Food fights.

I've never understood the big fuss over food. Oh, I admit I was initially one of those Mama's who read the guidebooks and fed the Captain exactly as the food nazis dictated. But when I moved here to Spain I decided that Americans are nuts and that I should embrace the Mediocre me. Baby food in Spain is interesting. No single pureed fruits or veggies, meat is introduced to the diet pretty early, fish is recommended from 8 months onward. The baby food labels included ingredients of salt, sugar, olive oil, etc. Bland baby food is simply not an option. So why are Americans so stringent on their food guidelines?

It's the same thing with pregnancy. As a girlfriend of mine, I'll call her "J," has repeatedly pointed out, it is impossible to get a consensus on what you're allowed to do. Go to any European cafe and you're likely to see a pregnant woman having a glass of beer. Consider having pate in some places and you're killing your fetus.

As J has also queried, why is it that we're so freaked out about feeding our baby spices and herbs? I mean, Indian babies must get Indian seasoning in their diet, so why shouldn't American babies? I couldn't agree more. Which is why I took a page from J's book and took the Captain for Indian food last night.






And guess what. He loved it! Not the only interesting food he loves, too. He's had foods with curry, turmeric, cinnamon, nutmeg; he likes garlic, ginger and onion seasoning in his food. In fact, he pretty much eats everything we do, save extremely spicy bits. I know, he's likely to change his ways in the future. But won't it be fun, as he's begging for chicken nuggets, to hang over his head that he used to love tepanyaki, chicken curry and hummus

As for me, the best part isn't just that he's getting a well-rounded culinary experience. It's that I'm getting a well-rounded culinary experience.