Thursday, May 26, 2011

Refitting, Researching and Refried beans

I know, I know. I haven't updated the blog in a while. Its not because we aren't making progress. We are- slowly but surely the portlights are being removed, repaired and replaced. I've been remiss in updating because my focus for the past couple of weeks has been on the wee one.

Kitty had what we thought was a cold but as it wasn't improving, we put a call into her pediatrician who suggested we bring her in. We love our pediatrician who thinks the US habit of bringing in a perfectly healthy baby every month is a bit silly. Our last visit was at 6 months for a vaccination and check up where she was pronounced to be small (25-30th percentile for height and weight) but perfectly healthy and "we'll see her again around 12 months. Just keep doing what you are doing". So we kept doing what we were doing although we did start her on solid foods. She was a bit picky and not a big eater but since she was active, going through the dipes and growing, we thought all was well.

Surprise, surprise. When we brought Kitty in to see the doc, we were all shocked to see that while she was still in the 30th percentile for height, her weight had dropped to the 3rd percentile. The term bandied about for being under the bottom 5th percentile is 'Failure to Thrive'. Ouch. What a terribly scary label to stick on a  baby who seems small, but feisty. Neither Mark or I or the doctor freaked out, but we are concerned enough to do a bit more digging into the possible causes. My friend Laureen of SV Excellent Adventure was one step ahead of the doc when she suggested Kitty's issue might be a gluten sensitivity issue causing malabsorption. The doc echoed what Laureen suggested and ordered a series of blood tests to check for deficiencies and sensitivity. Poor Kitty had to endure 3 pokes in order to get the blood drawn for the tests. We should have the results in next week.

In the mean time, while Mark continues work on the portlights I spend my days chasing Kitty around with a spoon full of various foodstuffs in an attempt to get her to eat. My days go something like this- get up, make Kitty a breakfast of fresh fruit, gluten free pancake and scrambled egg. Kitty eats one bite of each and then refuses to eat anymore. Do various household, mom duties and make a second breakfast for Kitty- this time cheese grits made with heavy cream. Kitty will eat 6 bites because she likes grits. Chase baby with fruit, soft cooked veggies, cheese- baby will eat nothing but dry Rice Chex. Make Kitty a whole yogurt and fruit smoothie. Kitty acts as if I am trying to feed her liver. Then its on to two lunches, two dinners all of which are picked at. Kitty will eat cheese grits and refried beans(with LARD! It can be tough to find refied beans with lard in the US, guess we need to head to Mexico). Yes, a paragon of healthy eating but since we are willing to let her have anything she wants so long as she eats something we let her have her favorites and just keep offering fresh fruits and veggies in hopes that eventually they will be welcomed by Miss Picky.

I will say that since cutting out the gluten, she is sleeping much better and is eating twice as much as she was previously. We will have to wait to have her weighed again in a few weeks on the same scale but I am thinking that we might have found the issue and that issue is gluten.

All this time spent in the kitchen is coming at a great time. We are in the midst of figuring out what we want to do as we prepare to refit the galley. Due to the fact that we do not want to have to do this over again, we are really taking our time in figuring out what materials we want to use in the galley. I'm researching refrigeration options, counter top options and purely aesthetic issues. I'm still formulating a plan but I should have my act together and decisions made in time for a late summer galley refit. In the mean time, here's a  before photo of the galley.
So please forgive me for not updating a bit more frequently. It is difficult to type one handed while chasing a toddler around with spoon. We will get this weight thing figured out. Kitty is thanfully healthy, just a bit small. We will find out what the issue is, help her become a roly poly baby once again. In the mean time, we'll continue to offer her love, snuggles and refried beans.

6 comments:

  1. She is a wee little doll! Keep us posted on the gluten tests!

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  2. Oh I had the feeling that something like this must have been behind the facebook/beans thing. :-( I'm sorry. :-( Feeding problems stink. :-( Kids and food battles are hard enough without actual medical issues to fuel the fire. :-( :-( :-( Glad she's doing better though and the pictures are SO beautiful!

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  3. Cidnie,

    Having two daughters diagnosed with Celiac, the gluten free lifestyle is a godsend. The change in their health/behavior/attitude was amazing after going GF. If you need any help assistance with keeping to a strict GF diet, feel free to contact me.

    Cheers!
    Glenn
    S/V SOLARE

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  4. Cheese grits & refried beans? With lard?? Throw in the occasional ribeye and I am so there!

    While contemplating your refrigeration options, give due consideration to the Frigoboat keel-cooled system. We absolutely LOVE ours. Our beer is always the coldest in any anchorage we visit. The system is very quiet and relatively energy-efficient.

    -Steve
    s/v Siempre Sabado

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  5. Thanks all! Steve, I hadn't considered the Frigoboat but will do so. Doesn't that system require messing about with the hull? Will do a bit of research and thanks for the tip.

    BTW. Kitty is now displaying a bit of baby chub! This is wonderful news. She's back in for a check up soon and we will update but so far, things are looking up.

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  6. The Kohl guy is the expert on marine refrigeration. I went with an engine drive since I was not on a dock. My routine consisted of running the engine each day to: cool the refer, charge the batts, make hot water and use the inverter with the engine running to vacuum. Worked out fine cruising in the Caribe. Diesel's running fine 26yrs out. Refer too.

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