Meltdowns and Cantaloupe

This morning I was brave (or stupid). I took Bird with me to the gym, thinking I would let him play in the childcare room while I went to a 60 minute workout class. 30 minutes into the class, a gym employee came in to get me. Apparently, Jackson had been crying the entire time. I walked in to get him, and it was pitiful. He was having a major meltdown. His little eyes were red, he had 3 of his fingers in his mouth, and he was crying so hard I though he might hyperventilate. The minute I picked him up, though, it all stopped. The waterworks turned off and the cries turned to little sniffles. He patted me on the shoulder, smiled, and said "Momma." Everything was right with the world. I love my Bird, and I love that he loves me, but can't a woman get 60 minutes to work out?

Tonight at dinner, I offered Bird a new food. We do this daily, but he usually refuses to try it, throws it off his tray, or gags on it. He's not super excited about table food, yet. Anyway, tonight we started by adding a bit of peanut butter to the Nilla Wafers he already loves. He gagged and threw up, so we took his shirt off. Refusing to be discouraged, we moved on to something else. We offered a small chunk of cheddar cheese, but Bird promptly "shared" it with Rascal. Next we gave him some cantaloupe. He wasn't a fan of biting the flesh, so he sucked the juice out of his bite, then rubbed it on his bare chest. I laughed so hard I thought MY cantaloupe was going to come back up!

Can you see the cantaloupe juice on his chest?