not much going on...

So....not much happening except this:

1. We are now the parents of a one-year old boy, code named the A-dude, whom we brought home three weeks ago from Ethiopia.
   
2. I am on parental leave
3. I am trying to start blogging again
4. We are moving up to San Francisco on Saturday for ten weeks
5. I am still trying to finish my book (and write one chapter for an anthology and also two articles, but who's counting?)

On the issue of #3, above, I'm going to take a cue from The Dinner Files, which I hope you're reading, and start off with a discussion of what A-dude likes to eat, because that's pretty much what occupies my days these days. Here is what he likes:

1. everything

Seriously, the kid eats everything, with two exceptions: mushy cereals, which he is clearly outgrowing, and avocado, which he technically eats but only after spitting out once or twice. Sara G. assures me that food spitting is an important, though irritating, developmental milestone.

poulet

I've been trying to give the A-dude more spices recently, as we battle the giardia he brought home from the orphanage into submission. Above is chicken stuffed with garlic but as you can see from the picture below, I've been encouraging kitchen exploration.

Last week we pulled kecap manis, sour cherry syrup, tamari, corn syrup (shut up food psychos, you need it for shoofly and pecan pie!), fig balsamic, truffle olive oil and red wine vinegar out of the cupboard and got to sample them all. This week we're on a restricted diet because of the giardia meds (no dairy!) so we're doing a lot more tofu and veggie products.

I've also been trying to make some baby foods, though at one years old I obviously have to stop pureeing everything (but can be forgiven for babying him as I only got him two months ago). I made a mangu-like dish of yellow sweet potatoes, butter, milk and nutmeg last week that he also seemed to love.

I highly recommend this advice from Molly on raising an omnivorous child. And thanks to cousin C. in New York for our first foodie baby book.