Thu 31 May 2012
Allie had fun at her appointment for the vaccinations. Until the vaccinations came, that is. Mr. W and I took our afternoons off and had a late lunch at Catal at Downtown Disney on our way home, then got home early enough so that I could nurse Allie and then we were off to the appointment. There was little wait, as we only had to see the pediatric nurse and not wait for the doctor to be done with patients. In the room, Allie got to play with the disposable paper lining of the patient bed to her little heart’s content.
Okay, she did more than play. She demolished.
Nothing like action shots of Godzilla at work on Tokyo.
I guess if the lining weren’t meant to be demolished, it wouldn’t be made of crinkly paper in a pediatric room.
This is Allie’s third set of vaccinations. Her first set when she was 2 months, she chugged the sweet oral vaccination for rotovirus (or something like that), then cried a little when she got her 3 needles jabbed into the front of her upper thighs for the intramuscular vaccination cocktails. She was fine soon after, and that was the end of that. Her second set of vaccinations at 4 months, she seemed a little confused at the oral vaccine and some of it was spit out, but she took enough that the nurse wasn’t concerned. I played with her while the nurse administered the shots, and Allie went from smiling at me to a wide-eyed disbelief, then a betrayed wail as the shots kept coming. It was heart-breaking. She was fine by the time she left the room, fine for the subsequent nap, but the nap after that ended with an inconsolable pained wail that lasted over an hour. I could only figure that she was having a reaction to the vaccines and hoped that it wouldn’t happen again at her 6-month vaccinations.
This time, Allie cried the moment she tasted the oral vaccine. I didn’t know whether she was scared, or whether she knew, “Uh-oh, after this, the pain starts in my thighs!” I held her and tried to comfort her, and she didn’t want to swallow the vaccine. A lot of it was spit out and she coughed and choked on it while she wailed. The nurse said she got enough of it in her system, the spit-out amount wouldn’t be a problem. Then I had to put her back on the table as she got her 3 jabs. More wailing in between a high-pitched scream each time she was jabbed. Minutes later, she was fine, and we took her to the market to buy organic frozen peas for her next food experiment, and she sat in her new shopping car seat cover, looked around curiously, was fine. At nighttime, she nursed to sleep and stayed asleep just fine. I was very relieved.
Feeding solids is going well. She slurped up rice cereal mixed with breast milk with an immediate enthusiasm, no tongue-thrust reflex. This lasted 4 days, and we increased the frequency to twice a day as she was taking it so well.
After that series, I steamed some organic zucchini and pureed it (skin-on for fiber). As this is watery, I didn’t add breast milk. Allie got her first taste of a food that had zero familiarity. She made a face at the first spoonful, second spoonful, she still opened her mouth eagerly, but cringed at the flavor, and her mouth turned downward as she looked confused. Third spoon, she wasn’t as eager to open up. It took a little coaxing, and she accepted it, but then drew back and cringed, having a hard time closing her mouth over the food. She didn’t finish the ounce or so, so I ate the rest. It tasted very green. Not yummy, unless you were an insect or worm that ate chlorophyll. Day 2, she cringed and looked very sad again at the first few spoonfuls, but then ate it up well, even doing the “Mmm! MMM!” demand in between mouthfuls trying to get you to feed her faster. Days 3 and 4 went very well.
Steamed pureed organic peas yesterday went better than zucchini on introduction. It was significantly thicker and Mr. W vetoed thinning it down by breastmilk because he’s eager for Allie to get on a real-food track. Allie seemed initially confused trying to swallow something that dense, but got right down to business and eagerly opened her mouth like a little bird for each spoonful after. Today would be day 2 of peas, and Jayne is handling its late morning feeding. I may decide to thin down her peas for her evening feeding with breast milk, depending how peas thaw (I puree and then freeze in ice cube trays). Zucchini thawed to become very watery. I’d added rice cereal to some thawed zucchini feedings to thicken the consistency.
So far, it’s been fun, quick and easy. The plan is to do all “safe” veggies first, trying to remember rules like not pouring steaming liquid from nitrate veggies like carrots back into the food to process, and then fruits later so that she won’t refuse veggies in favor of sweet stuff, and trying to remember fruit rules like no acidic citrus until at least a year.
Allie’s been a pooping machine the last few days, which is unusual for her, but the solid food has made her poopies less viscous. It does smell different, it’s darker in color, and has the consistency of peanut butter. She bled a little the other day after her 3rd poopie in 2 hours, so we’ve been using Desitin. The nurse said to dilute prune or pear juice with equal part water and bottle-feed it to her for constipation. Prune juice did not go well; she made a big face after tasting it and refused to suck it up any more. Her butt’s looking better, so I’m hoping that the laxative properties of breastmilk and the fiber in pea skin will help.
Another thing we asked the nurse about is Allie’s shivering. She’s taken to a shuddering or a shivering of her head and shoulders a few times a day with no apparent cause; there was no temperature change. Internet searches have said that unless the baby’s eyes roll to the back of the head or the shuddering lasts for more than a few seconds (indicating possible seizure or neurological issues), that it’s nothing to worry about. Some babies shudder when they’re excited about something they want, or when they pee. The nurse said the same thing; that it’s likely, based on how healthy Allie appears, that she’s just at an age when she’s aware of the sensation of urinating and is responding to that. Interesting.
So glad the puree/ice cube tray is working for baby food. That’s our plan, too. Did you use the Vitamix?
Curious as to how much research you did on vaccinations? Not questioning you, just asking for my own sake. I had probably assumed you would not give her any. Glad she didn’t cry for too long, it does sound heart wrenching!
I’ve looked into side effects and such, but not in depth. I’m pro-vaccination, first of all, because it protects my baby’s health, and second, because the “sky is falling” arguments are super duper rare to the benefits outweigh the risks to me, and third, because most schools require a vaccination record. It doesn’t make sense to me that kids are dying out there from things like whooping cough and flu and there’s a resurgence of disease that should be wiped out by now, because parents have decided they don’t want to vaccinate their kids anymore. That’s another reason I want her vaccinated — the more other parents decide NOT to vaccinate their kids, the more they’re putting MY kid at risk of catching something from their unvaccinated kid, and I don’t want Allie susceptible when it can be prevented. I’m very, very pro-prevention vs. fixing something that’s already happened.
Re making food, I didn’t use the Vitamix, since portions are still small right now. For foods I’m steaming first, I’ve been using the Baby Chef Ultimate Baby Food Center by Kidsline. It’s quick and easy for small portions; I just wash and chop up the veggie I’m using, put it in the steaming section, add water, turn it on, and a few minutes later, I transfer the steamed veggies into the processing section of the machine, turn that on, and one minute later, I have puree. Later on when I’m baking or steaming entire fruits or veggies or when I don’t need something processed quite so much, I’ll use a hand mill that flip flop girl gave me, also by Kidsline.
And this is why whooping cough is back when it hadn’t been a problem for decades. TDaPs for all parents is recommended now. I know a few Moms that still refuse to vaccinate. Some pediatricians won’t accept them as patients while others are making them sit in the sick baby waiting room instead of the non-sick waiting room. What gets me is that they’re compromising the sick babies who DID get their vaccinations. Maybe they should have a “I refuse to vaccinate my child” waiting area (in the parking lot??)