Don't let your baby lick your piece of mango.

Unless you are prepared to start feeding him food.

A few weeks ago I let Daniel lick a piece of mango. When I moved the mango away, he lunged for it. Not wanting to part with my beloved mango, I mashed up a bit of banana, just to see if he would go for it. And he did.

I never really intended to give him solids before 6 months. And even then, I didn't see the point. Josiah survived on breast milk alone for a full year and that is so much easier than mashing up food. (Of course, at the time I was worried that he wasn't eating food yet, despite his obvious fatness.) So I figured I would get around to giving Daniel food, eventually.

But eventually has become now. He wants it. Today he was making his "I'm hungry" grunts. So I tried to nurse him. He nursed a bit, but wasn't super interested. I offered him rice cereal with banana and he gobbled it up.

Whereas Josiah would never open his mouth for a spoon and would immediately spit out any food you did manage to get in there, Daniel happily opens and swallows. The difference is amazing. Even today, Josiah gagged while watching Daniel eat rice cereal.

So happy 5 months, Daniel... you get some mushy food! He's only had banana, mango, and rice cereal thus far, but I have a feeling he will like about anything I give him. Hopefully this means he will not be the picky eater that his brother is, who screamed at school on Friday when offered food he didn't want.

According the HK public health system, Daniel's first two foods should be rice cereal and choi sum, a green leafy veggie almost like bok choi. But getting a green leafy veggie to the consistency that a baby needs is just way too much work right now!

I guess I'll have to share my mango.