Sully's First Food!

Whenever I eat in front of Sully, I feel guilty. The kid stares at me, or more at the food that I'm eating, and it's obvious that he's curious about what I'm doing. You shoulda seen the way he looked at a banana the other day - I thought for sure he'd swipe it from me and shove it in his mouth (like he's been doing with everything else lately).

I decided that it's time to start introducing solids. He's eating like a horse, he can hold his head well and can even sit up with assistance, and there's an obvious interest in eating more than just milk.

A lot of people (on mom forums, mind you) have been saying to wait until babies are 6 months. These are the same people that say you should breast feed for two years. And you shouldn't put your baby down (attachment parenting). And that binkies are a sign of evil. And that moms should basically be finely tuned machines with no emotions whatsoever. Psh.

Sully's doc gave me the go ahead, and since she spent what was probably the better part of a decade (if not more) in school to become trained in issues such as this, I think I'm going to listen to what she has to say. (That, and the slew of mothers I know who have done the same thing.) Besides, it's eating! It's the most natural thing in the world! Why does it have to be so friggin' complicated?

Anyway... Before I start ranting... Back to the important stuff...

Hmmm. Now this is a HUGE decision. What will be the first food that he will ever taste?

We decided to go with sweet potatoes. He wasn't that impressed with rice cereal (it smells like it would taste like chalk, and since I didn't have the guts to try it myself, why would I continue to try to get him to eat it?)

So why sweet potatoes? Well, supposedly, they are easy on little tummies. Not only that, but they are full of vitamins and fiber. Sounds good to me!

His first bite was probably the cutest thing I've ever seen. The look on his face was a mixture of "WTF and COOL." No one remembers their first bite of real food, but try to imagine it now. You've never tasted anything but breast milk or formula, then suddenly your taste buds explode with whatever it is that your mom has spooned into your mouth. What. Is. Happening? This. Is. Awesome!

That's kind of how it went. He ate quite a bit, and as I kept feeding him, he got better with the spoon and with "chewing" and swallowing. We take eating for granted, but like anything else (walking, talking, etc.), it's a learned skill. And I have a feeling it's one that Sully will catch on to pretty quickly.

Cheers!