Food musings

I was reading Beth's recipe swap the other day (check it out!) This edition was on toddler food. Now, I don't have a toddler yet, but I will soon and I liked the ideas I saw, so I bookmarked it to go back to sometime in the near future. However, talking with Daniel about it got me thinking. In the Dominican Republic, there's really no such thing as "toddler food," especially among those who live in poverty. Babies and toddlers eat what their parents eat. Now, I know toddlers even in the States do this for the most part, but here, many baby's first food is beans. If I were Dominican, Jeremiah (at 8 months) would most likely be eating rice and beans, Sancocho, fried platanos, etc. by now (from my plate). I don't think either way is "wrong," or "right," but it's interesting to think about. Many Dominicans have wondered why I don't just feed him what I'm eating (which I'll do soon, just not yet), and one tried to give him some orange-oatmeal juice a few weeks ago (which, thankfully, he spit out, as I'm trying to introduce foods gradually, especially citrus fruits). Once again, it may not be "right" or "wrong," but it's an interesting cultural difference.