Paul's Eating Habits

I'm hoping to save the contents of this blog somehow and use it as a quasi-baby book (since I haven't really kept one.) I mean, a picture is worth a thousand words, right? So we've got the equivalent of several volumes of baby books in our computer. But anyway, I decided to post a copy of an e-mail I sent my friend Carolyn about Paul's current eating trends. This way I'll have it down the road when I compile this blog into a DVD or something.

Carolyn and I occasionally exchange baby stories and advice. This time she had written to ask how she can get her little one to eat food that doesn't come from the baby food aisle.

Insightful comments? Well, the short answer is "not really." I mean, I feel for you. But frankly, I'm kind of in the same situation. Paul has a DEFINITE preference for the ol' baby food aisle himself, but we keep trying. I'm stubborn enough to be like, "Hey, I paid $20 for this food chopper. You're going to eat stuff I chop in it." But, sometimes, there's just no convincing him of the economic advantages to his eating what we do in chopped-up version. That said, I do buy very little baby food, and Paul has a rather small repertoire, but I figure if he eats some kind of vegetable every day--even if it's corn, I'll be happy. Here's what Paul likes:
Corn (and therefore mixing corn with anything else I chop tends to make it go over better)
Canned peas (odd, I know)
Frozen (cooked) peas
Baked beans
Refried beans
He did okay with the greenbean/corn medley yesterday
PB&J cut into small pieces (random really)
Grits
Oatmeal

Stuff Paul LOVES:
Yogurt (the American Pediatric Association book said this was fine; pediatrician said no milk, but he's been fine with it)
Banana in any form (Sliced, mushed, broken into chunks, right out of the peel . . .)
Nilla Wafers
Ritz crackers (we've gotten low sodium so far)
Goldfish (he prefers the non-cheese variety)
Pretty much any mushed fruit
Umm, ice cream (ahee)
Cheerios
APPLESAUCE (We've had the last couple of temper tantrums as a result of coming to the last of the applesauce in the bowl. He'll scream and throw stuff and point at the jar and look all accusingly at me like, "Grinch. I know you can dish up some more of this stuff. Get with the program." Smart, maybe. Frightening display of depravity, yep.)

So, basically, I'm sure there's more stuff he'll eat, but that's what comes to mind. He does okay with baked potato, but he's not a huge fan. He will not eat ground beef no matter how ground up it is with veggies in the chopper. I can hide some chopped up chicken, but rice is a no-go. So, if he doesn't like something, spitting being uncouth or too much work or whatever, he'll simply reach his little hand in his mouth, remove whatever he doesn't want, and throw it on the floor. What do you do?

So, speaking of camp, we were at the WILDS as guests for a day of the GFA conference, and we all ate in the main dining hall. So we've got to drag a high chair over (you know how there's all that space), squeeze Paul in next to a veteran missionary, move everything on the table within an 18-inch radius of the high chair, and attempt to give him pieces of whatever we were served. I noticed a lot had been thrown on the floor. At one point during dinner, I heard the gentleman on the other side of Paul say, "Mommy will get you your own, I think." I looked over to see Paul with his hand ON the guy's dinner roll. Yeah. That was after he spilled someone else's drink at lunch.

Anyway, probably not helpful, but at least now we know it's a common problem. I used to scoff at "the books" that said, "Don't ever force Baby to eat something she doesn't want. He'll come around in time, and there's no use turning meal times into a war zone. It's stressful for Mommy and Baby." I would think, "Well, that's just because they don't believe in spanking." Now I'm like, "Jon, it's fine. All the books say that baby's are picky. He'll get over it. Let's not stress. We'll just not give him too much sugar, and he'll eat when he's hungry." I mean we do spank him for some stuff, but I mean, really. When you're kid's gagging at you, how do you pop him and say, "No, no. We don't gag on lasagna in this house, young man."?

Well. Hope things improve. I mean. They will. I've noticed that it's pretty gradual. One day I'm like, "Remember when he wouldn't . . ." and I can't remember when things turned around.