Do Not Top Off

The other night Annie had expertly fed Julia a very full bowl of rice cereal / squash gruel. It was time consuming, but Julia ate the whole bowl. We were happy that it all went down so well. Julia, however, had other plans.

Julia had a cold and a snotty nose. This snot triggered her gag reflex, which then triggered an epic vomit. Annie and I stood and watched, incapable of moving, as the entire meal poured from her mouth and into her bib.

See where the bib says 'Overflow?' That is literally how high the dis-eaten gruel ended up (I emptied the bib before taking the picture - you're welcome). It was surreal. It was like watching time go in reverse. I could feel 10 minutes of feeding time being undone. It hurt. The whole event took at least 10 seconds. Once she was done, I took care of the vomit while Annie rolled up her sleeves and set about the task of feeding Julia another bowl. It was either that or get up in the middle of the night with a hungry baby.

Annie took the 'Do Not Top Off' warning on the front of the bib to heart. After every new spoonful, she would check for any sign of impending vomit.

That is why Annie is a better parent than me. I was prepared to curl up in the corner and rock myself into a numb 'happy place' state. But she got the job done, and we both got to sleep.