One truth about Kyle and Owen: They eat a LOT. Always have. At first their intensity about all-things-food was understandable (it was so sad– they had been starving, literally, for their first eight months of life). But it was still shocking and unbelievable how much they could consume at ages 8-9-10 months old. It would break your heart to watch them eat. My mom still talks about it. It was like watching a “little bird” she says. Really, the entire thing was truly heart-wrenching. I could go on and on about so many food/eating-related behaviors from their first few months home. But instead, I just want to talk about the here and now.
O.k., so they are two year olds wearing size “4-5 year” socks. They are HUGE. And they never seem to not be growing like weeds. Other parents talk to me about their kids’ “growth spurts,” and parenting books and pediatric guides I read go on and on about the ebb and flow of baby/toddler growth and eating — our boys seem to clearly defy all the norms. They seem to be in full-time growth/eating spurt since the day we got them. People who see them eat regularly comment on it: “Oh my god, I can’t believe how much they eat?!!!!!!!!” and “Heather, if they’re like this now, what on earth are you going to do when they’re sixteen?!!!!!! Men seem to love to watch it. They’re like, “WOW! YOU GO BOY!!! YOU GO!” Women are appalled. They’re like, “Heather, do you really think that is o.k. for a little child to eat that much?! Don’t you think you should stop them?” (Believe me, I worry too- that their stomachs will explode, or that they’ll make themselves sick. I’ve talked to our pediatrician about this numerous times: she tells me to just let them go and not stop them. Once I had to ask her, “How many bananas can I let Kyle eat per day?” and that was the only time she ever limited the food intake: she said he shouldn’t be eating more than 2-3 per day on average, so we’ve tried to stick to that. She’s been our medical saving grace throughout K & O’s entire adoption so I never second-guess anything with her, and we just do what she says.) Braydon and I are kind of used to it — to seeing how much our boys can consume. Kyle, especially, is truly shocking to watch. I swear, if they had eating contests for 2 year olds, this boy would win every single one he entered. But still, occassionally, even Braydon and I are stunned. Particularly when it comes to pasta… these boys can EAT!
7:00 a.m. this morning — both boys wake up asking for milk
7:30 a.m. — Owen helps me make yogurt smoothies for the boys. (in it: 2 bananas, 1 tub of peach yogurt, 2 cups frozen strawberries, 2 cups orange juice)
7:40 a.m. Owen and Kyle drink up all of the smoothie from the blender.
By our 10:00 a.m. arrival at The Little Gym they had also eaten 2 bowls of dry cereal each.
12 noon: Kyle is done with his lunch. And happy as can be about it. What did he eat? An entire bowl of Panera Bread’s broccoli cheddar soup (rich!) and a large piece of multi-grain baguette (dense!). This is not a “children’s meal” (we don’t even order off the children’s menu there), this is a fully adult-size-meal. A meal that would make many adults comfortably full (I know it makes me comfortably full).
12:30 pm: They’re asleep for nap. I read in the pediatrics books that children only grow when they are sleeping. Must be why our boys sleep so much.