Brian Want A Cracker?!

Last night, we gave Brian his first "biter biscuit". Dan bought a box of zwieback toast, and when Brian began fussing during dinnertime, we decided to let him try a cracker.

Dan put the cracker into Brian's hand, and he stared at it for a few seconds. Then he began to vigorously shake it up and down, obviously thinking it was some sort of unusual rattle. When it failed to make any noises, he transferred it to his left hand and tried again. Still no satisfying rattling sounds. His face fell, and he began to cry once again.

So Dan helped him bring the cracker to his mouth. He made a horrible face, and pulled the dry, crusty cracker away from his lips. After banging it on his tray a few times, he again put it into his mouth. He repeated the cycle multiple times, stopping to try the rattle trick every so often, until the cracker finally became mushy enough for him to taste.

His eyes lit up. Aha! This was some sort of food! Within minutes, smashed toast was caked in his hair, all over his clothes, between his fingers, and on his eyes, mouth and nose. We were kept busy making sure that no small "choking hazard" pieces made it into his mouth whole, and, while he seemed to enjoy this new experience immensely, it certainly didn't make dinner any more quiet and peaceful for the rest of us.

I'm not sure he actually really ingested any of the cracker, since it seemed that there was an awful lot of mush on his high chair, clothing and body. He needed a full bath and change of clothing once dinner was over. So for now, I've put the crackers up on a shelf for later use. I think we'll stick with the pureed fruits and veggies for a bit longer...