Well my plan for blogging once a week is already falling behind! So here is update #2 for 2014, just 2 days late.
I need to update the design and maybe even the title of this blog, as Tucker is not the only story anymore. There is still so much going on with him, of course, and so many emotions that come along with parenting him each and every day. But to say that Easton demands at least equal attention is an understatement. Easton is completely adorable, and that is his saving grace. J Because he is quite a boss! Since he was about six months old and was able to sit up and watch Tucker, he has thought that he should be able to do everything Tucker does. I say often that Easton thinks he’s 7. He screams when Tucker goes outside without him, when Tucker goes into the therapy room without him, gets on the schoolbus without him…the list goes on and on.
I think this is why Easton fights the carseat and the highchair booster so much. Because Tucker has a carseat booster and sits in a chair to eat, and Easton is not ok that he has to do something different. Thankfully he has no problem sleeping in his crib, but of course Tucker has to be in his big bed in the same room where Easton can see him.
His favorite word is “nine” meaning mine. He claims everything as his, and Tucker rarely fights back. I am waiting for the day when Tucker fights back and pops Easton in the face, lol.
This morning right at midnight Chris got called into work. This is not at all a normal occurrence, and I thought he’d be back a few hours later My alarm went off at 510am, and in true Leigh spirit, I hit the snooze button and woke up exactly 2 hours later. Chris gets me out of bed every morning, the boys and I are not morning people on weekdays. I quickly realized that Chris was still at work, and that I’d have to tackle the morning-hating boys on my own. Easton’s first order of business was to claim Tucker’s feeding chair and milk cup as his own, and there was no fighting with him and hoping to get out of the door in time. So Easton sat in the therapy chair and drank 8oz of Tucker’s glucose control boost, along with eating Tucker’s banana…
Now if you know Tucker at all, he has no problem with this. He’d eat only Cheetos if it was up to him, and Easton could have everything else. So then I had to get more bananas and a new cup for Tucker.
On Dec 29 we went with Easton to the pediatrician for his checkup, This doctor has been Tucker’s pediatrician since he left the NICU. She told me that Easton’s ears were infected, which wasn’t a huge surprise since Easton had been acting so mean. That is Easton’s only symptom when he’s sick-a grumpy attitude. So this was Easton’s 3rd ear infection since October, 4th since August (I think-I really have lost count). His eczema looked terrible also, I told her that is how it always looks. She suggested that he go off of milk completely, so we did starting that day. We all got used to almond milk quickly.
Easton is a 100% junk food junkie. He would drink milk from his cup and eat junk all day long. He will refuse any food and you think he’s starving, and he will somehow survive on an Oreo crumb he digs out from under the couch and then refuse dinner also. Tucker eats a very healthy diet. He eats bananas, yogurt and low sugar applesauce daily, has hummus, sweet potatoes, avocado, squash, potato soup, chicken pot pie (all pureed) as staples in his diet, along with his Boost glucose control. For several months Easton would just eat whatever was in Tucker’s bowl, but then he realized there is junk in the pantry. He’d cry and point to the pantry during the entire meal. So the next weekend Chris took Tucker to the camp, and the pantry was off limits for Easton the whole weekend. By Saturday, he was eating grapes, scrambled eggs, and squash. I also made homemade oatmeal cookies with no added sugar. I put a banana and applesauce to sweeten them naturally, but they definitely don’t taste very cookie-like…after a few days Easton was asking for them instead of junk. (and yes we will always keep some junk food in the house, because Tucker will do amazing academic and social tasks if a Cheeto or pink frosted animal cracker is offered!!). we also switched from Dr. Bronner’s peppermint soap to the Dr. Bronner’s baby soap. Within a few days, Easton’s eczema was gone, and Easton was in a MUCH better mood.
Now I’m not just forcing Easton to eat healthy and then shoveling down the pizza myself. ;) I started making green smoothies, with 2 cups of spinach in them each morning. They are delicious! And replace my coffee addiction, although I do occasionally get a CCs fix in the afternoon at work.
On Monday afternoon Easton came home from daycare with a runny nose and an awful temperament. So I brought E & T to the doctor the next morning, going to see Dr B is one of Tucker’s favorite activities. He is weird, yes! It turned out that both boys have ear infections, and Easton’s is pretty bad, even though he’s just been off of antibiotics for 4 days! Tucker of course had no symptoms and wasn’t acting “sick” at all, totally unphased.
We have an appointment with the ENT next Tuesday for Easton. I am quite nervous that antibiotics aren’t helping to get rid of the infections, or that his immune system isn’t able to fight them off. I don’t like that. I am all for getting tubes, as he can’t seem to get the fluid off of his ears, and I know that having fluid on his ears can cause delayed speech. He also hasn’t walked yet, even though we all believe he has had the physical ability to walk for months now. He stands, goes to take a step, then gets scared and sits down. He has been cruising around furniture and holding our hands to walk for months. Chris thinks that he is just not confident of his balance because of the fluid on his ears. He will be 17 months old in a few days, not walking at this point is not cool.
The fourth annual Fishing for Tucker BASS fishing Tournament is on February 8 in Cabela’s in Gonzales, We are excited!
