The Weight of Food Tantrums

Lilly has struggled to gain weight like a normal baby should. She is small. Her parents are small, so what can people expect. The Nurse, who we take Lilly to get weighed and get her shots, wanted her to gain 150 grams a week. She was gaining anywhere from 80-120, so Lizbe (our nurse) put her on 150 ml of formula a day. I felt like such a terrible mother because my baby wasn’t gaining enough weight and I was the food supply. My parents had just left after two weeks of constant on the go, and I got sick right after they left. But I didn’t factor any of that in. I was just a terrible mother who wasn’t producing enough milk, and to top it off my baby refused any and every bottle put in her mouth. Gary and I fought her for two weeks with bottles. I couldn’t take her screaming any more so I decided to start her on cereal.  She was just barely 3 months old and I know that is a huge no no in some people’s books but my mom did it with my brothers so it did with Lilly. She LOVED it. She still isn’t gaining weight like a normal baby should be but we took her into the pediatrician at 4 months and he said “look at you (pointing at Gary and myself), you are short. Don’t expect her to be BIG when you guys aren’t”. I told him about giving her cereal and he didn’t even flinch. He said that is fine. She is now eating rice or corn cereal and either apples or bananas.  She loves it.

Sunday she threw her first temper tantrum… Sundays are always rough on her because she misses her morning nap. She doesn’t sleep very well in her car seat. She is a social baby and wants to know what is going on around her ( a little bit like her momma). She fights sleep even when we are home. Once a month we have a fellowship lunch at the church after the morning Service. Lilly took several 15minute snoozes in my arms but was pretty much a fussy pants. I fixed her cereal, which she usually devours, took her to the cry room (she likes to have milk after she eats her cereal) and proceeded to give it to her. She threw her hand in bowl and screamed. A scream I had never heard out of my child before.  She was mad, she wanted milk not that stuff.  I cleaned her up then fed her. Afterwards I asked a woman in our church who I highly respect with the way they discipline their children “When do you start spanking?”  She advised me that if she is misbehaving spank her. Just lightly slap her on her hand so that she knows what she did is bad. You know I never have had a problem spanking my nieces or nephews but to spank my own child, it hurts. You know all those years of hearing my dad say “this is going to hurt me more then it hurts you” is so true. I never believed him at those moments of sitting on his bed waiting for my punishment, but now I know how true it is. It is torture to spank…