the good, the bad and the ugly:

the good: milo is not allergic to nuts. on several occasions i've let him have a little of the scandinavian almond cake i make which uses real almond extract. the other day i let him have a sip of my morning peanut butter smoothie (one sip was not enough). and just now he got to try a butter shortbread cookie i baked earlier today that was topped with ground sugar and pecans.

the bad: he has started to assert his defiance. he gets whiney and cranky simply because i'm doing something other than holding him (like getting lunch ready for him so he can eat).

the ugly: in this new attitude-spurt he's entered, milo will often drop food onto the floor while sitting in his high chair. we consistently respond by grasping his hand and very firmly telling him, "no milo, we don't drop our food on the floor!" he will then proceed to grab another handful, look at us to make sure we're looking, and a devious little smile takes over his face as he extends his hand past the high chair tray and he drops the food on the floor once again.