I've read countless blog posts and heard just as many stories from fellow toddler moms complaining about their picky eaters. I truly considered myself lucky to have a child who, with few exceptions, would eat whatever we were eating for dinner each night. Meal times were never a battle in our house.
And then, two weeks ago, a switch flipped. Camden decided that eating? Is really not high on his agenda anymore. He rejects his old tried and true favorites, and refuses to try anything new. Last night, I seriously made him 3 dinners before he'd put anything in his mouth. The first was a cheese quesadilla (okay, full disclosure: I didn't make it; it was from Moe's. But still-- a cheese quesadilla seems like a pretty kid friendly food, yes?). He put one bite in his mouth and promptly let it slide right off his tongue and back onto his plate. Then I heated up leftover pizza, mac & cheese, and some peas. All former favorites of Camden's. He pushed his plate away, saying "all done", without even trying a bite. Finally, he settled on my third attempt at a meal: a scrambled egg (which he devoured-- the kid was hungry. That certainly wasn't the issue).
Snacks are totally fine-- he's still very interested in granola bars, Goldfish, yogurt, and any kind of snacky foods. Meal times are starting to exhaust me, though. And yes- I do realize that many pediatricians would say that I need to offer him only what we're eating and if he refuses that? Too bad. Honestly, though, that's just not something I feel comfortable with. Maybe if I had a kid with some extra meat on his bones I would consider that an option, but Camden's a skinny minny and I wouldn't feel right about putting him to bed without dinner. Also, I feel like he's a little young to be that tough with him. My sister mentioned that my 4 and-a-half year old nephew has been refusing meals lately too, and she's put her foot down and told him that he's eating what the rest of the family is eating. And I totally think that's the right decision-- for a child that age. For a 2 year old though? I just don't think so.
I'm not really worried about this because I know that, like everything else in the world of a toddler, it's just a phase. (I received a timely email from Babycenter stating that it might seem like my 2 year old is existing on crackers and air right now. Yes, Babycenter, some days it does seem that way.) But, I am completely open to hearing about food your toddler loves (please share!) or stories of how you combatted your child's picky eating.
When you're sending me menu ideas (pretty please), please note some of the things that Camden is currently refusing:
Pizza.
Grilled cheese.
Spaghetti.
Lasagna.
Mac & cheese.
Broccoli.
Peas.
Quesadillas.
Avocado.
(For the record, Chick-Fil-A nuggets were a huge hit tonight. Too bad we can't make those a daily part of our diet.)
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
Dear Camden (26 months)
Camden,
I'm sitting with a diaper on my head as I write this post. In fact, the diaper hat is what inspired this letter because it's one of those things I don't want to forget-- ever. It's certainly not one of my better fashion statements, but it's something that's important to you at this moment: every night now, you pick out character diapers for Daddy and me to wear as hats on our heads. Don't you worry-- you get one, too. But you always save Cookie Monster for yourself, which means that I am not allowed to let you actually wear Cookie Monster diapers for their intended purposes. They must be saved for hats. It doesn't matter what we're doing-- eating dinner, brushing our teeth, playing cars-- hats must be securely attached to our heads or we'll hear about it. I can only imagine what someone peering through our windows might think of us.
Who said the twos were terrible? I wish there was some way to bottle up every detail I love about you at this age and keep it forever. You make me laugh every night when I'm putting you to bed and you repeat "Dada, Mommy, me" in your monster voice over and over again. Another quirky but adorable part of your bedtime ritual? When I'm lying next to you, you gently touch my eyes, and then rub your face. Then you touch my cheeks, and rub your face. You do this several times while smiling. I always ask, "Camden, what are you rubbing on your face?" and you respond with a sweet, "Mommy."
Somewhere over the past couple of months, you became absolutely infatuated with trains (best known as choo-choos in this house). Your Pop came across a goldmine accidentally one day: a small Mom & Pop train store located in a rundown strip mall. It has become your absolute favorite place. We meet Nan & Pop for breakfast or lunch on a weekly basis, and then take the required trip to look at the choo-choos. You've got quite a few in your own collection now, and you'll notice in a heartbeat if one of them is missing (how you can account for every single one of them, I'll never know). They are naptime and bedtime companions, and the first words out of your mouth in the morning are often, "Purple choo-choo?" or some variation of that question while you throw back covers in search of your constant companions.
You are starting to put some 3 word sentences together now and I just marvel at how far your speech has come when I hear you say, "Dirty green choo-choo" or "Night night blue car" while playing with your toys. For some reason, you've begun calling Maggie "Baby", which your Daddy and I find hilarious. You'll tell her "No, Baby!" when she's trying to get your food or you'll lovingly say, "Bye, Baby!" when we head out to go to the store. Where you came up with her new name is anyone's guess but I'm hoping it sticks around.
Your non choo-choo favorites at 26 months old? In no particular order, they include: Play-doh. Yo Gabba Gabba. Granola bars. Your cousin, Will (more affectionately known as Wawa). Pizza. Going to Nan & Pop's house. Dancing with Daddy. Playing outside (come on, Spring!). Riding your tricycle. "Emms!" (M&Ms). Playing cars. Helping Mommy cook.
You are such a sweet, funny, loving, and kind child. People are always commenting on your lack of tantrums and what a good listener you are. This, I always say, is 100% a credit to your laid back temperament and not any kind of Super Mom stuff on my part. Your Daddy and I often say that you are the perfect fit for our family, and we're so glad that you're ours.
I love you, little buddy.
Love,
Mommy
I'm sitting with a diaper on my head as I write this post. In fact, the diaper hat is what inspired this letter because it's one of those things I don't want to forget-- ever. It's certainly not one of my better fashion statements, but it's something that's important to you at this moment: every night now, you pick out character diapers for Daddy and me to wear as hats on our heads. Don't you worry-- you get one, too. But you always save Cookie Monster for yourself, which means that I am not allowed to let you actually wear Cookie Monster diapers for their intended purposes. They must be saved for hats. It doesn't matter what we're doing-- eating dinner, brushing our teeth, playing cars-- hats must be securely attached to our heads or we'll hear about it. I can only imagine what someone peering through our windows might think of us.
Who said the twos were terrible? I wish there was some way to bottle up every detail I love about you at this age and keep it forever. You make me laugh every night when I'm putting you to bed and you repeat "Dada, Mommy, me" in your monster voice over and over again. Another quirky but adorable part of your bedtime ritual? When I'm lying next to you, you gently touch my eyes, and then rub your face. Then you touch my cheeks, and rub your face. You do this several times while smiling. I always ask, "Camden, what are you rubbing on your face?" and you respond with a sweet, "Mommy."
Somewhere over the past couple of months, you became absolutely infatuated with trains (best known as choo-choos in this house). Your Pop came across a goldmine accidentally one day: a small Mom & Pop train store located in a rundown strip mall. It has become your absolute favorite place. We meet Nan & Pop for breakfast or lunch on a weekly basis, and then take the required trip to look at the choo-choos. You've got quite a few in your own collection now, and you'll notice in a heartbeat if one of them is missing (how you can account for every single one of them, I'll never know). They are naptime and bedtime companions, and the first words out of your mouth in the morning are often, "Purple choo-choo?" or some variation of that question while you throw back covers in search of your constant companions.
You are starting to put some 3 word sentences together now and I just marvel at how far your speech has come when I hear you say, "Dirty green choo-choo" or "Night night blue car" while playing with your toys. For some reason, you've begun calling Maggie "Baby", which your Daddy and I find hilarious. You'll tell her "No, Baby!" when she's trying to get your food or you'll lovingly say, "Bye, Baby!" when we head out to go to the store. Where you came up with her new name is anyone's guess but I'm hoping it sticks around.
Your non choo-choo favorites at 26 months old? In no particular order, they include: Play-doh. Yo Gabba Gabba. Granola bars. Your cousin, Will (more affectionately known as Wawa). Pizza. Going to Nan & Pop's house. Dancing with Daddy. Playing outside (come on, Spring!). Riding your tricycle. "Emms!" (M&Ms). Playing cars. Helping Mommy cook.
You are such a sweet, funny, loving, and kind child. People are always commenting on your lack of tantrums and what a good listener you are. This, I always say, is 100% a credit to your laid back temperament and not any kind of Super Mom stuff on my part. Your Daddy and I often say that you are the perfect fit for our family, and we're so glad that you're ours.
I love you, little buddy.
Love,
Mommy
Just a typical night at our house.
Stunt man.
He's got the moves like...Daddy.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
25 month speech update
I figured it's about time for a Camden Speech Update.
He is doing awesome. Really, really great, and we are so impressed by his progress.
Today, I asked Amanda, his SLP, what she thought of his speech as far as age appropriateness and apraxia vs. not is concerned. Not surprisingly, she prefaced her thoughts by saying that apraxia can't be completely ruled out at such a young age, but her gut instinct tells her that Camden simply has (had?) a speech delay and needed a little extra push to get talking. At 2 years old, she said he should be making 2 word sentences (he is) and that he should have about 100+ words now* (not quite there yet, but close). She noted that she was very pleased with how quickly he's been flying through all of the Kaufman and PROMPT cards she's been using with him and that she's glad that he picks up new words and sounds so quickly. She did say that he's making a couple of speech errors that aren't typical* and she'll be keeping an eye on those, but overall, he's breezing through therapy.
At home, Camden is regularly using two word sentences now. It's common for him to walk up to me and request "Babba on" (when he wants to watch Yo Gabba Gabba-- such a strange little show but that's another story). This morning, he told me he had "two choo choos" while holding a pair of trains. And yesterday, he was excited to point to his mouth and say "Me teeh!" while showing off his pearly whites. These are just a few examples of the adorable sentences he's often putting together these days.
With an expanded vocabulary (over 75 words now!) come some animated dreams. I used to wonder what Camden dreamed about at night; now I'm getting a little window into his mind. Over the past few nights, he's animatedly yelled out from a deep sleep, shouting "doh!" (as in play-doh, his new obsession) and "uh oh! ISH!" (not sure what was happening to the fish in his dream, but something was amiss). I love getting insight into that sweet little blonde head of his.
It's tempting to slack off on practice when I hear him walking around chatting all day long, but I keep reminding myself that it's the therapy combined with practice that got us to where we are right now. So, we continue to plug along.
*It's funny to me how pediatricians and SLPs differ in their opinions about speech development. At Camden's 2 year check-up, the pediatrician told me that they look for a minimum of 20 words at 2 years old (though 50 is typical). Amanda looks for 100-200 words at 2 years old.
*When a toddler can't make a difficult sound (for example, the "c" sound), they'll substitute it with an easier sound (like a "t"). That's a typical error. A couple of Camden's substitutions aren't typical, and that's what Amanda was referring to. Honestly, I'm not concerned about it at all. Amanda is paid to be a total perfectionist and to pick apart speech (which is why she's amazing at her job), but sometimes I think two year olds are just going to make their own errors.
He is doing awesome. Really, really great, and we are so impressed by his progress.
Today, I asked Amanda, his SLP, what she thought of his speech as far as age appropriateness and apraxia vs. not is concerned. Not surprisingly, she prefaced her thoughts by saying that apraxia can't be completely ruled out at such a young age, but her gut instinct tells her that Camden simply has (had?) a speech delay and needed a little extra push to get talking. At 2 years old, she said he should be making 2 word sentences (he is) and that he should have about 100+ words now* (not quite there yet, but close). She noted that she was very pleased with how quickly he's been flying through all of the Kaufman and PROMPT cards she's been using with him and that she's glad that he picks up new words and sounds so quickly. She did say that he's making a couple of speech errors that aren't typical* and she'll be keeping an eye on those, but overall, he's breezing through therapy.
At home, Camden is regularly using two word sentences now. It's common for him to walk up to me and request "Babba on" (when he wants to watch Yo Gabba Gabba-- such a strange little show but that's another story). This morning, he told me he had "two choo choos" while holding a pair of trains. And yesterday, he was excited to point to his mouth and say "Me teeh!" while showing off his pearly whites. These are just a few examples of the adorable sentences he's often putting together these days.
With an expanded vocabulary (over 75 words now!) come some animated dreams. I used to wonder what Camden dreamed about at night; now I'm getting a little window into his mind. Over the past few nights, he's animatedly yelled out from a deep sleep, shouting "doh!" (as in play-doh, his new obsession) and "uh oh! ISH!" (not sure what was happening to the fish in his dream, but something was amiss). I love getting insight into that sweet little blonde head of his.
It's tempting to slack off on practice when I hear him walking around chatting all day long, but I keep reminding myself that it's the therapy combined with practice that got us to where we are right now. So, we continue to plug along.
*It's funny to me how pediatricians and SLPs differ in their opinions about speech development. At Camden's 2 year check-up, the pediatrician told me that they look for a minimum of 20 words at 2 years old (though 50 is typical). Amanda looks for 100-200 words at 2 years old.
*When a toddler can't make a difficult sound (for example, the "c" sound), they'll substitute it with an easier sound (like a "t"). That's a typical error. A couple of Camden's substitutions aren't typical, and that's what Amanda was referring to. Honestly, I'm not concerned about it at all. Amanda is paid to be a total perfectionist and to pick apart speech (which is why she's amazing at her job), but sometimes I think two year olds are just going to make their own errors.
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