Meet Mr. Fussy Pants

Scott used to be a good eater. A really good eater. The kind of kid who pretty much ate whatever we put in front of him.
Oh sure, there were some initial rejects: lamb? Yucko. Pureed pees? Gross. Ranch dressing? Nasty.

But for the most part, he tried it, he ate it - or at least a few bites.

No more.

Scott's new favorite game is called, "let me turn my head away from that in disgust and when you still don't get the picture, I will spit it back out at you."

The number of rejected foods is growing daily, changes frequently, and currently includes pretty much all manner of protein, vegetables and fruits.

Current list of acceptable food items include:

1) Waffles, preferably with syrup
2) Pancakes. And ditto.
3) French fries
4) Cheese quesadillas, and occasionally he'll tolerate chicken in them
5) Yogurt
6) Pureed applesauce, and occasionally pears
6) Soup in pretty much any form - except tomato.
7) Oreos
8) Goldfish
9) Pringles Baked Stix - pizza or cheddar flavor, please
10) Paper products of any kind

I have no idea what's going on with that last one. But every time I turn around, Scott is eating a magazine or an envelope.

The rest of the food items pretty much all have two things in common: a) they are carbohydrates b) they are predominately snack foods.

The one saving grace is the soup. I've taken to hiding whatever Scott rejects in my first attempt at dinner -- usually little bits of chicken, turkey, corn, green beans and carrots -- in the broth, just so I can be sure that my son is getting some kind of vegetables every day.

Tomorrow, I think his chicken noodle soup is going to be pulsed and pureed with a little leftover steak and spinach. Sounds gross, but I can't really think of a better idea.

Please tell me this is just a phase and he'll get over it. And soon!

No mommy. No veggies. I want Oreos!

Addendum: On Oct. 27, Scott added dog food to his list of approved menu items. Just thought I'd mention it.

My kid loves soup

No, I mean L.O.V.E.S. soup.

As in a freakishly weird, would-eat-it-every-single-day-if-I-let-him-kind of way.

Not that I am complaining.

Soup is pretty much close to the perfect transitional baby food. Depending on what you get, it can be packed full of carbs, protein and veggies. It takes seconds to prepare. It reheats well, so there's no waste. And, let's face it, it's cheap.

I first discovered Scott's penchant for this form of liquid nourishment when he and I went out to dinner with my parents at Olive Garden. (Daddy was working in Denmark.) I went through the effort of bringing pureed Gerber veggies, assorted snacks and even ordering a $5.99 kids plate of spaghetti, only to have Tank largely turn his nose up at all of it.

He was way more interested in people watching than eating.

But then Grandpa offered him a bite of his soup of the day. YUM! Scott ate the better part of my dad's bowl of soup, devouring it so quickly that we ordered a second bowl to go. Presto! I had two more dinners later that week.

When Jim came home, we expanded Scott's soup repertoire. Each attempt was an unmitigated success. Whenever we offer him a new flavor, Tank leans forward in his high chair, rocks back and forth and makes an "ehh..ehhh...EHHH" sound until I give him another bite.

Cream of chicken. Yes, please.

My Grandma Stecher's homemade tomato-based vegetable soup with steak. Absolutely.

Broccoli cheese. Is there more?

Tonight we reverted to the basics: chicken noodle (but with noodles shaped like O's and carrots. As you can see, it too was a big hit.

Scott is generally a good eater. So far he's tried -- and enjoyed -- green beans, chicken, cherries, pita bread, watermelon, ravioli, cheese, edamame, french fries and steak, among other items.

But who knew?
Soup = world's greatest baby food. Like, ever.