It baffles me what my children find to be irresistibly delicious. I mean, okay, the teething issue is one thing. I kinda get that they want to gnaw on something chewy and plasticky to get those pearly whites out. I remember dropping Adrian off at my gym daycare centre when he was teething outrageously at about 6 or 7 months. The first thing he did was grab a toy and shove it in his mouth (he also liked to chew on his own feet). The lady working there told me that until about 18 months everything goes into their mouths.
REALLY?
So can you tell me why my 3 year old is still putting things in his mouth then? I'm starting to worry he has some weird pica thing going on. Then I feel all guilty because when I was pregnant with both boys I had smell pica (believe it...this is a real condition...the actual pica itself it quite common in pregnancies. My Mum worked with a pregnant woman who's mouth would water when she would drive passed a just plowed farmer's field or piles of soil. Now THAT is strange.) For me though, I LOVED the smell of gasoline, permanent markers and garages. I didn't go out of my way to sniff these things of-course but when the smell happened to waft under my nose...mmmmmm. I couldn't get enough. Well, I didn't get enough because I didn't want to damage my unborn babies brains....or my own. But then I wonder anxiously....if I had smell pica while pregnant...what if I passed it on to them?
With the boys the weird eating and chewing obsession started with toys, then went to dog food (baby's breath after dog food has been munched on not so sweet...more like puppy breath) now it's anything made from a tree. Paper towel, cardboard, tissue, and books. Adrian will sit there and masticate on the corner of one of his books.
As for Finley, well he's been known to drool a rainbow of colours only to find bits of orange, yellow or red crayon in his pried open mouth chewed beyond recognition.
How does this happen when I'm right there?!!! Children can be sneaky when they know Mommy might not approve. Verrrry sneaky indeed.
Finley amazes me and simultaneously grosses me out with what he finds delectable. Right now he loves to dip EVERYTHING in ketchup. Eggs, grilled cheese and french fries aren't the only foods that taste great with ketchup. Clearly. Cheerios, apples and raisin bread are also quite scrumptious dipped in the yummy red stuff. He also tried to feed me a cheddar rice cake dipped in strawberry yogurt once. I wasn't convinced. Okay, so it was sweet and salty which does seem to be a big food trend right now (it is quite possible he could be onto the next taste sensation) but for some reason the texture didn't quite do it for me.
The days when they refuse to eat really tasty, edible human foods that I've taken the time to cook for them make me crazy.
You'll find me frustratingly exclaiming, arms and fingers jabbing the air all over the place "You'll eat dog kibble but you won't eat this delicious lemon chicken I slaved over for you! What is the matter with you!?"
Well, if it's not one thing it's another.
In another 10 years I'll be complaining that they're eating me out of house and home while gesticulating wildly at my empty fridge and barren cupboards, yelling about the dirty dishes trailing out of the sink and onto the counter top instead of being put in the dishwasher. Where they're SUPPOSED to be!
I can see it alllll now.
*deeeep breath*
I can't wait.
4 comments:
Very amusing and interesting. Back in the day when you were a toddler and smoking was widely accepted - you (Miss I Hate The Smell of Smoke!!) would eat cigarette butts. I wonder if you had the "pica" thing going on then or were you just being a toddler....? Maybe toddler's tastebuds aren't very developed - there has to be some explanation for it..right?
What in the world is pica...Im sorry, the east coaster is a little slow tonight...
Pica is a medical disorder characterized by an appetite for substances largely non-nutritive (e.g. metal, clay, coal, sand, dirt, soil etc.). A pregnant woman I worked with said that she would salivate when she drove by a freshly turned farmer's field or her kids were playing in a sandbox. It is not uncommon during pregnancy.
Wow, very strange, I have heard of that but didn't know what it was called. Thanks Ellen!
Post a Comment