I have a new feeding method for JonDavid…mix everything with cereal. Our first 2 kids were perfect eaters as babies. If I put it in their mouths, they ate it, with very few exceptions. Jacob refused squash the first time, but later on he even ate that. JonDavid, however, is breaking the mold. He ate carrots once or twice plain, but ate them much better mixed with cereal and juice. He completely refused white potatoes and green beans after tasting them. He gags, turns his head, and makes faces like you are just torturing him by trying to get him to eat these things. The only vegetable so far that he has eaten consistently is sweet potatoes (and I use the term “consistently” loosely).
I decided to forget the “introduce vegetables first so they will learn to like them before you feed them fruits” method, and I tried giving him some banana. He would not eat that either until I mixed some in with his cereal. I then moved on to applesauce. What kid doesn’t like applesauce? Well, apparently JonDavid is the one. Now, my other 2 kids have devoured the jar of applesauce. I salvaged some from the bottom of the jar for JonDavid to eat tonight, and he ate a couple of bites before turning his head, making faces, gagging, etc. I thought he must just not be hungry. So, I got him out of his highchair. He fussed and acted really cranky for a while, so I decided to try feeding him again. And again, he refused the applesauce. I made him some oatmeal cereal, and he ate it like he was starving! So, I stirred a little of the applesauce into the oatmeal, and he ate it up. The poor kid was hungry, but he was not about to eat that applesauce. Where does he get that stubborn streak?! I really think it is a texture issue for him, so I may just have to doctor up his veggies with cereal and juice for a few weeks until we can try finger foods. I guess we are going to learn what it is like to deal with a picky eater. They are all different, aren’t they?
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