It’s been a while since I’ve shared anything. I’ve written off and on since my last post, mostly just to process stress. However, I figured it was time to sit down and write an update I could share with you!
Luke is two years old! He’s got loads of personality and is putting together new sentences and learning new things every day. Some days that’s hard to believe and other days I feel like we have had more than two years’ worth of hard parenting days. It’s been a year and a half since Luke started his tube feeding journey and we’ve hit some big milestones in the last few months. He’s been promoted in feeding therapy to once a month visits, his menu of accepted foods has almost doubled, and he’s been almost four months without using his feeding tube! I’ve prayed a lot of desperate prayers and put in a lot of hours to get to where we are with him.
Now, I’m going to be honest, as exciting as all these updates are it hasn’t been the easiest four months of progress. There hasn’t always been weight gain, or smooth mealtimes. There are moments when it is absolutely draining sitting with him for a meal trying to convince him to eat. He’s two. Two-year-old kids don’t always love to eat. They’re picky, don’t want to stop playing, don’t like what you served, etc., etc. Take the normal two-year-old behaviors and throw in a lifetime of feeding difficulties and you’ve got the stage of life Luke is currently in. It has been a learning curve for all three of us.
I want to be so patient and understanding when it comes to mealtimes, but it can be so frustrating to see him refuse to eat. I’ve raised my voice, cried, and apologized a lot. I am also growing and learning new things when it comes to parenting. I want to be done with this tube. I want to move on from extra doctors and the hard things his first couple of years have brought. More than any of that though, I want him to know he is loved. I will continue to pray for progress to be made but, I will also pray for guidance in whatever this stage of life and all the ones to follow may bring us.
