Solids

Kieran showed no real interest in food until last month. Jon and I were actually talking about how he didn't seem intrigued by food yet while I ate an apple and Kieran sat in my lap. As if to prove us wrong, he started grabbing at the apple and put it to his mouth. Anytime I took it away to take a bite he would cry until I returned it to him.

We waited a few more weeks and then when K hit the 6 month mark we let him try some avocado at dinner. He was in love and has been eating "dinner" with us every night since. So far he has had avocado, yams, carrots, pears, peas, and apples. All of which he has seemed to like. We try to let him feed himself using chunks of soft food he can pick up with his hands and also stuffed in the Munchkin mesh feeder.. He is pretty good at making a mess and I usually assist with a spoon. Since we are experiencing such warm weather right now we've been stripping him down nudy to minimize stain removal. Here are a few pictures of the K-Man in his first forays into eating (and one with a straw cup).

The not so Super Bowl

The Super Bowl was not so great for a couple of reasons. First Jon is a longtime 49ers fan so obviously he wasn't happy with the outcome, secondly Reed was sick again and so I stayed home with him instead of us going to an awesome Super Bowl party at the Toms'. Jon went and had a great time, but felt bad and came home at half-time to watch the last part of the game with his family.

We don't really let Reed watch TV so having the boob tube on for five hours was really strange, especially when it was just the two of us home. Most of the time we played in the living room and kitchen and I would pay attention if either team got close to scoring. Since the Super Bowl and junk food go hand in hand I decided to try out a few Reed friendly recipes that I haven't had an excuse to make. I made nachos using nutritional yeast as the "cheesy" base, Rice Krispie treats using the soy-free Earth Balance spread, and we also tried out the Yonanas "ice cream" maker that we got from Nonna and Pepe for Christmas. Reed wasn't too sure about the nacho sauce but love the chips and other toppings, he thought the Rice Krispie treats and Yonanas were amazing.

We are in Trouble!

Thursday was my Birthday, we wanted to celebrate but went back and forth on what we should do. Ultimately we decided to go out to dinner with Reed and my parents. We went to a fairly nice restaurant called The Schoolhouse . Luckily the owners are family friends and regularly have kids in the dining room. Jon called ahead to make reservations and explained Reed's allergies, they were more than accomadating. The little guy was able to order directly off of the kids menu (which is fabulous and not filled with things like chicken tenders and grilled cheese) and they made sure that the food was prepared free of all of his allergens and even took precautions to avoid cross-contamination issues - IT WAS WONDERFUL!!! Reed ate an entire 4oz Flat Iron Steak and had a little of the apple and broccoli that were served as sides, plus an entire single-serving bag of graham crackers and some rice milk that I had brought along.

We were at the restaurant for almost two hours and Reed was on his best behavior the entire time, we were so proud of him. I think part of the reason he was on such good behavior was he found himself a girlfriend. No, not a cute two year old blondie, a waitress - a very cute, brunette, 20 year old, waitress! He was smitten from the moment he laid eyes on her. Everytime she walked into the room he would start waving frantically at her until she waved back and then he'd flash his devilish grin her direction. He waved to our male waiter once or twice and besides that he ignored all of the other wait staff. The first couple times it happened we just thought he was in one of his good moods, but then after about the 20th time, Jon and I just looked at each other and said "we are in trouble."

A Deep Breath

I've said before I try to keep my posts light-hearted and weighted to the positive, but we've had a rough couple of weeks and I think it is important to document what has been going on. If you've been following our eczema battle you know that we've suspected Reed may have some allergies and or food sensitivities. We had a projectile vomiting incident after he ate some egg yolks a couple of months ago and the Pediatrician was concerned about a dairy allergy as well. So Reed and I have been on an egg and dairy free diet for the last three months. The week before last, when Grandma was watching him, he had an anaphylactic reaction to some edamame hummus that I had sent as a snack. He never had trouble breathing, thank goodness, but broke out in hives, his lips swelled, his nose started running, he was sneezing constantly, and his eyes were blood-shot and watering. It was horrible and obviously so scary.

Swollen lips and hives on his face

Luckily I had just, the week prior, pressed his Pediatrician for a referral to a Pediatric Allergist so we were already headed in the right direction. Tuesday was the appointment with the Allergist and while I loved the doctor we saw, the news we got was pretty devastating . . . Reed is allergic to Soy, Milk, Eggs, Peanuts, and Dogs. Just writing that makes me tear up. Deep breath . . .

Skin Prick Test Reaction

Because Reed is so young, they only tested him for 14 of the most common allergies (only 5 being foods - he was allergic to everything but wheat). You actually can't say you have an allergy unless you've had a reaction to the allergen before, so the doctor was able to confirm the soy and egg allergies and because of the severe reaction to the peanut and milk pricks it's pretty much a guarantee that he is allergic to those as well. Before I continue I'm sure you are wondering about poor Dodger. The good news is that it is the saliva Reed is allergic to and our dog isn't much of a licker. Yes saliva will end up on his fur, but since Dodger isn't in the house all of the time it shouldn't be much of a problem. As the doctor said, "Reed needs to be able to be a kid as much as possible, and having a pet is a big part of being a kid." Thank goodness, because our family just wouldn't be complete without Dodger.

So here is where I start to get overwhelmed with the thought of feeding a child with so many caveats. It really doesn't change much of what we are doing now, but you expect as your baby turns into a toddler the feeding and food preparation should get much easier, the light at the end of the tunnel if you will. Our tunnel just got a lot longer. The good news is that there is a good chance Reed will outgrow a lot of the food allergies (probably not the peanut). In the meantime we get to experiment with new recipes, learn how to navigate the world of restaurant eating and travel with a child with food allergies, and most importantly take it one step at a time.

My friend Sarah had gotten me in contact with a Pediatric Dietitian a few weeks ago. I have enjoyed working with her so far and now with Reed's diagnosis she has been a great support and resource. We have an Epi-Pen Junior that will be with us a all times and we are educating ourselves as much as possible. I will be adding an "Allergy Information" page to this website in the next few days so anyone that is interested can learn more about food allergies, ingredient lists, and how to use an Epi-Pen.

I've always enjoyed making food from scratch, now it is just going to be a more mandatory part of our lives. When I was little and asked what I wanted to be when I grew up I said "A Mommy and A Cooker." My sweet boy has made both of my dreams come true!!!

The good news is that there are still a lot of things in life for Reed to enjoy . . .

Double Fisting (Water and Hemp Milk)

Watching Dad and Team Slizzard play soccer

Soy Free/Vegan Muffins

Day Trips to Shaver with Grand-Aunt Penny and Grandma

Reed loves his Munchkin Mesh Feeder

I mentioned the Munchkin Mesh Feeder in the previous post. Reed loves these things, and when I say LOVES I'm not kidding. Onetime we gave him two at the same time and he was so excited he tried to fit both in his mouth!

I always have one in his diaper bag so if we are out I can grab a pear out of a salad, a carrot off of my plate, etc. and hand it over. Like I mentioned before I will use them to keep him occupied in his highchair while I clean up the rest of his mess.

What Reed is Eating

Reed is an adventurous little guy and when it comes to food his attitude is no different. He has never turned away from a single thing we've offered him. The closest we got was a bad face he made when he tried greek yogurt two weeks ago. In his defense, that really is a weird taste, and I only offered it to make sure there was nothing wrong with his sense of taste after he bit into a banana peel (didn't make a face) and got mad at me when I took it away. I know lots of kids are picky when it comes to food and that may just be the case for Reed someday, but for now I will happily accept his "little eater" status and keep offering up new foods.

I don't know why starting solids is so exciting to parents, but it is, I couldn't wait for Reed to take his first bite of food and that seems to be the general consensus amongst the parents I know. Even now when I offer him something new I can't wait to see his reaction. There is so much information out there about when to start, what foods to start with, what time of the day to offer solids, etc. - it is OVERWHELMING! We had a pediatrician tell us to wait and start solids at 6 months, we had family and friends asking at 4 and 5 months when we were going to start him, our nurse practitioner questioned why we were bothering giving Reed solids at 7 months, we had a lactation consultant tell us to only offer solids right after nursing, there are articles by doctors that tell you to place solid meals between nursing sessions so as not to impede with nutrient absorption, some people swear by rice cereal, others advise to beware of its' constipation powers (learned that lesson the hard way). So what did we do?

Shortly before Reed was 5 months old he started yelling at me anytime I ate in front of him. If he was sitting in my lap during a meal he was trying to get the food off of my plate. He was able to support his body in a sitting position at this point, so we went ahead and let him try out some mashed avocado - he's been eating ever since. In the end I think we started Reed at the perfect time, for him, we listened to our child and our instincts and did what was best for our family.

Right now Reed typically nurses when he wakes up in the morning (6:00ish), nurses when he wakes up from his first nap (10:00-11:00am), then 30-60 minutes later I offer him lunch, he nurses again when he wakes up from his second nap (anywhere from 2:00 to 4:00 pm), depending on how early his nap eneded I may try to nurse him again around 5:00 pm. I try to have both the adult dinner and Reed's dinner ready every night at 6:00 so we can all eat together and then he nurses before falling asleep around 7:30. Typically he also has an overnight nursing session between 1:00 and 4:00 am.

My goals for Reed when planning his meals are:
1 - Variety, I don't want him to have the same meal every time he's in the highchair
2 - Balance, I try to offer a fruit, a veggie, a protein, and a grain portion at each meal
3 - Independence, I try to let Reed feed himself as much as possible. If he is having a puree I will often just pre-load the spoon and then let him feed himself.  If we are out I might feed him to cut down on the mess and I also try to leave the messier dishes for dinner (which is followed by bath time) and the tidier ones for lunch.

4 - Similar, I always introduce age appropriate foods, but since I "make" all of Reed's foods, those ingredients that we regularly have in the house or are part of our meals for the week get introduction priority. Also, anything that he's had before that I'm using to make our meal with goes on his plate as well.

Trying Cherries for the first time

Meal planning for the week, is something I try to do every Sunday. I usually get Sunday through Thursday dinners planned out and then assume Friday and Saturday we will figure out as we get closer (inevitably something comes up earlier in the week and one of the meals is pushed to Friday, someone plans something one of those nights, we go out to eat, or we hit up the grocery store again). Anyway, now that Reed is eating big boy foods I still plan Jon's and my week of dinners out first, then I look over what I'm making for us and figure out what Reed can have and what we might want to introduce him to. This past Sunday he tried eggplant for the first time at Nonna and Pepe's so then I made sure he had it again for lunch on Monday and dinner on Tuesday. He also tried garbanzo beans this week because I was making a salad that had them in it and cherries because they are in season and we picked a bunch of Pepe's on Sunday.

Reed's lunch and my lunch both had
zucchini, carrots, garbanzo beans, and cucumber

Adults had Chicken Quinoa Salad
with Baked Cheesecake Peaches

Reed had peaches, chicken, and avocado

Mom and Dad had Turkey Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries
No bun because I'm giving up wheat to see if it helps Reeds eczema :(

Reed had ground turkey, steamed sweet potatoes, and peas

A few of our must-have items for mealtimes are:

ZoLi Bot sippy/weighted straw cup

Dr. Sears Nibble Trays for when we are on the go or
Nonna/Grandma are on lunch duty

Right now we just take a little bit out at a time and put it on his tray or the table, but I'm hoping we can use these for awhile and he grows into eating directly out of them.

Munchkin Mesh Feeders

These are great when you are at a restaurant and don't want to make a huge mess. In the beginning we used them to help introduce new foods, Reed loves them so much we found that he was willing to try anything we put in them. Now if I'm in a hurry at lunch or Jon's not around at dinner I'll give him one to play with while I clean up the rest of his mealtime mess.

Baby Bjorn Bib

These bibs are genius! They basically have a huge catcher at the bottom so you have less mess on the floor and baby when he's done, plus Reed and I will both dip into the little bowl for seconds from time to time.

Last, but not least, on the list is the Beaba Babycook. It is a steamer and food processor in one. It is so easy to use and was really convenient in the beginning when we were chopping and pureeing Reed's food a bit more. I still use it a couple times a week to steam a quick batch of veggies or make a batch of "poop sauce" (our constipation solution - fruit of your choice and prunes blended together).

This week Reed and I started on a three week experiment to find out if his eczema is related to a food sensitivity. This means no dairy, eggs, fish, peanuts, wheat, or soy for Mom or Reed. Hopefully we find a cause or just rule it out completely. I'm definitely struggling to stay satisfied and can't wait to, hopefully, have some of my favorite foods back soon. This isn't as big a deal for Reed but he was eating a lot of fish and eggs and I was hoping to introduce some yogurt and cheese soon. Oh well!

In the meantime here is what Reed has enjoyed eating so far: Apples, Avocados, Apricots, Bananas, Black Beans, Carrots, Chicken, Cherries, Cucumber, Eggplant, Eggs, Fish (Salmon and Mahi Mahi), Garbanzo Beans, Mango, Nectarines, Peaches, Pears, Peas, Prunes, Rice, Sweet Potato, Squash, Turkey, Watermelon, and Zucchini. On the shortlist to try out sometime soon are Blueberries, Grapes, Plums, Beets, Peppers, Beef, Pork, and hopefully some Cheese and Yogurt.

Like I mentioned before meal times can get pretty messy at this stage, but I have a faithful clean-up crew ready at my beck-and-call.

A Day in the Life of Reed

It's been about two months since the last one of these so I thought it would be a good time to check in and see what a "typical" day in the McClarty household is looking like these days. We are definitely falling into a much more predictable routine. Wake up is usually between 6:30/7:00, with a nap coming about two hours later. Reed nurses 5 times during the day and once overnight. While his naps are still all over the board we usually get at least one 1.5 - 2 hour sleep session at some point during the day. He gets solids after his second to last nursing session of the day and bedtime is almost always around 7:30/8:00 preceded, of course, by his favorite things . . . his bath and story time with Dad.

6:20 Reed wakes-up we do a diaper change and I get my morning hugs

6:45 Reed nurses
7:15 We feed Dodger breakfast and Reed intently watches him eat while practicing sitting-up

7:30 Diaper Change
7:35 Play with toys out in the living room with Mom
7:50 Check on Dad
8:00 Watch Dad brush his teeth, Reed is in awe of Jon's electric toothbrush and stares at him the entire time he is brushing every morning

8:10 We say goodbye to Dad, and Mom and Reed head out to go on a run

8:30 Start down the running trail
9:00 Reed falls asleep
9:25 Back to the car and headed home
9:35 Reed awakes as we pull into the garage
9:40 We do a diaper change
9:50 I put Reed in his jumperoo so I can start a load of laundry and mix a big batch of dough for the yummy bread I've been making

10:05 I put on the Baby Bjorn and Reed's sun hat and we go into the backyard to get Dodger for his walk

The sight of Reed in the Bjorn and me saying "Walk" causes Dodger to do this . . .

10:40 We are back from our walk, Reed nurses

11:05 I change Reed's diaper and put him in his sleep sack. I give him a pacifier and his "Soft Sheep" and we read for about 10 minutes. He is acting really sleepy so I lay him down in his crib

11:20 He has spit out his pacifier and is crying. I plug him back up and rub his back for a few seconds

11:25 Reed is asleep. I clean out the dishwasher, prep some yams for Reed's dinner, make my lunch, and transfer my pumped milk from the day before to the freezer.

11:40 Reed starts coughing and wakes himself up (this adds to my fear that he is coming down with his first cold). He's really upset so I rock him for a few minutes to calm him down and he goes back to sleep. I eat lunch, do a weight workout, and work on placing two new raised garden beds I've assembled earlier in the week.

1:30 Reed wakes up and is a happy boy

1:30 Diaper change and then I finally get him into clothes for the day

1:40 We go out to the living room and play on his quilt again. He practices sitting up and putting toys in his mouth (both of which he is getting really good at).

2:00 I feed Reed
2:15 He's done eating we head back to the quilt and I get some good laughs out of the little guy

2:45 We go outside to check out the garden and then to do a photo session with Dodger. I make the Grandparents a calendar every year, when Dodger was an only pup he was the only one featured, but he's had to give up a few months to make room for the new star. I'm trying to, once in awhile, get pictures of both of them together, but getting open eyes, happy faces, etc on both of my boys is sometimes a tall order to fill. I think this is probably the best one I took during this session.

3:15 We go back in the house to do a diaper change and get ready for another nap. We read The Sleep Book by Dr. Seuss (our favorite)

3:30 Reed goes down for his nap

4:05 He's awake, he helps me finish folding laundry by playing peekaboo with his onesies and laughing at me making his cloth diapers dance around

4:25 I put Reed up on my knees for a modified airplane and then we do baby sittups and practice standing up

4:40 Diaper change
4:45 Reed nurses
5:00 Reed has his yummy yam dinner (he's really getting into feeding himself)

5:20 I cleanup the aftermath of his dinner while he is entertained by Dad playing guitar. Check out the fancy maneuver he does when we take the tray off his highchair!

5:35 Diaper Change

5:50 We get in the car to go to my parents' house. Grandma is hosting Bunco and is dying to have her girlfriends meet Reed
6:00 We get to my parents' house and I can tell Reed isn't feeling great. We hang out with Papa Jay for a bit and then the ladies start arriving. He is in a good mood for awhile, then has a complete breakdown. Papa tries to rescue him from the estrogen overload but all he wants is Mom.

7:00 I get Reed calmed down and he puts on a little show for the ladies

7:15 Reed has had enough and has no energy to humor me, so cries during our quick group shot

7:35 Because it is so late and he's grumpy we skip his bath and go straight for the PJs

7:45 Reed nurses

8:00 He's asleep