Like Mother, Like Son

I despise onions.  Allegedly, this all started in 1983 (suspiciously the year my sister was born) at a White Castle “restaurant.” According to the only eyewitness, my mom, I threw up in the parking lot after eating a hamburger and begged to know “what the gwoss white thingys on top” were.  The rest is history, and 31 years later, I can't eat onions.  It’s been a struggle, and I am super awkward at Mexican and Italian restaurants, but somehow I’ve been able to make it this far and have had some amazing onion-free meals.

My onion phobia is a little tricky to explain on first dates because it inevitably leads to the revelation that I also don’t eat anything that is transparent with lines—celery, shallots, etc.—and then I seem like a raging weirdo.  Fortunately, I have been making some progress in peeling back my layers of fear (bam…pun intended!), and my number one roommate, also my mom, is now making homemade soups with onions and pureeing them in our Vitamix.  And, baby girl likes her some creamy soup.

The point of all this, you ask? Lately, my son EJ has been flexing his “I’m independent” muscles, which has translated into him making a stank face and throwing pieces of non-preferred food on the floor during meals.  I know this is what toddlers do, but it’s annoying nonetheless.  Since I am incredibly cerebral, self-aware, and enlightened, I’ve just made the connection that EJ’s food-aversive behavior mirrors what I have been doing to my friends and family for the better part of three decades.  “We’ll take an order of nachos with no salsa or guacamole,” “Can we just get a white pizza?” “Can you tell me how your risotto is prepared?” “Can I have shrimp fajitas with just peppers?” “I can’t eat this because the lettuce tastes like it came in contact with a red onion.” Eesh. 

So, I just want to say to my loved ones that I’m sorry and I’m working on it.  I hope EJ can work through his food issues soon too.