Dad tip #97: Babies need time to adjust to new food

This morning, when introducing our son to smooshed avocado for the first time, I was reminded that he's rarely ever had a distinct positive reaction to a new food or even a clear neutral reaction. Usually, there's some grimacing or even flinching of some kind once he's realized that he's tasting something he's never eaten before.

I suppose this stands to reason. If I were a baby and I had the tendency to stick everything and anything in my mouth, I might be surprised if I tasted something different that might actually be edible.

For instance, the first time we gave our boy apples, there was a lot of head shaking and squinting; basically the same reaction an adult might have if sucking on a really sour lemon. But, after the next couple of exposures to apples, he couldn't get enough. So, the advice is to not necessarily take their initial reaction as gospel as babies do apparently need some time to adjust to new food.

HOWEVER, Gerber 1st Food Peaches smell like @#$%! No really. They actually make my wife gag when she smells them. After several attempts at feeding them to our son (for which we sort of feel guilty now), we're convinced that he doesn't like them. We'll give fresh pureed peaches a go at some point, but we probably won't ever subject our child to the putrid concoction that is Gerber peaches.

Sadly, it seems, avocados are not on our baby's favorite food list either. But I'm sure that someday he'll love them on a big juicy bacon cheese burger smothered in swiss.

Ahhh ... some day.