Meet "Failure to Thrive" and "Eating Problem"

My two kids can be identified as "Failure to Thrive" and "Eating Problem". A.E., our firstborn, is the former Miss Failure to Thrive. At her 18 month appointment when I was in my ninth month of pregnacy with the future Miss "Eating Problem", we had THAT doctor's appointment. It was a well-check, and A.E. had "failed." Translation: she had not gained a significant amount of weight. Another translation: mama had also failed. Nine months pregnant and receiving the report card that literally said "Failure to Thrive" was not a good combination. Hello, waterworks! She went through the blood work tests and all that F-U-N that is the doctor's office with no conclusive diagnosis as to why she wasn't gaining weight. Translation: mama's not doing something right.

Now A.E. is a WhOPPing! 27 pounds and knocking on the door of three years old.


A.E.'s likes: PINK, dresses-NOT shorts, Mama-, pretending, 101 Dalmations, Mary Poppins, Bambi, Cinderella, Little Bear, cheese, chocolate milk, finger painting, chalk, bathing suits, a trip to the dry cleaners, going to church, Bear Snores On, Going on a Bear Hunt, Amelia Bedelia, taking a weekend at the mountain house with Nana and Papa, taking a weekend at the beach with Poppy and turning on and off lights

Her dislikes: most general food products, toys "in the wrong place", leaving playgroup/playgrounds, Daddy's music

First word: Dada

Crawled: 9 months

Walked: 15 months

Best friend: Brodie Harris

Potty-trained: NO, working on that!

Favorite number: 57 (that's how old she is if you ask her)

What she'll be doing in ten years: Making all the boys cry





H.J. is the current Miss "Eating Problem". She is A.E.'s little sister and just celebrated her 15 month milestone with another one of those F-U-N well-checks at the doctor's office! In the last 3 months, H.J. has gained 0 pounds and grown 1/4 of an inch in height. In the past 9 months, H.J. has gained 3 pounds. UUUUUUUGGGGGGGGH! Not this again! Now H.J. eats, which is what is so funny? about the diagnosis of "eating problem". Again, it literally said "eating problem" on her report card. The doctor even went so far as to prescribe an appetite stimulant. Which I have not filled. Which I probably won't. I explained, politely, to the doctor that at about the same age the same growth pattern occured with A.E. She replied, "Oh, so that's why you're not worried?" Yes. NOT WORRIED.

H.J.'s likes: her bunny, sucking her thumb, 12-hour nights and 3-hour naps, dancing, any form of music because then she can DANCE, mandarin oranges, blueberry muffins, White Cheddar Cheetos, tomatoes, peanut butter and jelly, laughing, chasing her big sister and crazy dog, I Love You Through and Through, Baby Cakes, That's not my Bunny, waking up at the mountain house or beach in the same room as her sister, cuddling in the lap of anyone, afternoon snacktime, bathtime, and going to church

Her dislikes: cheese, being rocked to sleep, being held down, doctors looking in her ears/mouth/eyes, toys being snatched from her, the word "NO!", getting hit in the face by the crazy dog's tail

First word: doggy

Crawled: 10 months

Walked: not on her own yet

Best friend: Dylan Harris

Potty-trained: no, it'll probably be time to start once A.E. decides to do it!

Favorite number: ummmmmmmmm

What she'll be doing in ten years: Making all the boys laugh


Having two children and getting "two chances" to get things "right" doesn't always mean you will. I've found that my favorite advice now for new parents is to "Give your child up DAILY to God." Denise Glenn has a wonderful Bible study for mothers in two books called, Freedom for Mothers and Wisdom for Mothers. From those studies, one of the things that has stuck with me the most is that idea that if God has a plan for you, then surely He has a plan for your children. They are first HIS not mine. I can't control everything they eat, do or say, but I can try to train them up in the way they should go, so they may not depart from it. (Eph. 22:6) My job is not to make the doctors happy, make the other mothers think I've got it all together, or make my kids into mindless, obeying robots. It's hard to remember in the midst of mealtime, but it sure helps to look at the big picture.

As my husband once said to me, "A.E. won't expect you to feed her in the bouncy seat with Oprah on when she's 16 years old."

So, I'll just keep on telling myself not to worry. And turn off the Oprah.