Self-feeding Boot Camp Days 4 and 5

Thursday was far too busy to get online and read e-mail let along reporting on this blog how Millie did. It really was, because there really was something to report. At dinner yesterday Millie achieved her first successfull scoop with a fork and brought some Chicken Tetrazzini to her mouth. We made a big deal about it and she was pleased that she'd done something so good! Breakfast was uneventful Thursday and Friday lunch/supper was weird. She took about 30 minutes to just sit and look around before she even started to eat her macaroni although I did help her with some sweet potato. But she managed to finish her food, including a delicious pear half!
Today was BIG!
At breakfast this morning Millie Anne ate all of her applesauce with her spoon without help from me! I was sooo proud of her! She was happy too. We both were happy giggly all morning.
Dinner went well, but Millie was a bit nervous about using her fork by herself in front of Royce. She was holding it correctly and tried to scoop a bit but then backed off. She kept doing that until Royce came over and guided her hands through using the fork to eat her dinner. Oh well! She'll gain confidence the more she uses her fork. Royce encouraged her and gently worked with her until she finished her dinner.
Lunch/Supper was low-key, no really exciting stuff. A good meal though.
I am very encouraged by Millie Anne's progress this week and plan to continue working with her until she gains the consistency and confidence she needs. It has been a really tiring week and intense, but productive!

Self-feeding Boot Camp Day 3

I'm exhausted, this week has been really intense! Fortunately it is what we American's affectionately call "hump day", so the week's nearly through. Millie Anne has been making good progress in the time it takes her to complete each meal (tonight's lunch/supper is a special exception..I'll get to that in a minute) and she is trying to use her silverware. She has yet to successfully scoop or stab food and then get it into her mouth, but she is doing better at the scooping and stabbing end of things. It doesn't help when the food is slippery greens or noodles. But she might as well get those figured out, right? We had fewer temper tantrums from Millie today due to my realization that what has been keeping her from getting to sleep terribly quickly at night is the fact that she is cutting more teeth. So, last night I gave her some Tylenol to help her along. She slept so well last night that she gave me a precious half hour of cuddling this morning as she slowly woke up. (She even shoved Buddy off my lap when he had the audacity to hop up during her cuddle with Momma...she told him where to get off!)
Breakfast
We did toast again but did applesauce instead of banana (bananas are gone for the week). I worked with her on spooning the applesauce and I think she would have successfully gotten applesauce to her mouth from start to finish if it hadn't been for the distraction of Cookie Monster on Sesame Street.
Dinner
Royce and I took turns guiding Millie's hand with the fork on today's Impossible Cheeseburger Pie, swiss chard, and butternut squash. She made several attempts at independent use of the fork, but the darn food kept falling off the fork!
Lunch/Supper
She was humming along on her lettuce, when...we interrupt this meal for a word from below the table..nnnhgggg nnnnnnhhggggg nnnngghhhh...Yep, downloading the latest installment! She was trying to eat but kept getting interrupted with...nnnnghhhh nnnnghhhh... finally I had to lay her on the floor and help the process along. She actually giggled when she finished. Then I helped her lay into the macaroni and cheese, and this time I had a fit over the noodles falling off the fork. Darn slippery suckers! Millie finished this meal just as the hour bell went off.
I gave her a quick bath and got her off to bed in record time! Ahhhh...blissfull relaxation after the little one has gone to bed. Now it's my turn to go into the Land of Nod. Ciao.

Self-feeding Boot Camp Day 2

Today got off to a great start. Millie Anne seemed really excited to be more independent. I think my enthusiasm for her being a big girl now is helping. She is definitely in the almost two phase. We've hit the terrible two's big time, fighting off temper tantrums off and on all day. I guess that's par for the course. With God's help we will conquer this hurdle too. Here's the feeding report:
Breakfast
I decided to go easy on Millie today. She ate toast and half of a banana along with her milk. She did very well and only balked a little bit about finishing her toast. She really likes banana! I've found that Millie is only difficult about eating something when there is something she likes better available. It's not that she doesn't like what she's being told to eat, it's that she likes one of the other things on the menu better. Breakfast was completed in under half an hour, with only one stealth piece of toast found under Millie Anne's bottom...and yes, I did make her eat it.
Dinner
This was definitely the toughest meal of the day, with Impossible Cheeseburger Pie, fried cabbage, and yellow squash on the menu. The first thing Millie discovered was that the Impossible Cheeseburger Pie was too hot to pick up with her fingers. Next she realized she'd be much better off using the fork than her fingers, but the fork frustrated her. She seemed to really want to use the fork, but found she couldn't manage it very well. Royce and I each took a turn holding the fork with her and guiding her hand through the process of both scooping and stabbing the food she wanted to eat. She did really well. She even made several attempts to do both scooping and stabbing with the fork herself. She has the right idea, just not the dexterity or force needed for success. I am very encouraged that she is voluntarily picking up the fork and attempting to feed herself with it. Her skills at handling it are improving.
Lunch/Supper
This meal was pretty easy, with macaroni and cheese, lettuce and half a banana on the menu. It was completed in 40 minutes, with seconds on the lettuce. She used her fingers for most of the meal, but did work with me on the fork and attempted to use the fork independently.
That's all for now!

Self-feeding Bootcamp Day 1

I finally broke down and did it. Millie Anne is turning two in just a little over a month and I am very ready for her to feed herself. So I decided to get serious about having her self feed. At the advice of family and friends, I put a towel under her chair this morning and set food in front of Millie and let her go at it. I knew she'd probably prefer to use her fingers, but I plan to work on getting her to use a fork and a spoon at least some of the time. At the outset, I told Millie that she was going to be a big girl today and feed herself. I also told her that she would have until the timer rings to eat each meal (I set it for an hour). She will not be allowed to dump, throw or spit her food. But she will be encourage to use every means at her disposal to get food to her mouth. Messes are expected, I will just periodically scoop her spills back onto her plate or into her bowl. I hope to see progress by week's end.
Here's how today went:
Breakfast
We started off with cold cereal and applesauce. Probably not the tidiest choice, but it's one of our typical breakfasts. As expected Millie used her fingers for the majority of the meal. She finished her cereal in 20 minutes, with some spoon use at my prompting (she did everything but scoop). Applesauce took another 15 minutes, and she used her fingers yet again (oy!). This self-feeding thing is just as tough on Momma as it is on Millie. I was biting my tongue so I wouldn't spazz about the mess. She did get most of it into her mouth and even picked up some of her spills. Just a few flakes on the towel and some on the seat.
Dinner (our midday meal)
Green spaghetti sauce on medium pasta shells, green beans, yellow squash and garlic toast. All food was consumed and no food on the towel. Plenty of sauce on the hands, placemat, tablecloth, seat and bib. Some good work on using a fork for the pasta and some good independent attempts at fork use. Meal completed in 30 minutes.
Lunch/Supper
Ham, sweet potato, mac and cheese, and apple. Took 40 minutes to eat 1/4th of an apple. Had to be heavily prompted to eat her apple. Finished sweet potato and ham with some fork work, finished most of the mac and cheese. Cried when timer went off and I took her food away. She only had 3 bites or so of mac and cheese and 1/4th of an apple unfinished. Debris extended past the towel and under the table, found a piece of squashed sweet potato underneath her and some uneaten macaroni in her bib. Nearly melted down myself over the 40 minutes she took on the apple. Gotta get a grip, this self-feeding bootcamp is not for sissies!