This is Max feeding himself. It is an awesome sight—for so many years, we had to spoon feed him because he lacked the hand coordination to do it himself. Max still likes it when we do it for him. But he adores sweet potatoes, and he was gung-ho to down a bowlful by himself.
Back when Max was a baby, I was surprised by the feeding issues. I mean, we knew he was going to be in for challenges, but I couldn’t have imagined it would take literally an hour to feed him because he pushed most of the baby food out of his mouth. Today, he’s gotten better at retention, but he can’t chew anything hard or crunchy, and so his diet consists mostly of soft foods. He’s a skinny kid, and I worry that he’s not getting enough nourishment—unlike my four-year-old, he can’t just throw open the fridge, grab something and down it (although when he’s hungry he does let us know). His feeding issues are also an indication of how, at age 7, Max is still very much dependent on me and my husband for his most basic needs.
Max has continued to progress in almost every area, so I’m sure that the feeding, too, will come along.
But I can’t wait for the day when Max achieves eating independence.
Ellen blogs daily at To The Max.