Don't Super Size Me

And we're proud of it!

One of the few parenting things that we'll outright brag about without apology is Lucas's marvelous eating habits. We credit this largely to a book recommended by many friends, called Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. That, and a stubborn streak on our part and knowing way too much about the food industry... Who would have known that having a baby would make one such a food snob? Basically, our strategy is: don't let him know what else is out there for as long as possible while helping him develop a taste for the good stuff.

Here's a sample menu from what Lucas had to eat yesterday (all organic and homemade): Breakfast- half slice of whole grain flax toast with natural peanut butter, a whole kiwi, some Oatios, and some of Papi's oatmeal. Breakfast #2 (yes, he tends to eat 4 small meals in a day) - scrambled eggs mixed with broccoli, quinoa, nutritional yeast, and wheat germ (don't make that face - it's really good!). For lunch - leftover bits of egg from breakfast mixed with hummus (with lots of tahini, garlic, and lemon juice). Dinner - lentils cooked with carrots (and lots of herbs) mixed with plain yogurt, brown/wild rice mix, and sauteed garlicky spinach. Snacks included veggie crackers, fruit, and lots of water. Yum.

That's not to say that he doesn't have his finicky moments. Unlike his Papi who can eat the same meal three times a day for a week in a row, we can't get away with feeding Lucas the same stuff all the time. There are days that we find ourselves scrambling for another option after Lucas spits out what he absolutely loved yesterday. And this is also not to say that he hasn't had a couple of lunches last week consisting mostly of cheddar goldfish/bunny crackers (we figure there are worse things out there...).

But in the end, our little booboo eats some variety of greens every day, mostly mixed into his food but also as a side for feeding himself. In fact, his diet is spectacularly more balanced than mine and Papi's. The beauty of having little cubes of frozen food available in the freezer is that we can always round out a meal for Lucas even if it's lacking for me and Papi. I'm still waiting for all of this to backfire and for Lucas to decide to throw the kale in my face, go on strike, and subsist only on cereal... but so far so good. In fact, he continually surprises me when it comes time to choosing food. On his plate he'll have pasta or tofu (two faves), some steamed or sauteed veggie, and some fruit. He'll usually gobble down the pasta or legume, and I wait for him to ask for more of that food and skip the rest of the stuff. Then he impresses us and grabs the veggies next. The only exception is broccoli; he'll eat it like there's no tomorrow, and it's always the first thing to go off of his tray/plate. That's our boy.

He also prefers savory tastes over sweet ones. If you put down a vegetable next to a fruit, the kid will consistently go for the veggie. We don't quite get it either.

So for this reason (as well as many others) and as long as we have some modicum of control, we'll stay away from the processed stuff, since it's likely that with his taste preferences he could potentially easily prefer hot dogs and french fries over the healthy stuff.

(Make your own McDonald's sign by going here.)

Snack Time

Here's Lucas having a snack at a local playgroup we attend every week.

Much has been going on lately. Last week he witnessed as I licked my fingers after a particularly yummy but messy meal, and ever since then he's enjoyed pulling his fingers out of his mouth with a pop. He's definitely into mimicking sounds and faces, and shows us so most every time we yawn.

Lucas cut his first molar the other day, which was no fun for him (not so great for us either). That now makes 9 teeth, and probably more but he won't let us check. Ouch.

Lucas continues to run instead of walk half the time (usually dragging the blankie along), all of which means that this has become the month of several goose eggs and a few bloody lips. We're continually amazed at how tough children are. I think I'd be crying and whining a lot longer...

And of course, Thomas. We found another DVD on ebay which features many of the songs/videos (karaoke style!) that are played on the t.v. show. We boogie to those in the background most all day long. There's one particular song about surprises, and they make their point by showing the trains being caught off guard when they run into each other or when they are derailed and fly into bodies of water or large piles of snow. Lucas thinks it's hilarious! Now he anticipates the crashes with a "ksh" sound and a giggle just before they happen.

Lots of joy!

Innocence Lost

Okay, it wasn't exactly as the title says, but today Lucas realized that he has more than one blankie. Our three other back-up blankie pieces are kept in his closet, but after doing the laundry on Wednesday, one of those blankie pieces was still left out. The original blankie piece was left in his crib, and when he turned around to look for his fuzzy friend, the clean one was available.

Later we were in the bedroom, and as he was holding the clean blankie, he looked down and noticed that the (other) blankie was in the crib where we had last left it. He motioned to have me bring him to the crib to grab it, then he suddenly realized that he had two blankies in his arms. His face immediately read, "Huh?" I'm not sure what I expected to happen; I didn't think it would be exactly like finding out about Santa well before you're ready but I still couldn't help but hold my breath. He looked down at one blankie, then at the other. Cradling both, he continued to switch his gaze between the two a few more times. Finally, he nuzzled his face into both pieces to give them a hug and slid down my leg to run off and play.

Phew.

There's no picture to go with this little story, so I'm attaching a random shot taken a few weeks ago at Tio A. and Tia's place:

This morning

In the front porch/storage area again. There's a large window in our living room that gives us a view of the porch and of our kiddo doing his silly stuff.

Pretending to drink cafe.

Here's our little booger in his new favorite place to be: the front porch. When Abuelo moved in with us, it became a temporary storage area, and we no longer went in there except to wave goodbye from the windows to Papi on his way to work every morning. Now that Abuelo is in the process of moving out, we were able to get rid of a few boxes, and the room has become slightly more toddler-friendly. Lucas likes to grab his espresso cup and pace up and down the porch while making sipping sounds or jabbering away to himself. Every now and then he'll offer to share it with you, but you have to be fast or he'll take away the cup before you get a chance to taste.

It's Cuban coffee, of course.

FYI

We've been struggling to format pictures the way we want... If you want to get a better look, apparently you can click on any picture to view it in a larger size. Enjoy!

Team

Lucas reads our blog, too.

Learning to spin

Here's Lucas after he learned to spin yesterday. We were hanging around in the living room, then out of nowhere he started to twirl, stopped to look at me, then we both laughed, and he kept on spinning (and falling from getting dizzy)!

Tea time

These are the things that our little busybody likes to sort: Tupperware, anything with a lid, graduated cups, blocks, books, and now tea.

Whatever works!

A Ver La Lengua?

Here's what you get when you ask to see Lucas's tongue, and he's usually very satisfied with himself afterwards. Most of the time he needs to grab it with his hand - maybe to make sure that his body is actually doing what he's asking it to do?

MLK, Jr. Day

We spent the afternoon with Tio A. and Tia W. at the Brooklyn Children's Museum. We're excited to keep coming back to explore the rest of the very hands-on and wonderful museum, but for now we're confined to the Tiny Tots area until Lucas can engage beyond the basic motor skills of walking and running into random people. Here he is in hog heaven and very focused. Play is serious business!

Getting wet in the special water fountain...

Jabbering at any kid who will stop and pay attention...

A padded, confined area for running free...

Trying to retrieve balls from the nest...

Making us fetch the ball after throwing it in places it shouldn't go...

It's the Little Things

This may not sound like a big deal, but one of the privileges of being a stay-at-home parent is watching the new revelations, the little every-day learnings and improved skill sets that go on in Lucas's world. They're so subtle or numerous that they're often easy to forget at the end of the day to recount to friends on the phone or Papi when he gets home from work. Nevertheless, I'm continually impressed and proud when Lucas reveals a new connection (especially the ones that adults take for granted and overlook) or improved coordination. For so long, newborns seem like blobs, then very slowly they become babies. But the journey from baby to Little Person happens in the blink of an eye.

These pictures show Lucas playing some xylophones. A few months ago he would just watch you play and shimmy along, or he'd grab the sticks and bite on them, getting really close to poking out his eyeballs or gagging himself. One day he got it - picked up the sticks and starting banging away, satisfied to be making noise and dancing along to his own rhythm. Other examples of things clicking include: recognizing the Pepperidge Farm cookie packaging that Abuelo tends to bring home and thinking that it's Goldfish (a favorite snack); new signs that help us understand what he wants/needs or is trying to share with us, such as "no mas" (no more) or sniffing every flower we find in a book, or making a sign for "fan" and having me look around until I finally notice the turning of a wheel or some other spinning object hidden in the landscape; stacking the wooden blocks instead of simply wanting to knock them down; surprising me with his language comprehension; being able to distinguish Thomas the train from all the other similar-looking trains that I can barely tell apart save for one or two minor features; and so on. In the past few weeks he's also moved from literal play to more imaginative play. A particular favorite of mine is walking into the room and catching Lucas on his belly "reading" a book as he jabbers away and gestures and turns the pages, or as he pretends to pick up invisible food off the floor and chew it with exaggeration. It still seems like no big deal even when writing it, but when you work hard everyday to care for a rambuctious 14-month old, the little things are extremely gratifying and turn out to be quite big.

New Toy - this time for Mami and Papi

Here are the boys in our new jogging stroller. We're members of our neighborhood parents' listserve, where we swap info and parenting tips, sell/give away goods, or just find out about the best slice of pizza around. Some very nice person with good intentions of power walking bought this and used it only once, then decided a couple of weeks ago to sell it to us for less than 1/3 of the original price. Nice! So far Lucas has enjoyed his morning jogs with Papi, giving Mami a chance to take a nap or get things done (jogging not included).

Stair Master

A big hug for Abuelo while walking up and down the front porch on a warm day. Now that Lucas can walk, he insists on grabbing our hands to walk up stairs instead of climbing them on all fours like before. As usual, this kid attempts to do things beyond his current skill level. Yikes.

Singing and Cuddling

'A Very Useful Engine'

I'm not sure what we're eating here but what we really want you to notice in these pictures is what's on the t.v. behind Lucas. "Who's that coming down the tracks? It's Thomas! Hello, Thomas! Hello, everyone!" Every Thomas The Tank Engine episode begins this way, and it's Lucas's latest obsession. He goes NUTS over Thomas, and there's no other way to describe it. We discovered the Thomas cartoon on PBS one Sunday morning in early November. Lucas was glued to the t.v. for the entire episode. We were a bit surprised, as before he would usually give no more than a few glances here and there at the t.v., watching maybe a few minutes at a time when some puppets appeared. But after Thomas was over, Lucas kept pointing at the t.v. for more while we sang whatever we could remember from the catchy song all day long. The next Sunday, we had him all revved up to watch Thomas. Eight a.m. rolled around, and... What?! No Thomas?! Where was he?! Out of compassion for PBS replacing his show that morning, I was stupid enough to go to the computer to see if there was a Thomas website. Of course there was! We spent a couple of hours that day exploring it and hearing that catchy song over and over, and every day since then, multiple times a day. To catch a glimpse of Lucas's daily habit, go to: www.thomasandfriends.com. You'll see the Island of Sodor as the intro. This is where Lucas demonstrates the sign for a fan (or anything that spins/twirls), the first sign he ever used with us (besides waiving). Then if you click on "About Thomas and Friends" to the left, then "Show Description" on the right, then the third box/image at the bottom of the page, you'll hear the "Roll Call," which is the song we sing to Lucas during diaper changes, on our walks outside, during mealtimes, when we wake up, when he's fussy.... in the shower, in our heads, in our sleep...


P.S. We feel I should point out that Lucas already has PLENTY of Thomas paraphernalia and doesn't need more. He'll probably move on to a new obsession before we know it, so for now, save your money and please don't send anymore toys or clothes! :)

P.P.S. It just so happens that Thomas the Tank Engine was created by the Rev. W. Awdry, a Presbyterian minister. Watch Thomas some day and it's likely you'll get a spoonful of Calvinist theology.

Blankie love

We've always encouraged Lucas to become attached to an object for soothing and comforting, but we never knew that the love affair with his blankie would get so far. It works like magic to help put him to sleep, and when he's tired, he grabs a section of it and rubs the individual fibers with his fingers. Until recently, our rule was that the blankie would never leave our sleep area and that it would only come out of the bedroom for a few minutes before sleep times - never outside on a walk or in his play area. We're not sure how that rule when out the window, but basically the blankie is now Lucas's next most important companion besides us. When he's really upset, he looks around the room for it and brightens up and giggles when he sees it. He hums to it and cuddles with it on the floor. He plays with it, making a tent and making me get under it with him, or mopping the floor as he pushes himself around on it. He also plays peek-a-boo, or just covers his head with it as he crawls and walks around the floor waiting to run into something that will stop him (usually me, trying to avoid head trauma), or (this is the most entertaining) pretending to read a book, even though he can't see a thing. We've got a wacky one, y'all. Just in case you're grossed out, we do wash and rotate weekly. Sometimes the blankie filth does reach the limit before laundry day, so luckily there are 3 other pieces in the closet.

Don't Walk; Run!

Love Bug

We've created a cuddle monster. This kid loves to cuddle and touch and hug, which makes sense for having two touchy parents. Being kissed on the face is sometimes still too smothering, unless it's time for sleep. We melt every time Lucas lays his head down on our legs or comes up to us to pat us with his hand or snuggles into our laps for long periods of time or gives full-body hugs (legs, arms, head, even his hands squeeze and hug!). Whether or not it's just a stage, we take every opportunity we can get to smother the poor babe. Whenever Mami and Papi are hugging/kissing, Lucas never fails to come up to us to join in (although lately he's thinks we should be pulled apart). Here I caught them while he let Papi tickle and kiss his neck as he kept leaning in for more. We figured he also liked the feel of Papi's beard. So yummy...

Future Futbolista?

This kid knows that walking isn't the fastest way to get around, at least not yet. So he'll still resort to crawling when he hears a song he loves on the stereo and wants to get to it quickly so that he can boogie directly in front of the speakers, or when anyone is eating something in another room and they haven't yet offered to share... The other way is to hang on to our fingers and run! Here he is in the Cleveland Browns onesie that his Uncle R. gave him, kicking the soccer ball around the apartment with his Papi. Isn't he a bruiser?! Check out those soccer legs (and the belly!). It's no secret that I'd prefer him to choose soccer over football someday, but in the end I guess I'll support him in whatever his interests are. Until then, we'll continue to cultivate his love for things that are round and that roll...

"Oh, Bring Us Some Figgy Pudding."

We wish there could be another way to format these pictures so they're more viewer-friendly, sorry... Here are a few pictures of dinner at our place on Christmas day with Lucas's abuelos, Tio A. and Tia W., and Tia W.'s father and his partner. It was close to Lucas's bedtime (which is why he looks stoned), and though he didn't seem too overwhelmed by all of the festivities and gift unwrapping, he was quiet and observant and clung to any person nearby. Of course, he received more goodies than he knew what to do with, so a lot of them went into hiding until we're ready to rotate the old for the new. We're kicking ourselves for not having caught any pictures of Noche Buena/Christmas Eve. We celebrated at Tio A. and Tia W.'s house with Tia W.'s mom, where Lucas had a taste of Momma P's figgy pudding and Tio A.'s very interesting chocolate-rum-kahlua cake.