Rowan had some quirks associated with his genetic disorder. The roof of his mouth is much higher than typical, and swallowing has been an issue since birth. We have a system down and watch him carefully when he eats. He tends to put too much food in at once — an entire hot dog, a whole slice of pizza. Enormous amounts of food at once, which of course makes him choke because he can’t possibly chew well with his mouth so full.
When he drinks, he gulps. The whole glass, all at once. It’s concerning, but it’s also just the way we live. For us, it’s almost normal.
Table manners? We try. The older kids are fine. Rowan struggles with coordination and motor skills. He wants to be independent, so we let him. By the end of the meal, the table, his shirt, his face, and sometimes even his hair show the remains of dinner. He’s not a picky eater — he has favorites, but he’s always eaten what I made, usually going back for seconds and thirds. He eats enough that the food that misses his mouth barely matters.
But there was one quirk that became a real challenge: he hated meat. Any kind, any texture, any cooking method — he’d spit it out. I tried everything: microscopic pieces, hiding it in other foods. Nothing worked. Somehow he could separate the meat from everything else in his mouth and spit out only the meat.
After a month of this, I asked his doctor. Rowan needed protein, and he wasn’t getting any. The doctor gave us several suggestions. None worked. So I switched him to a vegetarian‑style diet and got his protein in other ways.
This went on for years… until one day he just stopped. Now he eats meat — a lot of it — like the whole phase never happened.
Still standing, still feeding Rowan like a carnivore,
K.
I'm Still Here. Somehow... 