jonah update and fun discoveries

Matt and I had a really great day yesterday, and the report from Granny and Grandaddy was that Jonah was a very good boy... who took an extra long nap. Go figure. Matt and I were able to eat a delicious meal at Cracker Barrel, and then we were able to use our 50% coupons at Gap and caught a few other clearance sales. I love me a good sale. It would seem I'm becoming a shopper in my old age. Funny how being stuck at home will do that to a girl. Afterwards, we went to see Inception and then got dinner at Ronni's. And between my carb-fest at Cracker Barrel and the wings and pizza (both still as good as I remembered) at Ronni's, I'm fairly certain I gained 10 pounds. Oh well. Back on the wagon tomorrow. My goal is to work out four times this week, but that will mean getting up at 5:45 at least two mornings this week and going first thing. Pray for me, folks. It will take a miracle to make that one happen.

We made it to church today and Jonah is napping now. Good day so far.
**********

A quick Jonah update:
- Eating: I took a mega break from offering anything to him by mouth. For both of our sakes, and it was the right decision seeing as how I don't feel like jumping out our kitchen window anymore (kidding... sort of). A couple of times this week, I've very nonchalantly offered Jonah some yogurt here and there, and he's eaten a couple of ounces a time or two. No problem, Little Buddy. It's all good. (This is me, not caring.)
- Sleeping: Still sleeping all night most every night for about 11 hours. Good stuff. He only takes one nap a day, for an hour and a half. I'd love to push that to two hours, but I'll take what I can get.
- Pain/Skin: Jonah's been in rough shape these last couple of weeks. He has a huge raw area (from a refilling, growing, dragging blister) on the top of his left arm/back, two big places on each side where his ribs are, a place around his g-tube site, a small place on the top of the other arm, and a big spot on the bottom of his foot/toes. His face is doing pretty well, but his forehead and eyelids are worse than the rest. I can't wait until he knows what rubbing does to his face and can understand to take it easy, already.
- Nutrition: In the last seven weeks, Jonah has gained three and a half pounds, and has grown three and a half centimeters. He has jumped from the 25th percentile to the 75th. Thank you, avocado, flaxseed oil, and duocal. We're backing off some of the calories and are able to relax a little more about the volume he takes in. It's nice to not feel like every calorie is life or death now. I'm so thankful.
- Cuteness: Yep, he still is.

So overall, things are well. Jonah has his 18 month check-up a week from Monday. I think this will be the first time EVER that we've not had to go to the doctor between well visits. Three months without a pediatrician visit! Thank you, God!
**********

I wanted to tell you about a couple of cool things I found out about this past week. You already know that I'm a mega fan of online grocery shopping. Actually, I try to do as much shopping online as I can, since our schedule, most days, doesn't allow for much getting out.

I now follow this blog, Money Saving Mom. It's a great place to print out coupons if you don't get the newspaper, and you can sign up for weekly emails and pick your preferred stores, and she'll email you the deals/coupon match ups to save you lots of money. I haven't really figured it all out yet, but she makes it super easy. You can join her Facebook page here.

And I also signed up with Groupon this week. It's free to join and you get emailed one coupon/awesome deal per day. You can take it or leave it, and there are a lot of things that don't interest me, but when you get a good one, it's so good. Matt and I each have an account and each paid for a $25 coupon to get $50 of clothes from The Gap. We paid $50 for $100 worth of clothes yesterday. Woohoo! (Note: you don't get your coupon immediately... or at least The Gap one didn't come immediately. I got it in an email the next day and printed it out from there, so don't be worried if it takes a while before you get it in your inbox.)

And probably my favorite discovery that I learned about from MckMama, ebates! Do you guys know about ebates? Essentially, you sign up for a free account, and you go there before you begin any online shopping. They have pretty much any store you can think of AND you can search for coupons (online codes) to get a percentage off and/or free shipping. And if you click on the store link from ebates (go through their site to get to your store of choice), you earn cash back on your purchases... anywhere from 1-10% in most cases. I've already earned a few dollars back. I think they send you your check quarterly. Anyway, if you want to sign up, it's free. AND I get rewarded for referring folks if you let them know I sent you. You can click here if you'd like to let them know you're coming through me. I've loved it so far.

Alright, just wanted to let you know about those fun things. Hope everyone is having a good and restful weekend. We're one week closer to Fall. Oh man, I can't wait. (On a side note, Cracker Barrel already has some of their Christmas stuff up! Apparently nobody's told them that it's still AUGUST.)

growing jonah

Jonah is still refusing to eat, but the nutritionist came today and said he's growing great. He's gained a pound and a few ounces since last month and has grown 2.5 cm, I think she said.

He's in the 45th percentile for height, 50th percentile for weight (WHAT???!!!), and his weight to height ratio is in the 75th percentile.

So as frustrating and maddening as long g-tube feeds are, they are obviously working. I would rather deal with the frustration I'm feeling now than deal with the constant fear I felt before we had the g-tube... when I literally had to force milk down his throat (just for him to puke it right back up).

I know y'all have a lot of questions about what I have and haven't tried, and why I can't do this or that. I don't really have a good way to answer them since they're scattered throughout the comments. I'm up for suggestions, though, if you've been here before. Thanks for letting me know what's worked for you. Anything is worth a shot!