Well, the tension built by lack of posts means this must be the post of all posts. I will try to not disappoint.
Little man is doing very well! We spend most of the day walking around. He is no longer content just to sit and play; exploring is now the name of the game. To help build his confidence, his physical therapist was nice enough to let us borrow her “walking wings.” This looks like a back brace that straps around his trunk with straps on the top for one to hold on to. So not only do I feel like I have him on a short leash, but it is a bright pink leash. So while we have this he can walk around with his hands free, and my back doesn’t feel as though it will break up with me. His physical therapist continues to be impressed with his progress: his balance is improving, and he is beginning to understand that standing up means going from his rear, to his knees, and then to his feet. He is also trying to pull himself up more when he gets the chance. For instance, he is no longer patient with watching me fill up the tub with water. He reaches around, grabs the tub and, with a little help, pulls himself up to watch the water stream in. He still dislikes being on his stomach, though maybe not AS much.
As for eating, he will swallow baby food-like items. So anything with the consistency of yogurt will go down, but things that he has to chew get stored in his chipmunk cheeks for the most part. Every once in awhile he’ll swallow things, so we know that he can do it. He is trying almost anything you put in front of him, which is great. So as soon as we hear from the speech therapist, we’ll have a great eater on our hands!
Cutler is also a babbling brook these days. Aaron has instructed him that if he says “Kobi” before “Dada” or “Mama” that I will be fired. So I now speak in the third person and point to myself while repeating my name as many times as I possibly can throughout the day. So far there is nothing discernible amongst the baby talk, but it’s still quite adorable.
So we’re working hard while keeping a smile on our faces! I hope this all finds you well!
Team Fricke 
Some (mildly) helpful tips from my premature twins’ speech therapist for getting them to swallow food (they gagged on all solid foods for months and months):
1. add the baby “puffs” to milk to soften them up and feed them by spoon like you would any cold cereal and milk. Eventually sprinkle some in yogurt to slowly add texture to yogurt. The “puffs” are made by Gerber, but Target also makes a generic brand that are equally tasty (sweet potato, banana, strawberry flavors available). The milk (or yogurt) is absorbed by the puffs, so their texture is softer than a Cherrio but thicker than yogurt standing alone. Dry they are fun to pick up and self feed like you would with a harder Cherrio, and the puffs do soften quickly in the mouth, but better to start with them mushy. This is one step after baby food, and gets the baby used to slightly more texture than pureed foods.
2. Buy an electric tool brush and swish it around his mouth several times a day, especially the back “teeth/molar” area. This stimulates the nerves to that area of the mouth and helps to prompt chewing. One of my twins still likes to do the chipmunk trick a lot, so when he gets “stuck” (just sitting there, not chewing or swallowing) I sometimes hold the electric toothbrush up to the outside of his cheeks and let it vibrate. Sure enough, that often gets him to “wake up” from his trance and chew again – but it’s still a slow process at meal time.
3. We hide a lot of stuff inside banana slices. Our twins both love bananas, one of the first foods we could get them to eat (even bananas took weeks to adjust to; we’d offer them one day, skip a day, offer again, wait another day, and by the 5th try they accepted bananas easily). So when trying new foods now, I start by slipping a little inside a banana slice and say “banana”. At that, they open up wide and don’t always notice there’s something hidden inside and they adjust to the taste even before they attempt to chew that new food without a banana.
I’m sure your therapist will have many more hints, and tidbits, but thought maybe these could help in the meantime. Good luck! Christi
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So glad for the good news and report. He is making good progress and we will continue to pray for improved eating and strength. In our prayers,
Hand in Hand prayer team at FellowshipChurch
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Welcome back from the dead Kobi! And thanks for the update!
Sounds like Cutler continues to make good progress!
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Kobi, I love to read your updates (Aaron, love yours also). I wish I was there to smoosh all over you and Cutler!
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Now if we could only get her to do updates more than once a month. 🙂
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It sounds like you are getting a lot of good advice as hints for helping Cutler to swallow his food. I am sure in time this too will be overcome, like all problems. Wish I had a magic wand to help solve this. Loads of love—Grandma Boo
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