Battle of the Bulge

For quite a few months now, Becky and I have been having a battle of wills.  When she eats, she will often put something in her mouth that she later regrets, such as vegetables.  And so, instead of swallowing them, or spitting them out, she simply clamps her mouth shut and hopes it disappears.  She will even do this with a food she normally likes, but that she’s simply had enough of.  Tonight, after eagerly consuming a wedge of raspberry dessert, she asked for more and I gave her an additional sliver.  Apparently, those few extra calories put her over the edge, because she put that extra piece in her mouth and there it stayed.  And stayed.  I refused to let her out of her highchair until she opened her mouth so I could remove the remainders, but she stubbornly would not oblige.  She sat for a half an hour while Susie and I played and read books.  I kept looking up at her forlorn face – it was clear she no longer wanted the food in her mouth, but she simply didn’t know what to do with it, and she wasn’t willing to let me help.  I eventually went over and started tickling her neck, hoping to budge her into compliance.  She started giggling with an open mouth and everything dribbled out.  She was visibly relieved, and so was I. 

I’m not sure who won this particular battle.  I’m the one who caved and didn’t let her sweat it out.  But I didn’t have to pry open her mouth, which I’ve done in the past.  This girl has an iron will.  And an iron jaw!