Yummy!

It's a rite of passage which may not be popular with some parents, but we all give into it eventually: the first fast-food kids' meal.

In the past, I've thrown something together for Andrea to eat ahead of time, so she only got a few nibbles of Mommy or Daddy's fast food, as a treat. But tonight, I just didn't have the energy. This isn't something I plan to do often.

But I did have to laugh when I saw my daughter pick up that kiddie cheeseburger and hold it up to take a bite. It looks huge in her little hands! Needless to say, she thought it was great fun that she got to have her own burger, and tear into it at will. Of course, she only ate about a quarter of it, but we could tell she enjoyed the freedom of having a burger to herself, so she could pick at the bun and the toppings, and take a bite here and there as she pleased.

***

Also, Daddy was on a mission tonight: he was determined Andrea would use a straw properly by the end of our meal! He was getting so frustrated, because every time we put/she puts a straw in her mouth, she chews on it, instead of sucking. Daddy, through much patience and a bit of smart thinking, got Andrea to use a straw properly. She's almost 17 months old, and we could never get her to do it before! Daddy got her to suck liquid out of the straw that he had drawn up, and held corked with his finger; then, as she was sucking that out, he shoved the straw back into her milk, and she'd unintentionally start using the straw properly. After doing that a few times, Andrea put two and two together, and realized she could do it on her own, and draw the milk up the straw! It's funny how we've struggled to get her to do this for so long, and it finally clicked tonight. I think it was Daddy's little trick that made the difference. Way to go, Daddy!