Salad Days (x-post)

[rj_anderson]

Baby Paul, who just celebrated his first birthday two days ago, is exceedingly active these days. Here he is doing one of his favorite things, hanging around my desk and trying to bash the computer keyboard:



I have discovered to my chagrin that having two other children has apparently taught me nothing useful as far as the care and feeding of toddlers is concerned. What works with the first, or the second, turns out to be completely useless with the third. At this point, in spite of all my efforts to introduce him to a wide variety of fruits and vegetables early on, Paul refuses to eat anything other than the following:

- crackers
- yogurt
- toast
- bananas
- cake
- guinea pig poop

The latter is most regrettable, I agree, but try as I might to keep the cage clean, he always seems to find them. Here he is on the hunt for more tasty goodness:



Why he should chow down with enthusiasm on pre-digested cavy leavings and yet refuse to eat peaches or scrambled eggs is beyond me. And any kind of protein -- even cheese, or lunch meat -- is just hopeless.

My mother-in-law says that my husband refused to eat anything but bananas and oatmeal until he was four. I never quite understood how that could be, especially as he was her sixth child. Now I know.

Cross-posted from rjanderson_blog, because yahtzee63 said she wanted to see some baby pics. What's a mother to do?

Comments

[ljrags.livejournal.com]

Has anyone mentioned that he is truly, truly cute?? {G}

[pameladean]

It's just like writing novels. Only with more guinea pig poop. Well, maybe sometimes with less; that would, as everything does, depend on the novel in question.

P.

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Right now I feel like my novel is about the quality of guinea pig poop, so it's pretty apt. :D

[peacockharpy.livejournal.com]

Oh, he's such a cutie!

Children's feeding habits flummox me. Meg, who used to eat everything, has now gone mostly vegetarian. Well, mostly carbatarian: she eats whole wheat bread, crackers, oatmeal, grits, and almost any fruit you put in front of her, plus vegetables that aren't green. Sometimes she eats a bite or two of meat. She prefers fish, though. It's just bizarre.

[drmm.livejournal.com]

My niece (2), my sister's second child, went through about a six month stage where she would only eat bananas and drink water. Given that she's a petite girl to begin with, my sister & her doctor were a little stressed about the lack of a proper diet. Fortunately, she grew out of it. Or else she discovered that strawberry milk and chicken taste good too. ;)

[zoepaleologa.livejournal.com]

1. Paul, whatever his dietary failings, redefines the word "adorable".

2. My daughter refused virtually any solid nourishment until she began day nursery at aged 18 months, where I was pleased to discover she ate sausages, peas and chips without a murmur. I was both delighted and utterly furious.

3. There was a case in the UK of a 17 year old boy who ate nothing but marmite sandwiches, and orange juice. Nutritionally, provided the bread is wholemeal, that apparently is sound eating.

[pwcorgigirl.livejournal.com]

Oh, he's so adorable! Baby days just go by too fast.

Guinea pig poo must have charms we just don't recognize! One of my friend's nieces ate dry cat food every chance she got when she was a baby. Mine never ate anything non-food, but he had similar extremely limited tastes. He basically lived on yogurt, bread, oatmeal, cooked fruits, and juice for three years. It must have been a healthy enough diet, because he rarely caught colds (remarkable for a little guy who started life too early and very ill).

[izhilzha.livejournal.com]

Well, apparently I refused to eat anything but cheese and Cheerios till I was three. *shrug* And to hear my mom tell it, the same--with variations on what food, exactly, was deemed acceptable--is true of all six of my younger siblings.

Paul? Is adorable.

[mary-j-59.livejournal.com]

Yes, I agree with everyone else; your little Paul is really cute! As far as the odd food choices go, he sounds a bit like my younger nephew, who is still a very picky eater - okay on the protein, but highly suspicious of fruits and vegetables. In spite of what seems a very unbalanced diet, he's basically pretty healthy. I'm sure your little guy is as well.

Oh - a friend, when I was describing my little nephew's diet, asked if he had allergic rhinitis. He did; he was asthmatic as a little fellow, and she said, "He probably has food sensitivities, too. Some children just know they need to be cautious." She, herself, was a picky eater as a child, and has a pretty serious peanut allergy. So it's her theory that, if kids are picky, they have a good reason for it and you shouldn't worry. I've got to say, though, guinea pig poop is a novel sort of snack! Makes me wonder; do guinea pigs chew pellets the way rabbits do? Is there actually any nourishment in this stuff?

[yahtzee63.livejournal.com]

How did I miss this? He's absolutely adorable, and look at that amazing head of hair! I'm sure his diet will iron out in time, and just think -- you'll be able to bring up the guinea-pig poop until he's in his 40s and heartily sick of the whole business. Thank you so much for posting these!

[bexm30.livejournal.com]

So adorable! And yes, being a teacher I see a lot of interesting allergies and preferences when it comes to kids' food!