Shortly after we arrived in Washington, it was time for Bethany to try solid foods. We started with baby rice cereal. In spite of my worries that she wasn’t ready, everything went well. As it turns out, Bethany is… wait for it… a spoon prodigy. Very quickly, she managed to swallow the cereal. See for yourself.

Before
After

Bethany is improving at eating from the spoon. Any initial confusion is gone, and she opens her mouth like a little bird when she’s ready for the next bite. Frequently, she grabs for the spoon or reaches for her bowl, forcing me to engage in evasive maneuvers to avoid having food all over both of us. Occasionally she gets distracted and tries to chew on the high chair’s tray or seat cover. But, most amusingly, she talks while she eats, à la Cookie Monster, but much cuter (and with less blue fur).

The menu has grown over the past few weeks. Homemade acorn squash and sweet potato have been big hits. Green beans caused a mixed reaction. She’ll eat two bites of green beans at a time without complaint and spits out the third unless she has something else in between. And then there were the carrots. Ah yes. The carrots. During the feeding, they were the first food to earn an official “yucky!” face. I’m still trying to wash the orange out of our burp cloths.

Regardless, trying new foods brings a lot of excitement around our house. Any suggestions for what to try next?