4,439 meals

 

   4,440. That is the number of meals Jude has consumed in his 4 years and 20 days. 4,439 of them involved a lot of effort from Jude and a lot of assistance from me.  The first 11 months of his life was the same repetitive attempt...unsuccessfully breastfeed, pump, bottle feed only to end in vomit. EVERYWHERE. Coupled with severe weight loss. This constant vomiting left no other option than daily medication for acid reflux and constipation, gtube placement, and a nissen fundoplication surgery.
    The following year and half was about reintroducing and desensitizing.  Jude had to trust that anything coming near his mouth would not result in him vomiting or being in pain. Every meal I had to pry open his mouth and convince him that this was the best thing ever!!! Needless to say, it was a grueling 30 minutes. After what seemed like 3 hours, an ounce of pureed food would be gone. Obviously an ounce does not fulfill the daily nutrient intake so he would sit for an hour hooked up to the gtube pump. This happened 3 times a day for roughly 547 days, including his 8 hour nightly gtube feed. This routine became exhausting and Jude and I dreaded never ending meal times that resulted in no progress.  Until...one day it did. He ate 3 ounces of food in one day and that turned into 3 ounces of food at each meal. The feeding team let us drop a gtube feed. This kept our momentum going, yet this increased the amount of food I cooked and pureed, but I did not care! He was eating.
    Over the next year, Jude gained weight, he increased his pureed food intake, and no longer needed his daily gtube feeds. It was time to push him hard and develop skills.  Everyday he worked on chewing, new flavors, and textures. One day, I put a piece of a fig newton in his mouth. The next day, he picked it up himself. Before I knew it, he ate entire fig newton, all by himself! After weeks of watching and being able to confidently say, he can chew...we tried toast with ghee. In true Jude fashion, he used all his new skills and ate that piece of toast! After a feeding team appointment, we agreed he was ready for something more.  January 10th, 2017, changed everything...I made an allergy free sandwich and sure enough, Jude ate that sandwich. He was able to independently feed himself like any other 4 year old. For the first time, we sat next to each other at the table and ate our lunches.

   4,439 meals and a lot of persistence changed everything for Jude. Jude gained independence, conquered his fears and strengthened his muscles. I gained more time to spend engaging with Jude instead of in the kitchen preparing, cooking, pureeing and freezing. Now we can eat meals as a family. Most importantly, Jude is gaining functional skills that will improve his quality of life.  All because Jude never gives up!  Who knows, what he will be doing in the future that seemed impossible today. With Jude, the possibilities are endless!