Feeding Therapy, Bob.

My sister, Katherine, will get the title. (Maybe Matt)

So Kiera was cracking me up tonight. (as usual) I had a fruit and veggie tray out for my sales meeting. (Well...if you can call it that...some grapes, snap peas, baby carrots, and a container of ranch dressing leftover from Dion's pizza night.) She is the model of a feeding therapy session for a curious almost 3 yr old with a food aversion. She came over to the coffee table (when I really would have rather had her play in the next room with her brothers so I could work) and stuck her fingers in the dressing...didn't lick it, but rubbed it on the recently polished coffee table. After performing this experiment a few times, she moved on to the grapes which she successively threw one by one across the room. They bounced very well. Since my carpet was freshly vacuumed yesterday, I felt confident to eat them rather than put them back on the plate for my guests. Then she tried feeding me grapes (very fast...like before I could finish one she was jamming the next in my mouth). Then I signed "all done" and told her "no, thank you." She thought about this, and then proceeded to lick a few grapes herself one by one before chucking them across the room. She similarly moved on to snap peas, fed me a few, and actually dipped one in the ranch dressing as I had done, and licked the dressing...which she decided she disliked and...

chucked it.

It was quite a scene, particularly since I, at no time, became distraught or angry, and was actually quite pleased with her PROGRESS. I am sure my guest thought I was a lunatic. (actually she understands)

Kiera also made a breakthrough today which I mentioned before. She seems to consistently like drinking water from the little arrowhead bottles with fluoride with the twist up tops. My theory is that she likes the texture of the twist top and likes the control of being able to bit the lid while drinking. Of course, she is not "supposed" to be drinking water, but it's in small amounts and low flow, so I am just going to pretend I live in Houston and never heard of fistulas. This is the only thing she likes, and darn it, I like seeing her drink SOMETHING. Plus, since she won't let us brush her teeth, it should be good for her.

She's also been walking TONS today, and trying to stand on her own more. Maybe seeing all the kids at the zoo Sunday inspired her. She always seems to want to do more after spending time around other children. She doesn't really have to interact with them. She just takes it all in for later use. We did "walk" her out from the duck pond to the flamingos which was quite a distance. Jer pushed the stroller while I held Kiera's hands.

CUTEST thing this week (I know it's only Tuesday) was last night. I went to the restaurant while Jer watched Kiera. She had refused to nap yesterday afternoon so she was pretty tired. She has taken to enjoying lying on an adult pillow on the floor that has a Little Mermaid pillow case on it (that I think I bought in 1991 when the movie was still new). She knows it is hers. Anyway, the pillow was on the couch and when she got tired she half climbed up the couch to reach the pillow, pull it off onto the floor, and plopped down on it and went to sleep. She was done and put herself to bed. What a good girl.

She must have gotten the memo that she will be 3 in 2 months and that it is time for her to eat, stand, walk, and go to bed on her own.

Kiera is currently in the process of tearing apart my entire living and family rooms. All of my mail is on the floor along with all of her books. She is licking a floor lamp and banging it's plastic shade against the wall. (earlier she was hugging the piano leg). Uh oh...now she's eating the mail...gotta go.