AJ put watermelon in his mouth!
That may not sound like a big deal to most but LET ME TELL YOU! It is NEXT LEVEL!
When AJ was little, he use to eat everything under the sun. Once he turned one, that immediately stopped – like the day of his birthday. We joke around now that it was the cakes fault. Once he tasted that sweet whipped cream, all other foods were out.
Funny thing is AJ actually hates sweets. Only chocolate for him.
Fast forward to the toddler years; he survived off food choices that could be counted on one hand. I wish I was joking. He is a dairy and carb boy. I mean, who doesn’t love carbs?
Carbs are tasty and all, but he needs veggies and fruits. We have been wanting to work on food therapy for years, but frankly, that was not a high level priority compared to safe behavior.
Fast forward a few more years and we are at today. He put watermelon in his mouth! Did he eat it? No. That will hopefully come in a few weeks or months. Yes, it takes that long.
Now that AJ has OT (occupational therapy) in school, I was able to switch his private OT focus on food. Beforehand, his therapist was focusing on academics and penmanship so he could be prepared for school.
The focus on food started this school year, so in August of 2019.
It started with having the food item in front of him.
Having him touch the item.
Using a fork to touch the item.
Bringing item (on fork/spoon) up to his lips and touch/kiss it.
Now he’s at the step of putting the item inside his mouth for a second. His therapist calls this the “hide and seek game.”
Eventually he will begin to “taste” it when it’s in his mouth longer – which will hopefully lead to him eating a new food.
This has taken six months. I am not sure his timeline in the future and I honestly don’t care.
I will celebrate him now. All of his hard work now.
This is how hard he works. Not many know the process but I am grateful to share it and hopefully help others understand and/or get ideas.
Cute video below.
Until next blog ❤
RAISING OPPOSITES 