Liam continues to give us entirely new ground to cover. Having been parents for nearly 8 years now, we might feel tempted to think we know a thing or two about parenting. Liam, bless his heart, is out to prove to us that we know nothing at all. On the surface, both of my boys are very similar. Both are (and were) relaxed. Harry was such an easy baby, very adaptable and easy to drag along with us. Liam is the same, for the most part.
But there are some notable differences. Liam is a touch more outgoing at this stage in the game than Harry was. Of course, it’s hard to tell how this will all flesh out over the years to come, but I’ll wager that Liam will be more social and less shy than his big brother. Liam is more adventurous where Harry was (and is) more cautious. Liam enjoys being tossed into the air and being dangled by his ankles and trying to climb to new heights whereas Harry has always been rather afraid of heights and would freak out whenever lifted over anyone’s head. I never have to tell Harry to be careful; being careful is second nature to him. Liam, I fear, will give me plenty of gray hair and heartburn before too long.
And where Harry has always been the picture of health (save for a few colds here and there over the years), Liam has been another story altogether. First the RSV and need for a nebulizer. Talk about uncharted territory! Then this awful milk allergy and the need for soy formula. Harry’s never been allergic to anything a day in his life and I have absolutely no idea how to handle it or what to do if any other allergies crop up (which I’m starting to expect they will). And now? Constipation. Another health issue that Harry hasn’t ever had a day in his life. Of course, he was breastfed exclusively for a year before transitioning to cow’s milk. Liam has had to go on pure soy formula and apparently this has been quite a lot to ask of his infantile bowels. Yesterday was awful, the poor child was in such acute discomfort. He would go from simple grunting to screaming every now and then. And every minute of it tore at my heart. I’ve been adding mineral oil to his formula, we fed him prunes, I’ve been pushing apple juice… Kile even ran out last night and got some child suppositories to help things along. So far, all these measures seem to be helping. He’s having a much better day today. But Jesus, Joseph and Mary. I’ve never had to deal with this. I have no idea if what I’m doing is the right way. This child is doing his best to keep me on my toes, that’s for sure.
I can’t help but wonder what’s next. But then I try to ignore such thoughts because surely the worst thing you can do is ASK FOR IT, right?
