Hungry Hungry Helen

Much like the hungry, hungry caterpillar, Helen eats her weight in food each day. She awakens each morning, earlier than any rooster, and proudly says "eat! eat!" When she smells food she says "eat! eat!" When she awakens from her nap in the afternoon she says "eat! eat!" As often as the Weather Channel does the local on the 8's update or I have to endure another song from the Fresh Beats on Noggin she says "eat! eat!" Up until now, only her mommy and daddy could marvel at their bottomless pit of a child, thinking it a nice change from Little Philip who eats nothing but PBJs each day.

So this afternoon, I planned a little experiment. While Helen and Philip were napping, I started making our Cuban black beans a rice, a request by Little Philip. It is actually the only meal he has ever asked for seconds of that I can remember. Helen woke up at about 4:30 and, as expected, smiled that loving smile and said "eat! eat!" I gave her a cup and kept working in the kitchen. She would have none of it and walked over to the table, removing her bowl and fork to demand that I serve her.

After eating two bowls of black beans and rice (you can see the size bowl in the above video) as well as half a can of mandarin oranges, Helen eyed the cornbread and promptly demanded that Daddy relinquish his hot buttered piece, but not before retrieving her spoon from under the table, just in case the cornbread required it. Having removed all traces of food from the dinner table, Helen retired for the evening, leaving the kitchen in nothing but her diaper, heading for her brother's bean bag in the living room upon which she sat to digest her weight in food.