Still Counting

Some of you guys have asked if we're still counting when we put Tyler in "time-out." We are.

I do think it is working. Sometimes Tyler even listens the first time I tell him "no."

He has only touched my glasses once since last week when I put him in time-out three times for the serious offense of yanking my glasses off my face.

He had gotten into the habit of throwing things down the stairs every time I was putting detergent in the washing machine or flushing a dirty diaper. At first, my philosophy was, "At least he's not throwing it in the toilet as I'm flushing the dirty diaper." But when I was carrying 15 books and 3 laundry baskets back up the stairs at the end of the day (or worse, letting them stack up at the bottom of the stairs for days at a time), I realized what a bad habit it was.

Now we're down to about one book a day and the occasional laundry basket. Usually I hear the first book go down the stairs and I make Tyler sit for a count of 20. I can usually trust him for about 2 minutes while I finish whatever I'm doing.

We've seriously cut down on the throwing of toys. I wish I'd counted how many times I counted the day I made that a priority! Tyler loved to hoist heavy toys over the banister that separates the kitchen from the living room and over the gate that fences off the fireplace. He just likes to hear them crash on the other side. He still throws the occasional toy over, but it isn't constant. And a time-out or two convinces him to find something else to do.

He really tested me on the kitchen boundaries a couple of days ago, though. Before time-outs, I'd say, "The milk stays in the kitchen" as he'd walk toward the living room or the hall. He wouldn't even slow down. I'd grab the straw cup and use it to lead him back to the kitchen saying firmly, over and over, "The milk stays in the kitchen." He would turn and walk back out of the kitchen.

After a few time-outs, he started walking backward toward the "boundary" of the kitchen. I'd remind him "The milk stays in the kitchen." If he kept walking backward, I'd stand up and he'd run back into the kitchen. If I didn't offer the reminder fast enough, he'd turn and run as soon as he hit the boundary as if he were home free. I'd count through a time-out. We must have gone through this process for 20 minutes one afternoon.

Since then, I do still catch him in another room with his milk. I really think he might just forget. He is still a baby. But if I see him walking out of the kitchen and remind him, he usually comes right back. And a few times, he's set his milk on the floor and then walked out of the kitchen!

Now, for those of you who have kids that are about Tyler's age, let me assure you that he still throws his milk. He lays the cup on the side and rolls it around the kitchen. I find it on its side, leaking all over the floor. He often throws it down from the high chair.

And that reminds me, the high chair makes the time-out thing difficult. He's already sitting! But I hold his hands together and count so that he knows he's in trouble. Tonight, he wouldn't stop grabbing the tablecloth at the restaurant. We counted a few times and then Brian and I were able to eat our meal in relative peace while Tyler snacked on chips, with just a few reminders not to touch the tablecloth. At least the counting worked well enough that all the food stayed on the table. That hasn't always been the case when Tyler gets too close to a tablecloth!

GI Specialist

We had an appointment with the pediatric gastroenterologist today. The doctor and his nurse took a full history of Tyler's spitting up and gagging problems while Tyler ran circles around the exam room.

The doctor seems inclined to believe Tyler's problems are behavioral and that the occupational therapy will help. He mentioned putting Tyler on medicine for reflux. However, once we clarified that Tyler does not throw up or spit up if we avoid the foods that we know cause him to gag, he said that reflux is probably not the problem.

Just to rule out the possibility of some physical problem, such as a narrow esophagus, the doctor wants us to set up appointments for two tests:

The first one will involve X-rays of Tyler's upper GI tract. We should be able to schedule this one within a few weeks.

The second is called an OPMS (or Oropharyngeal Motility Study or Barium Swallow Study). For more information on this test, click here and here. This test is done by a radiologist and a therapist who specializes in feeding issues. This test may take months to schedule. Sigh. Maybe the therapy will solve all of Tyler's problems before we even schedule this test.

Depending on the results of these two tests, Tyler may have to undergo an endoscopy, where they put a camera down his throat. However, the doctor does not seem to think this test will be necessary.

Counting Out Discipline

I've started putting Tyler in "time-out."

I never thought "time-out" would work on a young child. I earnestly believed Tyler would pay attention to me when I popped his hand and told him to stop playing with the trash can. When he laughed in my face, I was shocked. I tried popping his hand harder. It only upset him if he was very tired. Otherwise, he didn't pay me much attention.

But how do you get a 16-month-old child to sit still for a time-out?! Well, I started counting. The first day, I made him sit down and he cried while I held his hands and counted to 20. The second day, he just stared at me while I counted to 20. The third day, I didn't even have to hold his hands and he knew that he could get up when I said "twenty."

Last night, Brian and I decided that it is time to put a stop to the throwing of toys. The next time Tyler threw a toy over the gate at the fireplace, I said, "No, don't throw your toys." He immediately picked up another toy and walked to the gate. He threw it as I was saying, "No." So I made him sit down and I counted to 20. He picked up another toy and walked to the gate. I said, "No, don't throw" and took a step toward him. He walked off in the other direction as if he wouldn't even think of throwing a toy.

About 10 minutes later, he walked behind the sofa (where I couldn't see him) and threw a toy over the gate. As soon as I heard the toy hit the floor, I jumped up and said, "NO, don't throw your toys." He looked at me and promptly sat down, waiting for me to count to 20.

[For those of you that see this as a sign the method is not working, please know that I can now wear my glasses and Tyler doesn't even touch them. He pulled them off my face three times on Tuesday and we counted through a time-out each time. That was all it took. I call that success!]

Weight Check

We went this morning for Tyler's weight check. (Remember, he'd lost 4 oz. at his 15-month checkup, which was one month ago.)

He gained 1 pound and 1 ounce in the last 34 days. That is half an ounce per day! The doctor was thrilled with his progress. I was a little concerned we'd been overdoing the supplements (adding heavy cream to his milk, adding Carnation instant breakfast to his milk, giving him regular juice instead of diluting it with water, and adding Polycose to his baby food three times a day) but his doctor said he's right on track and to keep doing everything the same. Tyler's weight is just above the 25th percentile.

I wish they'd checked his height. I know he's grown in the last month. Just this past week we've had to start locking the buttons on the ice and water dispensers on the refrigerator!

The doctor and Tyler's occupational therapist, who is helping with his feeding difficulties, have recommended that we see at gastrointestinal specialist because Tyler was gagging and throwing up liquids like Motrin and yogurt when he was sick last week. From what I understand, they will look to see if there is anything physically wrong with his stomach and his throat/esophagus. I'll keep y'all posted on that.

And now, do you want to see the cutest little belly ever?



Isn't he precious?! He didn't do it for this video, but sometimes, he'll yank his shirt back down. We'll ask "Where'd it go?" and he'll lift his shirt back up and grin like he's a magician making his belly button appear and disappear!

First Haircut!

Before:



















During (at Snip-its, a place just for kids' haircuts):























After:

Holiday Recap

Sorry I haven't posted any stories in a while. Here are the highlights from our holiday.

But first, click here to see our latest pictures on the flickr site.

Dec. 15 - Evan (Tyler's uncle) graduated. We all went to the ceremony. Tyler wasn't willing to sit still for the celebration. He and I spent an hour or so roaming around. But he loved the reception and having lunch at Mick's afterward.

Dec. 16 - Christmas festivities with Denise's nieces and nephew. The house was full, with five children under the age of 5. And they all got along really well! We had such a great time. I really wish we could all get together more often.

Dec. 21 - Christmas festivities with Terry's family. Last year, Tyler slept through this party, but he made up for it this year. He ran up and down the hallways with the older kids (Danielle and Payton are 4 and Lily is 3.) And he took toys away from 7-month-old Zach. He banged his puppy all over the newly remodeled kitchen, and he threw peas all over the floor. The only thing that slowed him down was Lily. She wanted so badly to hold Tyler. (Click here to see a picture of Lily beside Tyler. She doesn't look intimidating, does she?) I walked into the living room once and Lily was laying on her back on the floor and Tyler was on top of her -- she was holding on to him for dear life even though it looked like she couldn't breathe! And he was looking at his daddy and doing the "down" sign for all he was worth. Brian helped them get untangled and Tyler ran off with puppy to see what else he could get into! Brian and I were exhausted at the end of the evening, but we had a great time.

Dec. 22 - We had Christmas with Denise and Terry (Brian's parents). We'd spent the night at their house. Tyler actually slept in since we were up so late the night before. Denise fixed yummy cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and we opened presents. This was when Tyler started getting the hang of unwrapping presents. He would tear off a piece of wrapping paper and take it to his daddy, who was trying to film Tyler opening his presents! We must have great video of Tyler charging across the living room to give Brian a scrap of paper! We finally got into his presents. He loves both his singing alphabet snail and his giggle-vibrating cow now that we are home. While we were at Denise and Terry's house, though, he only wanted to climb the stairs and throw empty boxes back down the stairs. Grandma Denise and Grandpa Terry were so sweet to let him do this over and over. He had a blast!

Dec. 23 - Tyler's Aunt Jennifer arrived with her crew (Uncle Dave, cousin Travis and cousin Carolyn). This is where things get a little blurry because everything was a little hectic the rest of the week!

Dec. 24 - We had Christmas dinner with my daddy's family. Tyler was thrilled to see Gracie (Uncle Randy's puppy) and of course all the aunts and uncles and cousins as well as Nanny and Paw-Paw. I think Brian must've spent much of the evening chasing Tyler around because I can't remember what he got into! He loves dancing with the Santa on Nanny's table, and he loves trying to climb on the glass coffee table! Paw-Paw is so sweet: he dug through his cereal to pick out the mini chocolate chip cookies to share with Tyler. And then Tyler threw them on the floor. But we brought some home for Tyler to enjoy!

Dec. 25 - Santa Claus visited us in Monroe. Tyler got a battery-operated 4-wheeler. He preferred standing on it Evel Knievel-style rather than riding it, but we're working on that!

We spent Christmas afternoon with my mama's family. My grandma fell just before Christmas and hurt her back, so we were grateful that she felt like having company even though she wasn't able to get around very well. All the kids were so great, even though they were tired. Tyler got a huge fire truck from Aunt Linda. I can't wait 'til he's old enough to be trusted around it because he loved pushing the siren button on it! In the meantime, he's loved playing with his new cell phone and bath toys, and I can't wait until summertime so he can wear his adorable flip flops!

And a Christmas miracle: Jenn and Brian got Tyler to eat French fries!

Dec. 26, around 1 a.m.: Tyler woke up with a fever. The fun begins. Grandma and Grandpa were wonderful helping me take care of him two nights in a row since Brian was at home. (And poor Grandpa is still sick.) Tyler's fever came back every time the Motrin wore off for two and half days. I'm sure his throat hurt because it was difficult to get him to eat or drink. And to complicate matters, he tended to throw up more easily. We had to dilute the Motrin with water or Pedialyte so he could swallow it without gagging. He couldn't eat his dried fruits or Cheerios. He even gagged on yogurt once. He lived off of baby food and Carnation Instant Breakfast for a few days.

Dec. 30 - Tyler finally got to try out the present that Santa left here at home for him:



Please note: Brian wants me to tell you all that we don't listen to the "Macarena" song all the time — at least not by choice. Tyler has a toy turtle that plays it, but you can't see the turtle in the video.

Also, please visit Jenn's blog to see cute stories about Travis:
http://ofkidsanddogs.blogspot.com/

Pictures from the Holiday

I've started uploading our holiday pictures. More to come.

To see the first installment, click here.