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So DD3 is a great eater and drinker. Milk, water, occasionally 50/50 juice and water. Eats whole grains, asks for broccoli, loves brussel sprouts. Boiled egg whites and cheese are her favorite proteins - we do the cheese in moderation. Fruit every day, but in moderation.

Sure, we have more than our fair share of pb&j's for breakfast on daycare days, but it's low sugar jam and organic PB - just peanuts and a little salt.

Why am I overexplaining/defending her diet? Well, over the last few days she has been asking for more and more liquids. Also, her appetite has significantly decreased, and this is before she drinks. I can hardly get her to eat breakfast, and she pecks at lunch and dinner. I'm not filling her with liquids before the meal, she just begs for a drink and I give her some and that's almost all she will attend to. Today she has been chugging them - throwing her head back and gulping it down. No fever, just demanding drinks. She ate 1/3 of her lunch and in desperation I offered her some ice cream just to get some protein going. She took 2 bites and was over it.

This evening Crazz didn't realize she had already had a cup of water and gave her another when he came to meet me and some friends for dinner tonight.

We got to the restaurant and she promptly vomited like a water fountain all over the lobby.

We came home, took a bath, she said she felt better so we made her some rice and chicken noodle soup for dinner. She ate some, and kept asking for milk. I gave her 1/4 sippy cup and she chugged it. She then asked for more and we told her to have some dinner first. She ate and then started asking for water so we gave her 1/4 a sippy of water. She chugged that and then asked for more and we told her to finish her dinner. After more pecking she said she was done, and is now hounding us for more water. I gave her, like, drops in a cup and now I am scared. I'm going to call the doc tomorrow but I am SO TIRED of being in the doctor's office with her every week for something different. (Asthma, high fever for 4 days, it's always something)

I'm insulin resistant but not diabetic. I've always had it monitored but never had the extreme thirst, ever.

I'm so scared that she might be diabetic, but I'm also worried that I'm bringing her to the pediatrician in excess.

Is it normal for a toddler to only want to drink for a few days? Do I need to take a break from dragging her in for everything and just calm down. I know the rule is better safe than sorry but I feel like having a child has shoved me into the deep end of hypochondria for her.

I went through this with my kids. At various times, and even to this day, it seems that they only want water or other liquid. And then, like you, I start thinking "OMG DIABETES!!!!!"

And then after a period of time they start eating & drinking normally.

It could be something...or it could be normal childhood behavior.

Put your mind at ease and take her to the Dr. It's not excessive if there are legitimate reasons for concern and care.

My son went through similar episodes when he was 4 to about 8. Seemingly bizarre deviations from an otherwise healthy and nutritious meal plan. There were phases of milk, water, apple juice, icee pops, string cheese, cottage cheese, rice/bean burritos, plan baked chicken....and oatmeal. I swear he ate barrels of oatmeal Thanksgiving to Easter one year.

My son's pediatrician told me not to stress; that unless there was a material metabolic imbalance, my child would eat when and what was necessary for sustenance - which didn't always make life easy but did allow me to sleep at night. He wasn't going to starve to death or die of malnutrition.

If she's thristy, allow her to drink. Take her to the Dr and have it checked out. Could it be she senses that you are stressed over her eating less and drinking more - and she's just testing Momma's boundaries?

~ parenting, the toughest most stressful job on the planet.

disclaimer: I have no medical training AT ALL.

I would make sure that she is peeing and pooping normally. Right up until the vomiting I was really not thinking anything unusual, but the vomiting...

Could be she is starting a cold and her throat is sore and she is drinking to soothe it and over drank and threw up. ??

My mom used to tell me that kids would eat a TON when the were growing physically and eat next to nothing when they were learning.

I would go to the pediatrician or at least call. My ped is a gift at reassuring or explaining the oddest of childhood behaviors. And we've hit some that make him shake his head and shrug. But I always feel better for going!

Take her in. Catching a urine sample should suffice. If she's diabetic she will be spilling sugar and ketones

If there is no sugar they will also look at the specific gravity (concentration) of the urine looking for a different possible. cause of her sx. If that's fine she may just have a stomach bug and naturally doesn't want solids or she may be dehydrated from summer heat.

I used to think I was bothering the doctors too, but that's what they are there for and they are used to it. If you have a concern, no matter how small, just call and schedule a visit anyway. A mother ALWAYS knows her child better than a doctor. If a mother feels something just doesn't feel right, its your intuition speaking and its best to just act on it to be on the safe side.

Don't worry about bothering THEM. Your only concern is your munchkin.

Thanks everyone.

We called the on-call doc tonight and he asked a lot of questions about her urine output and energy, and wants us to watch it through the weekend. If the behavior persists we will take her in and I will ignore the fact that everyone practically shouts "Norm!" when I walk through the door.

I really appreciate all your advice and kind words.

Glad you called and glad you will ignore the outsiders.

Seriously, I hope all is well and I'm guessing it will be.

I don't know much about kids, but if she turns out to be healthy and just won't eat, can you try smoothies to get some nutrients in her? Greek yogurt or protein powder, berries, hide some spinach or other greens, a frozen banana (check pinterest for more recipes). Let her drink her dinner if she insists.

I'm also worried that I'm bringing her to the pediatrician in excess.

Jrazz, she is your baby and you only want what's best for her. Don't you worry about going to the doctor too much. You just do what you think is best for that sweet girl.

we will take her in and I will ignore the fact that everyone practically shouts "Norm!" when I walk through the door.

That is funny.

I think you do need to get her checked to reassure yourself that she is ok, especially since you are insulin resistant.

Kid do fluctuate the amount that they eat greatly. They will cycle thru times when they eat everything in the house and then cycle thru times when they barely consume anything. That part is normal. Even at 16 my DD still cycles like that. But the excessive drinking concerns me a bit so get it checked out.

You are a good Mommy

((((hugs))))

I will ignore the fact that everyone practically shouts "Norm!" when I walk through the door.

Seriously, it's always better to err on the side of caution. That said, it's totally normal for toddlers to have times when they don't eat as much as usual or suddenly get picky or hate a favorite food. I think the thing is to just keep being consistent but not make a big deal of it. If it persists into next week, definitely get it checked, but it sounds like she's a pretty healthy eater, so in the meantime, I'd just let her have what she wants.

The one thing in your post that I wondered about was your mention of asthma. Is she on medication for that? One of my friends has a son who seems to react to asthma meds by losing his appetite, so is it possible it's a reaction to that?

she may have thrown up because she has drank so much water. I know if I am super thirsty and I down a bunch I sometimes get sort of sick to my stomache.

We called the on-call doc tonight and he asked a lot of questions about her urine output and energy, and wants us to watch it through the weekend. If the behavior persists we will take her in and I will ignore the fact that everyone practically shouts "Norm!" when I walk through the door.

Glad you were able to talk to the oncall doc.

Fingers crossed for her to do well this weekend. In the meantime, big squeezy hugs to babyrazz and Mamarazz.

ETA: stupid phone!

[This message edited by nowiknow23 at 10:21 AM, June 21st (Friday)]

Awww Poor Baby Razz....poor Momma Razz.

I hope she is feeling better and this turns out to be a normal thing.

First, regarding the "Norm" worry.. please don't worry... With 3 kids & one being in an ear study we were at our peds office all the time it seemed & we literally were on first name basis with the entire staff.. & lie what everyone said.. that's what they're there for.. to put our mind at ease .

As for the drinking.. BTDT... DS2 used to drink & sweat so much he had my MIL convinced he was a diabetic with a heart problem.. our ped ran some tests & everything was fine.. DS1 is going to be 21YO & still sweats profusely & drinks a ton & is extremely healthy..

from what you wrote my opinion (& this is just me & I'm not medical at all) sounds like your DD is a bit dehydrated(could be from a growth spurt, lots of activity.. anything) .. instead of water maybe give her some pedialyte or Gatorade..

Oooh.. One thing came to mind while I was typing.. while it would be hard to get a finger prick on your DD to test her blood sugars heck, my 15Yo would scream & cry.. but why not go to the dollar store & Wal mart & get one of those pee on a stick diabetes tests? Yes, I don't think they're extremely accurate (especially for $ store) but it might give you an idea if something is going on..

good luck & keep us posted

Thanks again everyone. Her allergies HAVE been flaring up, but we had a good morning food and drinkwise and she went off to daycare without a hitch. We'll keep monitoring her over the weekend and I let her teachers know what's up. They are great about keeping an eye on her there.

but why not go to the dollar store & Wal mart & get one of those pee on a stick diabetes tests? Yes, I don't think they're extremely accurate (especially for $ store) but it might give you an idea if something is going on..

I totally thought about doing that! Actually, I should still have some protein/glucose monitoring sticks in a box somewhere from when I was pregnant... hmm....

Sounds like normal kid stuff. If allergies are acting up it feels good to drink. Washes down the drainage, releases the ear pressure etc. my son ran around with 2 sippy cups most of his toddlerhood. One with milk the other with water or juice.

He has allergies as do I. I know I drink more than the average person but when I figured out how much I drank (over a gallon of liquid daily) I was amazed.

Also if allergies are bugging her it makes eating less fun. Food doesn't taste as much, swallowing and chewing can make breathing hard. Make sure she's getting plenty of protein, milk smoothies etc and I'm willin to bet she will be fine. If your super concerned about the diabetes you can get ketone and blood sugar sticks at the pharmacy. She tinkles on them and you can tell if she has either. Normally she should not. If she does get her into the Dr.

(((((jrazz

I'm so scared that she might be diabetic, but I'm also worried that I'm bringing her to the pediatrician in excess.

Every single time I feel like I'm bringing Baby G into the pedi needlessly I end up glad I did. Every. Single. Time. (this is mostly because she never acts sick, even if she is). It may just be a little virus that your DD is getting over, but I think it's the right call to bring her in. I hope she's back to 100% soon!

Dairy products increase the production of mucus so if the allergies are acting up, milk can make it worse!!!