Eating and Beyond

Okay. So it is day #7 of tube-free Jonah, and he really seems to be LOVING his new lease on life. Rob and I have a completely different baby right now. We are still trying to wrap our heads around this and are almost afraid to even blink for it might all be a dream.

By the end of day #1, Jonah had taken in his required 13 ounces within 24 hours. We thought all along that this was a pretty tall order for a guy who had never taken more than 1 ounce...ever. Proving Rob's theory right, Jonah rose up to the challenge and made it seem so easy. The next two days were kind of crazy because we had a couple of interruptions to our objective. We had the team from Early Intervention meet at the house to discuss Jonah's therapy plan (we'll post about this later since there is alot to explain) for physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech/feeding therapy. Let's just say Jonah was not in the least bit interested in eating but insistent on flirting with the room full of women that came to help him. I was quick to worry that too much time had gone by and suddenly he would forget about the bottle. Of course, that was silly and Jonah caught up just fine. Wednesday we had to go to the pediatrician for a quick check. This definitely was not as "quick" as I felt it should have been. By the end of our visit, our doc thought Jonah was looking really good. No signs of dehydration. He weighed in at 13.6lbs. No more, no less than his previous weight 2 weeks before. No doubt I was totally surprised by this and relieved that we were in such a good place to move forward.

It's now exactly one week from the night we were liberated from a burden so heavy; from a situation steeped in pessimism. Trust me, it could not have come a moment too soon!! Jonah has chugged his way up to roughly 22-23 ounces a day with solids thrown in there about 2-3 times a day. This kid is not looking back either. Just when I get nervous again that something will throw a wrench into all of his progress, Jonah attacks his bottle like he never had an NG tube shoved up his nose, down his throat, pumping him with food he may or may not have wanted.

We are now relishing in the joy that comes with a smiley, happy, playful, confident, content, bottle-feeding baby. Jonah has done a complete 180. Things we have longed to see in Jonah are now happening before our eyes all day every day. Our instincts told us for so long that Jonah's NG tube was a gigantic barrier to his ability to eat by mouth. We knew he had to lose that crutch in order to really "get" the bottle. The bottle was going to be the glue that put everything else together. It has been just that and more. He loves to read his books, play on his mat, sit in his Bumbo chair....LAUGH out loud, he has even had a few baths that he's actually seemed to enjoy too. At his most recent check-up Jonah actually gained weight and rang in at 14 lbs. Rob and I cannot get enough of this. We have waited for this for the last 5 1/2 months trying to make sense of it all. Right now, it's like bringing our baby home for the first time all over again. This time though, our baby can relax in the comforts of  his own home without struggle or pain. Praise God!!

A quick pic...from our cellphone. Not the best, but we'll definitely get a few more posted later...