We knew it was time to start feeding her solids when every bite we took was accompanied by a gumming and snarfling noise coming from her direction. This was followed closely by distinct chewing motions and intense utensil scrutiny. It's hard to have a peaceful dinner when your baby is leaning cross-eyed over your plate with a large string of drool dangling precariously close to your meal.
So we slapped a bib on her, forced her into the sitting position and confined her to her high chair.
The first food we tried was avacados. I had read online that they are a wonderful first choice, so I bought an avacado, cut it up, mashed it up, stirred it up and stuck it in her mouth. The first spoonful she tolerated...The second one she complained about... The third one she gagged on and the fourth one she dodged completely... I tried the next night with the same reaction...
Having been disheartened by the avacado debacle, we put solids on hold for a few weeks. We resumed with peas, and after some success (there being no gagging or dodging) it was time to move on.
And that brings us to this evening...
Tonight's menu- carrots... Sure, most of them ended up running down her chin and landing on her bib... Some coated her fingers... Still others smeared across her nose.
And then there was the projectile batch that, when she sneezed, shot towards me like machine gun fire, spraying everything in its wake. Unfortunately my reflexes, slowed down as they are by fatigue and distraction, were not quick enough to save me from an untimely shower of warm, orange goo... And so, I sit here covered in carrots. There are carrots in my hair... There are carrots on my shirt... There are carrots on the computer screen... They are everywhere...
But that's okay. I gave up long ago my expectation to be clean and sticky free anywhere near a baby. I am sure that over time, I will be covered in much worse, and I will long for the days of warm, orange goo!
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| mmm...carrots... |
