"Are they triplets?" That is the question we've been asked when out and about these days. Oh, how I wish they were. I would have loved to have carried Dusty and Sonya in my womb with Carolyn!
People are shocked when they hear that Dusty and Sonya are even older than Johnny.
Johnny 5, Dusty 6, Sonya 5 1/2, Carolyn 21 months |
I will tell you that John and I do FEEL like we have triplets during meal times. Well at least like twins because Carolyn usually feeds herself. At times she even helps Sonya and Dusty. I have to get a video of it because it is too cute. We are trying hard to S-L-O-W down Dusty and Sonya. If we put a plate of food in front of them they just shove it all into their mouths as FAST as possible.
So for right now we put a piece of food on their utensil or help them to do it. Then we have them hold the utensil to put it into their mouths. I think Sonya is part chipmunk. She can fit a lot of food in those cute cheeks of hers so we have to make sure her mouth is empty. Dusty eats with an open mouthed posture so much of his food ends up on the bib, clothes, table, and floor. Unfortunately, he is not used to chewing because he was fed so quickly at the orphanage - he didn't even have a chance to chew before the next spoonful was coming!
They LOVE food! Can you tell? |
Drinking is the toughest mealtime task, though! Dusty and Sonya don't know how to use a straw or "sippy" cup. They only know how to drink from a cup. This may sound great, however, they are used to "chugging" a drink while backwashing, spilling and sucking lots of air in the process. We also learned that they do not stop drinking or let go of the cup until all of the liquid is gone. Now we help to hold the cup and only put in a very small amount in order to control the "chugging." One thing we are not sure how to remedy is getting Sonya NOT to put her tongue UNDER the cup when she drinks. Try it. I don't know how she can drink like that!
Dusty and Sonya love to eat and drink. We enjoy watching their expressions as they try new and tasty things. There are very few things that they won't eat. It is interesting that they don't care for water or milk. They have big appetites and are very disappointed when they have eaten everything and the plate is empty. We are happy that this fussing is happening less and less because of learning that meal time will come again soon enough. It is fun to watch their reactions when they hear us working in the kitchen. They start to get very excited and happy. If you are eating something - Sonya will find you! Then she will look at you with those big puppy dog eyes...
We have many things to teach Dusty and Sonya during meal times. Although the most important thing is to teach them that EVERYTHING comes from God! We need to thank God for our food and invite Jesus to be our guest at the table. Our Lutheran-German mealtime prayer always ends with:
"Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, and let these gifts to us be blessed. Amen." "Gesegnetes mahl ziet."
Blessed mealtimes, blessed children, blessed parents, blessed family!
Sorry for bugging you for an update but so happy that you have :)!! I'm so happy to hear that they are doing so well and I wish I was closer so I could come meet them! I can just picture chipmunk Sonya and how she drinks, love it! Thanks for the update :D!
ReplyDeleteFunny! I already get the "twins" question with my two youngest who are almost 2yrs apart! Nathan is just smaller because of DS. I wonder what folks will think when I add two more to the mix? Should be fun to see what comments I get then! :)
ReplyDeleteTry adding strawberry syrup to the milk. My son when he first came home (18 months) wouldn't drink milk either. I got him to drink milk by adding strawberry syrup to it. He loved yogurt.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you posted this, these are the exact same problems we are having. I have wanted to email you or call to ask if you have any advice about what to do:). Email me finecrystal at knology dot net, I'd love to talk to you and catch up on stuff.
ReplyDeleteLooking at these wonderful pictures, especially those of Dusty - and comparing these pictures with the one of the cute but pale and sad-faced little boy on my Christmas ornament last year - well, it's Christmas-in-(almost)July to see him thriving! Love his white-blond hair, too, now that it has a chance to grow. And Miss Sonya, and the rest of the crew - what a wonderful family you are blessed to have, be a part of, and to have created.
ReplyDeleteBlessings all 'round...
Susan in Ky
Cousin to 2 from U.
Love you Amy amd John !
ReplyDeleteDad
i would love to chat with you about your experience bringing home your two new arrows. we are going to be adopting a little boy with unidentified special needs....very likely cp. email me at jts0057 at yahoo dot com. Thanks, Haley.
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful to see them eating, drinking and learning. I'm not using a sippy cup with my kiddos, just letting them have a little in the cup at the time. It's messy for a while but they catch on pretty quickly, and then you don't have to wean them off the sippycup. As to putting the tongue under the cup, I really dont know, but maybe a feeding therapist could give some advise.
ReplyDeleteIt is especially good to see Dusty home, he waited for so long.
Monica
www.xmaswarrior.blogspot.com
I check your blog almost everyday! I'm so happy to see an update! Sonya and Dusty look great! How are Jonny and Carolyn doing with their new siblings?
ReplyDeleteOh they are too precious. My uncle, who is a porkchop, as a joke, always says that his biggest fear in life was that he would starve to death. I suppose that isn't unlike your two little angels probably thinking they better stock up. Sad but also adorable that they eat everything in sight. Making up for lost time.
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff here guys - it's hard to think about what meal times must have been like "in the before time" - packing it in and chugging it down so you get it at all....
ReplyDeleteTime will fix a lot of that - they'll get used to being abot to relax with meals eventually.
And you know I'm going to try drinking with my tounge under the cup - but not until later so I don't have to worry about the mess!! :)
hugs - great work - aus and co.