Bottle

Ok, so we've been sick and I have done my fair share or whining about it--but in other news: Kylie's speech therapist came this morning (and yes Emily was still home from school--go away fever!). So Kumar came over, yes, yes the ironies have having a middle-eastern, heavy accented, speech therapist have been laughed at, but he doesn't actually work on her speech at all. He does oral motor, or works on her ability to swallow. So, he comes every week and stretches her mouth. She cries or screams and pulls his gloved hand out of her mouth. We repeat these same stretches every morning and evening and she cries and screams and pulls our non-gloved hands out. She hates it. Even though Kumar has told us repeatedly that she will soon begin to enjoy the mouth exercies, it doesn't happen. We have seen slight improvements, but not anything big in our unprofessional opinioin. I digress. So Kumar came this morning and after working with her asked me to bring him a bottle of water. What?! A bottle?
Now, out of hope and desparation I have placed a bottle in her mouth a couple of times just to see what would happen and she licks it and that is about it. So today, I handed him the bottle and I watched my daughter suck on it and swallow. She only swallowed once or twice, but again the very tiny things with her are huge mountains to us. After almost two-years of life she sucked and swallowed from a bottle for the first time today. He recommended that in a month that we should go in for another swallow study. That is the test that will officially "prove" that she is allowed to take thin liquids. She has failed three in the past and she hasn't had one since she was 6 months-old. So, here's to hoping! The thought of getting her off the feeding tube would be miraculous. We dream of it. This is one tiny step in that direction. So hooray Kylie! We're proud of you!