The boy is a vegetarian for now!

At our last appointment, our pediatrician gave us a feeding chart that told us when we could introduce different foods to Bear. The chart said that we could start with vegetables, then feed him meats, then fruits. The doctor said we could feed fruits whenever we wanted, but the chart puts them last so that babies don't get used to the sweet taste of them and then only prefer sweet things. Apparently, there's been some research lately that says that's a load of horse hockey, so Bear's been eating just about any fruits and vegetables that are appropriate for his age. Well, a few months ago, I got baby food happy and bought all different kinds of jarred commercial baby food. Bear's eaten just about everything I bought, but there has been this lone little jar of chicken in the cabinet for some time. I decided to try it today, and all I can really say is EEEEEWWWWW! I opened it and sniffed just out of curiosity, and was I ever sorry! It was more pungent than the wet food we feed to our dogs. If I based what I fed to Bear on smell, though, he'd never get any formula, because that doesn't smell especially appetizing. I thought maybe that was just how baby food smells, so I put some in a bowl and prepared to feed the boy. The dogs were begging at my feet since I opened the jar, by the way, just to give you an idea of how strongly it smelled. They sat right under the highchair for the two bites that Bear tried and then they finished the meal for him. Bear ended up opting for a mixture of sweet potatoes, peas and potatoes for lunch. Needless to say, meat is off the menu for a while. I've been making most of Bear's food anyhow, although some of it he prefers jarred. Peas, for example...I don't know if it's a texture thing or what, but he prefers the jarred kind, so I indulge him. He loves all the fruit I've made so far though and if I mix some formula in the veggies, he'll usually eat them. I'm not quite sure how to make meat for babies. I'll have to do some research, but I'm not worried about it for now. I've definitely learned my lesson for the day: If it smells bad, feed it to the dogs.