The on/off switch on Mia's appetite

About a month ago Mia started eating quite a bit. Long-time readers will recall that we've always had problems with Mia's eating, to the extent that we always get her weight and height checked when we go to the pediatrician and make sure her height-to-weight ratio is fine. It always is, but she doesn't have a lot of wiggle room for, say, illness, when you don't feel like eating. But she's always been healthy, so we just deal with it. But then, about a month ago, she started eating.

We're not sure what happened. She started by chowing down on cereal in the morning, plus a peanut bar while I was taking her to school. She was doing well at school, too. Then she started eating dinner even if it was stuff she had never eaten before. Usually, she doesn't want to try new things even if we explain that it's, say, chicken, which she generally likes. But if it's strange chicken, she wants it not! But she began trying almost everything we put in front of her. It was quite bizarre.

We couldn't explain it. Her PT suggested that she might be ready to have a growth spurt, something the body can anticipate and therefore forces more eating to compensate for that. It makes sense, and we haven't been measuring her recently, so we don't know how tall she is. I'm not sure if she has started growing or if it's still coming. We'll see.

I told Krys that we should enjoy it while we can, because I knew it wouldn't last. Well, a month later, and she's not going as strong, but she's still eating fairly well. She isn't stuffing cereal in her mouth as much, and she no longer gets a peanut bar on the way to school (that's punishment; her pinching has become worse and we don't know how to stop it), and she hasn't been as enthusiastic about new dinner, but she's still eating more than she was a six weeks ago, when we thought we would have to get a GI specialist and possibly a psychologist to examine her. We still might down the road if she goes back to her old habits.

It's always strange trying to puzzle out Mia's pathology. What's going on in her head? Why does she occasionally eat very well and at other times drive us insane by not eating anything? It's very weird, because it's not like Norah, who eats fairly normally. Mia, of course, has issues, so we're just wondering what her injury did to her taste buds and the connection between her brain and her stomach. We're extremely glad we don't have to feed her through a tube (we've done that, and it really sucks), but it's still frustrating dealing with the vagaries of her eating habits. Right now we're enjoying a nice crest in her appetite, even though we're certain it will change soon. Oh well.

People are stinky!

I took Mia to school on Monday morning, as I always do. As I got her wheelchair out of the van, I noticed that a BMW convertible was blocking the handicapped ramp leading onto the sidewalk in front of her school. People often do this; many parents drop their kids off and the long curb in front of the school is usually crowded, so they park in front of the ramp. I've had to wait before for people to notice that somebody actually wants to use the ramp, but they usually see me, give an embarrassed smile, and move on.

So I put Mia in her chair and walked across the parking lot. I was looking at the woman in the BMW, because she seemed to be talking to her kid in the car. She was looking at the passenger side (which was the school side) and I could see her hands moving. Then I realized her kid was already out of the car, up by the school, and almost out of her line of vision. And she was still saying goodbye to him (or her; I couldn't tell). As I drew closer, I figured she had to move, because her child was long gone. As I got to within five feet of the driver's door, she pulled out a Blackberry and started using it. Yes, while sitting in the parking lot blocking the handicapped ramp.

I stood and tried to make myself obvious. I didn't want to knock on her window just yet, preferring instead to let her notice me. An SUV pulled out of its space a few cars behind her and drove toward me, but I was now blocking its egress. Someone beeped their horn. This woman simply kept using her device, oblivious. Finally, I knocked gently on her window.

She looked over at me (and, I should point out, my daughter in a wheelchair) and didn't exactly give me a dirty look, but more like a "Oh, fine, I'll move" look, as if I was really putting her out for making her stop using her Blackberry. She pulled away and I was finally able to take my disabled child to her class. How nice!

When I came out, she had moved down to the end of the curb and was still using her Blackberry. Man, I hope that was important.

I'm sure most people realize this, but you never notice stuff until it affects you directly. Many people probably wouldn't think anything of a car blocking the handicapped ramp, because you don't have to use it. Before Mia's accident, I wouldn't think anything of it either. I didn't have a problem with her parking there, because, as I mentioned, it's often hard to get to the curb. I do have a problem with someone being so wrapped up in their little world that they fail to notice what they're doing. It pisses me off when the people give me their sheepish smile, even if they're being nice. The reason it pisses me off even then is because they never even thought there's a possibility of a person needing that ramp. Why do you think it's there? Not for decoration!

I just thought this woman was humorous. I wonder if she wrote in her e-mail or told the person she was texting about the jerk who made her move. I hope so.