Gareth, Annika and Bella - play picnic in Graz on the last dayWe've been home nearly 2 weeks now and Annika is eating her way through all the custard and chocolate she can. We've been so tired we've been going to sleep on the couch as soon as the girls are in bed. For the first week we could blame it on jetlag and this week we're blaming it on colds but thankfully we don't have to get up and set-up Annika's tube feeds anymore! So maybe we're really catching up on all the sleep we've missed out on in the last 3 years!!!
Bella was very excited to be back and couldn't wait to go back to school (and to see Brayden) and tell everyone about her trip. And also to start back at ballet (to learn her part in the end of year ballet recital) and swimming (where she has moved up to the next level, the breathers).
Annika has been trying lots of different kinds of food (mainly junk, but as long as it is high in fat and calories), new favourites are; chocolate freddos, SKOFs (corn chips, BBQ and chicken flavours in tripod shapes), ice-creams (in any shape or form, MacDonalds are good), pretzel sticks, pureed kumara (have to add tomato sauce), anything that Bella eats (including tinned beetroot and she has a fork to stick into it like Bella does), pureed fruit (but only if it's mainly custard), hummus (great licked off toast).
We saw the dietician today who was impressed the varied foods Annika is having. She has given us a pamphlet of food ideas to try with Annika that are high in fat etc. She especially wants us to increase how much protein she is having. One way is to use "magic milk", which is 2-3 tablespoons of dried skim/whole milk powder added to 500ml of milk. Then add this "magic milk" to whatever we are making for Annika, like custards, milkshakes, in baking etc.
Annika was weighed on Friday 6th November at PN hospital and was 10.85kgs. We discussed briefly with out paediatrician about Annika's great progress to eating and agree to bring her in every 2 weeks to be weighed. Nikki, Annika's paediatrician is going to try and organise a paediatric clinic with her soon and wondered if we minded her discussing Annika's progress with colleagues in due time (read if she's still doing well in months to come).
We have found that Annika is not drinking a lot of fluids especially since the first week that Annika was tube weaned. We find ourselves constantly asking her to have a drink but hope this doesn't have the opposite effect as Annika has become more like a typical wilful 3 year old. She eats when and what she wants - for dinner tonight she ate some of the yummy banana muesli mixed with cream AND custard that we made up for her but much preferred to have a piece of beetroot like Bella had!! So hopefully we can get Annika to vary her diet but probably only if Bella eats it too!
