I like fish

We are slowly emerging from the black hole of 10 days of sickness. Ugh. We all had some form of this nasty cold, that came with aches, coughing and fever for some. As that was clearing up, I (and Chris to a lesser degree) got a stomach bug that seemed unrelated. But we are on the mend. I am feeling back to normal and so is Chris for the most part. Austin had it easy compared to the rest of us and is still coughing a bit but mostly fine. Bennett is much better, still with a little cough and runny nose but finally seemed his normal self today and took a great nap this afternoon.

So here is a funny story from before we got sick. Bennett is very sweet most of the time, but he has a very stubborn side that is starting to emerge more and more as he is 2. He has become a very picky eater and we have had many battles but this one is the winner. The other night I had made tilapia (fish) for dinner. I knew the boys would probably not love it, but I wanted them to try it. Austin made a good effort and ended up eating most of what was on his plate. Bennett ate all his sweet potato and nothing else. I was not going to force him to clean his plate, but I wanted to him to try the fish- I think trying new foods is a good habit to be in. Well, he refused to even try one bite. So he was excused but told he would have only his plate for breakfast if he would not try one bite. So we served it for breakfast and - predictably- he still refused it and yelled and screamed for some yogurt and granola. Lunch time rolls around- same thing. He was getting very crabby at this point (you can imagine how hungry he was) but very stubborn. I finally said if he would take just one bite, he could have a sandwich. But no. Then he was screaming and being very disrespectful and was put in time out. I said when he was ready to take one bite he could come out. He would scream "No, no eat fish" very defiantly, so he went straight to nap. Cried awhile but would not agree to try it. So now it was almost 4 o'clock and he got up from nap. He was crying for crackers, a sandwich, something. Again he sat in front of his plate, crying and starting to try to take bites and then upon seeing that fork near his mouth, would scream and refuse. I was beginning to wonder when it would become too cruel to continue, but I did not want to lose this battle of authority.

Well, suddenly he grabbed the fork and stuffed it in his mouth! Yeah, I thought, he finally tried it. I praised him over and over and then he said "mmm, yummy fish. I want more". What? I don't know if he was so consumed with hunger or he really liked it, but he then proceeded to eat all the fish on his plate in record time, continuing to say "mmm, yummy". I felt quite vindicated and glad I held my ground. He not only obeyed but learned sometimes it really is yummy.The rest of the day he kept saying "I ate fish. Made a good choice" over and over again.

Here he is moments after eating the first bite...he surprised us all.

We have had a few battles since, but in the end he fairly quickly will at least try something now. Whew, it was hard work though. I think this boy is going to give us many times to test our authority and push boundaries as he gets older. I love him though! He is currently pushing boundaries of getting out of bed and starting to learn how to push his older brother's buttons and annoy him. Always interesting. I am reading a book called "Creative Correction" though and it is giving me lots of new ideas for both these little guys, who seem to be determined to do things their own way lately.