The Toothless Wonder
Enjoying some watermelon
It’s been well established that Joshua likes to eat. And I mean really, really likes to eat. I don’t think he’s yet to meet a food he didn’t like. This doesn’t mean that everything is his favorite food, but he will eat just about everything.
The problem with this, though, is that Joshua remains the Toothless Wonder. Yes, Joshua is now over eleven months old, and no, he doesn’t have a single tooth yet. There are not even bumps indicating that teeth are coming soon. Before anyone gets concerned and calls in the pediatric dentist, this is actually quite normal for our crowd. I didn’t get my first teeth until after my first birthday, and Nathan and Emily got theirs at fourteen and thirteen-and-a-half months, respectively.
While it’s not necessarily a developmental concern, it is a problem for Joshua. You see, while he will eat his baby purees (big tubs of fruit, vegetables, and meats) and yogurt rocks his little world, he wants more. Much, much more.
When we eat, he watches every single bite from plate to mouth and back again. He sits in his high chair, neglected Cheerios in front of him, leaning forward and intently watching every morsel I eat. He wants big people food so badly that it about drives him crazy.
The difficulty, however, is his lack of teeth. There are some foods that he can gum quite successfully. Lasagna, watermelon, blueberries, strawberries, cheese, little pieces of bread, and chicken potpie are some of his favorites. Some foods, though, just require teeth. Chicken nuggets, hot dogs, apples, and pretty much anything else crunchy is just a little too much for Joshua.
We’ve been working of late to give him more opportunities to gum and try real food. He has been loving this attempt. Thankfully, he’ll still also eat his baby purees, which help to ensure he’s eating a balanced diet. Hopefully, his teeth will start coming in sooner rather than later so we can really start giving him food. And everyone who’s ever seen him eat knows how thrilled he will be about that.
Was your baby excited to make the jump to real food? When did they get their first teeth?
