FOOD CRITIC

NATE EATING CALAMARI

When Don and I were expecting a child, we were hoping to have one who liked a lot of the foods we do. Well so far...Nate does. We're often amazed and impressed at his palate for a 20 month old. Below I listed a bunch of the more INTERESTING foods he likes, just for fun. Don't know how long this will last but for now, we're lovin' every minute of it. (now I have that song in my head and so do you..all you 80's teens).

1. Thai curries (yes even the spicy ones)
2. Vietnamese food
3. Indian curries
4. Edamame
5. California Rolls with ginger and wasabi mixed with soy sauce
6. Horseradish sauce with prime rib
7. Tempura
8. Anything grilled (asparagus, broccoli, squash, etc.)
9. Fish (grilled, blackened or fried)
10. Risotto
11. Calamari
12. Medium salsa (by the spoonful)
13. Chinese food
14. Mexican food
15. Tropical fruits (papaya, pineapple, kiwi, guava, melons)
16. Ceasar Salad
17. Spanakopita (Greek spinach pie)
18. Couscous

In fact, I think it's because of these foods that he hates these (haha):

1. Green beans
2. Steamed veggies

For Father's Day we went to BluePoint, a seafood restaurant. He scarfed down the Calamari and ate some of my blackened Mahi Mahi with rice and asparagus! I gave him a small spoonful of my Key Lime Pie and he didn't even bat an eye. I, on the other hand, made a huge puckered face from the tartness (it was really good!)

We started putting Nate on a more structured schedule and he has responded beautifully! The first day he was MAD because of course, mom and dad started taking away some of the freedom he had gotten used to. That wasn't a fun day, but the days after that have been MUCH, MUCH better as far as his behavior and attitude. Sunday he was perfect. I kept waiting for a tantrum or meltdown because he is always so overstimulated and over tired from church and people but he never did. He never went in timeout once and was happy and laughing ALL DAY! We praised him like crazy for being so good and mindful. I started doing something different and instead of saying "NO Nate" all the time I began saying "You don't have the freedom to do this or that". I couldn't believe what a difference that simple phrase makes. Every time I told him "No" before, he would become defiant and have a fit. This has not been the case since I used the "freedom" phrase. For example, I told him to play with a couple of toys I picked out for him in the living room. He did that for a few minutes and then wandered into the kitchen. I said, "Nate you don't have the freedom to leave the living room. Come over here and play with your toys". He ran back into the living and played happily. I was really surprised and I'm glad to see that he is happier with this structure (and so are we). That's not to say he doesn't have his moments (usually if it's naptime or mealtime) but we are down to only one or NO timeouts per day now. YEA!!

He's also added another phrase, "Shoes on." I hear squeals from Nate in the living room (and from Don) so it sounds like the boys are having some bonding time. haha. Tonight we are going on a MUCH needed date night. Whoo hooo! A friend from church gave us a gift certificate to the Olive Garden and informed us that they were babysitting for us tonight. Who were we to protest? We are very excited and Nate loves being around them so I know he'll have fun too. I'll post more about it tomorrow.

What are some of your favorite foods? Leave a comment!