Little babies go from nursing or drinking from a bottle to solid foods slowly. One of the first foods are small cereal-like "puffs" that melt in their mouth. They love these things. Cereal is an easy food to give a child as they get older because it's got grains, it's easy to hold, the like the taste, you can put it in a little feeder cup, it makes them smile, and most likely twenty-three other reasons that aren't coming to mind straight away. In short, cereal is a good thing to a child learning how to eat solids.
As they get older though, it's time to put that cereal in a bowl and help them use a spoon to eat it. Also, it's good to add some milk to it. It is most common to see people eating cereal with some fashion of milk on it, as opposed to dry cereal in a bowl or cup (although that's pretty tasty too). But making that transition from dry to wet might take a bit of work, especially if you have balky children.
We've gotten there now, but it took some work. We had to select new cereals that my children didn't associate as "dry only" foods and introduce a small amount of milk. Then, we added a bit more milk to the bowls and after that we added milk to known cereals.
So far, they're eating cereal without a problem. Some days are better than others and some cereals are more successful than others. Children are fickle: some days they want fruit and dislike cereal while other days the fruit is of no interest to them and they want, "moi moi" cereal. But we made it. We have milked the cereal and they have accepted the new breakfast food combination as edible.
The Big Boy Update: Peanuts. Okay, I was very hopeful that the peanut thing we my son had going was a mild thing, but unfortunately, it's not. He didn't react to peanuts initially, but over time he seems to be more sensitive to them. Today, he found a Reese's Pieces piece in one of those quarter portion machines and before I knew it he had popped it into his mouth. He spit it straight out, but he got very red and itchy around his face and it turned into a histamine reaction that basically bothered his entire dermis. Benadryl and some topical analgesic lotion on bothersome spots and he's fine, but it appears we're going to have to steer clear of peanuts for a while and re-evaluate as his immune system matures. The good news here is that it's not a breathing issue, so it may get better or resolve over time. For now, we avoid and wait.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: Blueberry picker. There is a blueberry bush at school and the blueberries are turning blue and edible. The children enjoy picking the blue ones that have ripened every morning. Early arriving children get first pick, and the picking goes quickly. My son, even at two-and-a-half, understands to wait and not pick the non-ripe berries. My daughter is just happy to be picking. I had to remove her from the bush today so that tomorrow and next week there will be blueberries to enjoy.
Fitness Update: We're doing a lot of non-cardio, weights work in the gym while my neighbor's toe heals. It's a different kind of fun. I swear, I have arm muscles now. It is so cool.
Someone Once Said: Since when was an emotional argument won by logic?
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