You know those stories about men who are the consummate family man, raise wonderful children over the course of decades, and are devoted husbands, etc., and then come to find out they have another, secret family in Iowa or some such?
I have this same feeling right now, only about my baby boy.
Turns out Andrew has been having "crying spells" at daycare, and no one there is sure what to do. This is VERY unlike my little boy, so I'm more than a little concerned.
My first inkling that there was a problem was the daily contact sheets from his teacher, wherein she would write that "Andy-Roo had an okay day..." Always just "okay." Never "great" (occasionally "pretty good"). But, I thought, he's still pretty young, so maybe he's just adjusting to the world, etc.
Then yesterday afternoon when I picked him up, one of his teachers asked, "Since when are you cutting back on Andy-Roo's milk?" I answered that I hadn't -- that he's always gotten about 4.5 oz, every 3 hours. They said he seems to be getting hungry more often and that he gets upset about it very suddenly. I answered that I'm going to ask his pediatrician about starting solid foods at his 4-month visit next week (I'd frankly rather start giving him rice cereal or fruits now than supplement with formula, seeing as how formula made him puke last time I gave it to him). They told me that although Sean's mom is giving him solids now, they didn't think it was necessary, and that they only think she's doing it because she wants him to sleep better (which he doesn't actually). Anyway, I was a little concerned about what they said, but since Roo is growing fine and is quite chubby and rosy-cheeked, I didn't let it bother me too much.
This morning, though, his teacher Miss S. brought up "food" again, and even suggested I "think about formula." The gall! My son is not malnourished! I suggested other alternatives -- maybe smaller bottles more closely spaced, for instance. She said that he sometimes cries "inconsolably" (my heart broke at that news), sometimes just an hour after his bottle. To me, that's a clue that he's not starving, but that something else may be wrong: Maybe he's got gas, for instance. Or maybe he's sensitive to dairy in my diet. I told her I'd drop off some Mylicon gas drops tomorrow. I'll also try the next size up for bottle nipples, since he's currently on the Newborn (size 1) Avent nipples, which are suggested for breastfed babies of all ages, since the flow more closely matches that of the breast. However, if he's sucking really hard, he may be swallowing quite a bit of air and, thus, getting gas.
I did tell Miss S. that he doesn't have inconsolable crying spells at home at night or on the weekends. My coworker D. suggests that I speak with the director of the daycare center about S's eagerness to just shove a bottle of formula in my baby's mouth rather than get at the root of the issue.
Another thing: Miss S. seems to think that Roo is "sensitive": She mentioned that she knows he "doesn't like to be picked up too fast," for instance. How fast does she pick up the other kids? Roo never cries when WE pick him up! Incidentally, Miss S. is the only of Roo's teachers who does not have children of her own. I'm hesitant to talk to the director, though, since if it gets back to Miss S. I'm worried that she'll be indifferent or, worse, mean to my little Roo.
I just don't understand. Everyone else I talk to there mentions how smiley and coo-ey he is. Miss K. the receptionist told me just yesterday as we were leaving that "Every time I go into his classroom he's smiling or laughing."
Where's the disconnect, then?
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