Hudson enjoys his first taste of turkey

What a guy. I've been trying the standard repertoire of introductory foods...rice cereal, stage one orange and yellow veggies, you name it. But he had absolutely no interest. He wouldn't open his mouth, and when I tried to squish a bit through those stubbornly pursed lips, Hudson would give me a look that would make you think he was being force fed onions and lemon rinds.
Two weeks ago, I made a small crack in his diet code...soup! The kid slurped down pumpkin stew (heavily seasoned with ginger, go figure), chili, and broccoli cheddar (um, I know...he's not really supposed to be eating dairy- but it's probably fake cheese product anyway.) I felt a small victory had been made, but I was hoping to create an easy going (read NON PICKY) eater. So, I continued experimenting.
Thanksgiving was the perfect opportunity. Tons of different dishes, most of which I didn't have to lift a finger to create. I loaded the plate with a teaspoon of anything that looked mushy enough, nut free, and or something I might finish off if he rejected. My plate looked like an artist's palette- colorful dobs of this and that of varying texture.
The outcome: mashed potatoes, YES; corn casserole, YES; sweet potato casserole, YES; cranberry sauce, YES; parkerhouse rolls, YES (who doesn't like a roll made mostly of butter??!); and...turkey, YES!!!!! I've created an eating machine! Now he's happily gobbling up pretty much anything I cut into small enough pieces. He's still not crazy about baby food, but if I slip it in after the first course, I can get a few bites in before he realizes he's been duped.
Go me!
Also of note, at 7 (almost 8) months, he's doing the backward crawl, transferring objects quite dextrously, and successfully grabbing chunks of food from the table and shoving them clumsily into his mouth. He also tried to pull himself to stand yesterday on Owen's bedrail. Unfortunately, it ended with him toppling over like a tower of blocks that Caroline has discovered....
T-I-M-B-E-R!!!!