Favorite Foods

Michael and Matthew's eating habits really couldn't be more different.

It's hard to think of Michael's favorite food (as in main course) because something he gobbles up one meal, he'll refuse the next (though after a few minutes of pondering, we did note one exception to this rule being my dad's steak dubbed "Poppi's steak."

It's hard to think of Matthew's favorite food, because he gobbles so many foods up with so much enthusiasm, it's hard to know what is his favorite. You know, what do I prepare for birthdays and feast days that he will like especially? Pasta? Steak? Quesadillas? Lasagna? Hamburgers? Matthew loves all of these with almost equal fervor I don't know what his "favorite" is.

Perhaps Matthew is far less selective because I started him on a wider of variety of flavors sooner. Matthew, maybe once or twice ate anything with the name "Gerber" on it. Mostly, we just mashed or blended up whatever we were having very early on. Even the fruits I made him were hand-prepared so they had a much less processed texture, probably making him more open to different things.

They both eat well enough. They both love fruits and veggies and by the end of the day, they get enough protein that I'm satisfied. Carbs aren't even a question (except Michael hates potatoes that are not in the form of a chip or french fry. Super-healthy, I know!). However, I wish I could see Michael becoming a little more adventurous in terms of his likes. He is very quick to turn his nose up at the things outside his regular rotation of food. He won't do soups, I really have to work to get him to eat a sandwich (that's not a hamburger or grilled cheese (again, super healthy, huh). Thankfully, we recently discovered his love of peanut butter which is among the few things for which he'll ask for seconds.

Fortunately, I very early on realized (thanks again, Baby Whisperer!) how much eating for him can be a power struggle as much as it can be for nourishment. Michael likes control. He doesn't want me to have control, and he know that what goes in his mouth is something he ultimately has control over. I definitely don't stress out over it since I've seen him eat hardly anything, go to bed, and still wake up at the regular time in the morning and not complain about how famished he is....and I've seen him eat more food in one sitting than I often see him eat in a whole day. I know it all works out. He knows how to ask for a snack in between meals, and he knows that he gets more of what he likes if he at least attempts something he would rather not eat at the moment.

I guess I just would love to see him one day say, "What's for dinner, Mom?" and me announce some entree' and have him be really excited about it, eat it eagerly, and want seconds. I wish I felt more comfortable experimenting and introducing new foods without just knowing he won't even be remotely interested. Even though I know he's fine and won't starve (especially because he gets side dishes each meal so at least he'll eat something), it's kind of deflating to prepare a meal and have someone not even want to try it!

Maybe it's just a toddler thing, but as July inches closer and I'm starting to think of a great birthday menu, aside from getting my dad to come down and cook him up a juicy steak...what's going to make a great meal for Michael? And while November is still quite some time away, I don't even know where to begin narrowing down Matthew's menu to his *favorite* foods.

These two boys....I really wonder if they could possibly be any more different!