulls of hot fudge sundae. He also ate a half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich yesterday, and some pizza today. The strange thing is that the only way he'll eat those things is if he's not in his high chair. This makes for some messy areas, but it's worth it. Though today he ate a few bites of pizza in the high chair at the restaurant. YAY! His main source of nutrition is still pureed foods, but hey-progress is progress.
Another area Liam is progressing in is his fine motor and play skills. He puts rings on a stacker, shapes in a sorter, and plays appropriately with toys. He even started building with blocks. While he doesn't like crowded places that are very loud, he enjoys new places. We went to Marbles Children's Museum yesterday and Liam had a blast! He ran around, played with the blocks and the trains, and loved the slide. When we go on playdates Liam does great parallel play, and even goes and grabs toys from his little friends (something which for now I see as a positive social interaction, as opposed to no interaction at all.)
We came to a standstill, though, with progress on sleeping through the night. This has been an ongoing struggle. A few weeks ago Liam got sick with a sinus infection, and because he was miserable and congested, we brought him to our bed for a few nights. What a mistake that was! Once he was better, Liam REFUSED to sleep in his crib. We'd rock him to sleep, and as soon as we put him in his crib he'd cry. This went on all night long. We were at a loss. So we finally decided to change things up....and got rid of the crib. We put the crib mattress on the floor in Liam's room, with a twin mattress right next to it. No more rocking to sleep. One of us lay lays down next to Liam until he falls asleep, and for now, if he wakes up (which he does still, 2-3 times a night), one of us sleeps next to him. This is progress because it's at least in his room! In a week or so we'll start stage 2-which is going to sooth him if he cries but not staying in there with him. Last night, by the time I got to his room when he cried he was already at his door (closed, but still!). Nevertheless, all of us getting a full night's sleep is SO much better than the alternative!!!
Yay for progress!!!
