Today Nicholas and I took Jonathon to the doctor's office once again, this time to get blood drawn for a lead test, cholesterol test and I asked for an iron level (but we'll see if it gets done since I didn't see the nurse actually write that anywhere).
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At first the nurse was going to have him sit in the blood-letting chair but since the arm rest goes to his nose, we all thought better and moved to an exam bed where he could lie down. The first try on the left arm did not go so well. She poked him and he started to whimper. Tears began to roll and soak the paper. About 30 seconds after she started I looked over and she was still digging for a vein and my poor boy was being so brave. She quit on that arm, gave him a lollipop to take his mind off it and switched to his right. He had to be coaxed to take a couple licks, otherwise he just stared at her. No fighting, no screaming, no crying now, just layed there and stared at her while I continued to gently hold the lollipop arm and tell him how big he was. I think it made her a bit uncomfortable. Finally they tried on his right arm and it went right in and he knew it. He let out a cry, and the tears streamed down his cheeks again but he never fought, never moved. Nicholas stood by him and was a great big brother support, telling Jonathon that yes it hurt, and Jonathon should say Ouch, which he dutifully did.
And finally it was all done. With a bandage on each arm and a lollipop in hand, Jonathon was more than ready to leave. (The girls could learn a few things from their brothers in dealing with shots and needles. Both of them get themselves completely worked up and in tears before the needle is even near them. I guess that's the price for knowing what's coming next and remembering back to last time.)
In other news, I'm not so concerned about his iron levels anymore. I do want them checked to make sure he's no longer anemic, but he has finally taken to meat. He'll eat almost anything he can dip in ketchup, he likes hamburgers, fishsticks and chicken nuggets and get this, he'll eat a couple hard-boiled eggs a day if we let him. He has the bad habit of putting the entire yolk into his mouth, which obviously fills up all the room and takes a few minutes to chew and get down. I keep reminding him to take bites but it doesn't sink in. He'll also eat fried eggs. I made scrambled eggs once but he wasn't sure about those.
Of course he's hit the stage where he wants to do everything himself and hardboiled eggs are a great food for that because they peel so easily and are a quick snack he can do on his own. I've started keeping 1/2 dozen eggs at a time in the fridge and he helps himself though I do make sure he keeps it to one or 2 a day.
Periodically he's waking up dry. Tonight he woke up just before midnight and when I checked him he had taken his diaper off at some point, but his bed was still dry. He's still doing well with the potty when naked, and he's getting better when he has a diaper on too with telling us he needs to go.
The other day when we were getting ready to go out, he tried to put his pants on all by himself, and yesterday he was very intent on getting his sandals on without help. Yes, he did eventually need mom assistance, but the fact that he's finally willing to try himself is wonderful. The only part that has become difficult is teeth brushing. He used to have no problem with getting his teeth checked and letting me do a once over after he was done, but no longer.
He's very much into books now, mimicking everything we say and actually trying to correct his pronunciation when we repeat words slower. The more time passes, the more he closes the gap on Nicholas.
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