Life on the line

John, checking out his own website. Maybe one day, he'll start posting himself.

Today is day one of Mike's new job as a picketer. I dropped a very nervous, agitated Mike off this morning. He's not a big fan of civil unrest - at least not the public kind. We have no idea when he'll be allowed to go home. He doesn't know who his leader is yet. He doesn't know when he has to go back. He has nothing for lunch, because he didn't want to stand around with a bag. I wonder if picket lines are catered. I suggested to him that we make a little wee picket sign for John, so they can hang out together on the line. He didn't see the humour.

John's doing well. We're plunging ahead with the transition to finger food, now that he seems ready and eager. He's doing well in terms of chewing and swallowing, but he's getting caught up in his tray-to-mouth technique. Dry things, like bread, are no problem. But I tried little chunks of cooked carrot a few days ago and it was a disaster. I was making dinner while he munched and every time I looked over, more pieces had vanished. He kept emptying his tray, so I kept putting more out, thinking he was doing very well. Then I finished the rest of his dinner with a spoon and lifted him out.

Left behind were dozens of tiny carrot pieces, wedged between the seat and cushion. I can't blame the guy - I remember doing the same thing as a kid to food I didn't like. I pity the person who bought one of my childhood homes - they would have found a pile of abandoned food and soggy vitamin pills I had chucked down the basement stairs. Thank goodness for dirt floors - it probably all became compost in the end.

I guess we'll jus stick to the dry stuff for a little while. Did you know that if mixed with a small enough amount of water, even baby cereal can be a finger food? We discovered that one last night, as John smeared himself and every surface within his reach with blueberry oatmeal. He had grabbed the bowl from my hand and was trying to pick up the goo inside, only to have it run out between his fingers. I added more cereal to make blueberry oatmeal balls, which he could pick up and eat by hand. Very messy, but he enjoyed it. Mike won't stay in the room when I'm feeding John anymore; he can't handle the mess. I let John "feed himself" with the spoon, and get his hands right in there. I'm definitely much more lax with the table manners, which usually results in a very sticky baby. Happy, but sticky.

Though, even Mike gets in on the finger food fun sometimes. He likes to send me little "gifts" through John - usually in the form of whole kernels of corn. It's amazing what counts as fun once a baby is in the picture.