Friday, August 7, 2009

Chow Hound

Moana has been eating a ton the last few days. When she goes into these growth spurt modes I end up calling her my little Chow Hound. Although maybe it's not really a growth spurt? Maybe she's just trying to be more like me... since Mommy eats all the time, I should too!

Yesterday, she had a bottle upon waking, then about an hour and a half later she ate breakfast: an entire banana and a bowl of 'super porridge' (brown rice cereal and lentils with a scoop of tahini mixed in.) A few hours later, another bottle, then lunch: 1/2 cup soy yogurt with sweet potato, 1/2 cup poi, and more super porridge. Another bottle, then dinner: 1/2 papaya, 1/2 avocado, 3 veggie cubes- peas, zucchini, and carrots, 1/2 cup soy yogurt, and a 1/2 cup poi. Then yet another bottle before bed.

The thing is, she just keeps eating the solid foods. I end up just cutting her off at some point when it seem to me that she's had enough. If left up to her, I think she'd just keep eating? She sees that little plastic spoon and she just opens her mouth like a little bird and waits to be fed.

So you can tell by the types of foods that I'm giving her that she hasn't really figured out how to use those two little bottom teeth of hers. She's still into the pureed stuff, for the most part. The other day we went to the pond at the park across the street to feed the fish and she managed to rip off a small piece of bread and got it in her mouth and seemed quite proud of herself for 'chewing' it, so she might be ready to try a few more food items that would involve a little bit of 'chewing'.

And if I look away for a second during the day, inevitably she'll find something to put in her mouth. Usually it's a leaf that she has ripped off a plant, but the other day I saw her chewing on something so I went to investigate what was in her mouth... it was not good boding to see a hairy little bug leg on her cheek. EEEEWW! I did the finger sweep in her mouth and pulled out a black beetle and the other leg. And there she was... with this proud look on her face... for chewing up a bug.

It does happen though that she discovers something really good, which is maybe why she feels the need to taste everything she can get her little hands on. The other day, all of a sudden she got really quiet, which is always a sign that she's into something she shouldn't be... so I looked down from my computer and saw this.

Somehow she managed to reach up onto my desk and pull down the last of the dark chocolate and mint bar that I had been slowly enjoying. It didn't take her too long to get that last little square into her mouth. Talk about a proud look on her face... I think I read somewhere that babies aren't supposed to have chocolate just yet, but I didn't have the heart to snatch it out of her mouth, so I let her enjoy it and took a picture instead. Turns out, a little chocolate isn't the end of the world for a 9 month old. In fact, it's the beginning of a whole new one...

9 comments:

GoBigGreen said...

OOh wait till she has her first cupcake and frosting:)

H said...

Ha ha I love it, a true girl can always sniff out the last square of chocolate :0 x

N.D. said...

that is tooo cute!! i'm looking forward to making all that stuff : )

Angela and David said...

I think chocolate is only bad for them if they are allergic. Zach has had a little bit as well (hopefully child protective services don't come to drag us off). And you've already got her hooked on the good stuff - no water down milk chocolate for moana.

Zach is now the proud owner of 5 teeth so he believes he is entitled to eat everything. He likes to shove it all in his mouth at once which makes chewing a little hard.

Kathy said...

Hey - I have been reading your blog for a while now and really enjoy it. Makes training for a Half in Virginia seem really boring, though!

Moana is so cute! My son is almost 10 months. Anyway, I am jealous of your success with feeding her. We are happy if Ben eats 1/2 cup of food per meal. It's like he gets bored in 5 minutes and wants to play swat the spoon when we try to get it in his mouth.

I have the Super Baby Food book too - wanted to ask - does your homemade cereal come out lumpy? Mine always does no matter what grain or how long I blend it and he hates the lumps and acts like he is choking on it. So disappointed by that. I guess I should keep trying.

MamaFeather said...

The chocolate face is adorable! So many fun things to look forward to...especially bug eating! EEEK!

X-Country2 said...

Atta girl. Way to find that chocolate!

Lizzie said...

I don't have a baby yet, but sometimes I think there are too many 'rules' when it comes to introducing foods to kids - maybe b/c there are so many allergies now? Moana looks like a tiny chocaholic in that photo - she is just so cute . . . and apparently very good in the stealth department! :)

Angela said...

Brayden puts us all to shame around here...my dad will let him eat so much his little tummy pokes out like he's got a beach ball in there.

Graham crackers are good for starters on something more solid. They dissolve quickly. At least she's a good eater though!

I didn't give Ryan sweets until after he was one...Brayden hardly made it to 6 months. He's a sugar-a-holic