a warrior letting down her guard

She ate exclusively from a bottle for nearly two and half years.

I’ve talked about her struggles with eating here a few times. She’s had a past to overcome. Trauma from cleft surgeries to overcome. Deep fears associated with eating to battle against. Not for a second would I call her a stubborn or picky eater – I’d call her a warrior. She had to become a fighter the day she was born.

A couple of weeks ago, she has embraced using a spoon. It started with smoothies on her spoon. Then, on Thanksgiving she bravely tried a couple other things.  Now she’ll try just about anything, as long as we tell her she only has to take one bite. I can’t truly put into words how incredible it is to watch her feed herself with a spoon.
Yogurt is her favorite. She may be two and a half, but she’s never learned to chew like most kids her age – she’s got a whole host of new skills to tackle. She is a little warrior…one bite at a time she’ll conquer all those skills. While seeing her eat food from a spoon is so exciting….what is so much more powerful for us is what it means.

She trusts us.

Eating is such a huge fear for her – to see her trust us enough in this area – for her to look into our eyes and take a bite when we tell her she’ll be okay if she does it. IT IS SO HUGE! It is a milestone that marks something far greater than an eating issue.

She’s eating from a spoon. She’s taking bites of things other than her smoothies. She is looking into our eyes and trusting that we’ll make sure she is okay as she conquers these fears. She’s a warrior that is learning she can let down her guard and trust that mom and dad are going to make sure she is okay.