Thinking about Packing!

Family date night tonight. Last week it was Costco, tonight it was Target. Boy, we have too much fun. But tonight, really got me thinking about packing. Exactly what I should take to feed this child in China? She will be almost 13 months. I kind of remember what La Nina ate at that age, but there is a big difference..Maggie hasn't been home yet. So, I can't assume that anything that worked with La Nina food-wise will work with Maggie.

The tough part of this is knowing what will she be able to chew. If she is still on a bottle, we will have to introduce solid foods slowly. I have read girls from her orphanage had a pretty strong gag reflex when introduced simple, solid foods, which to me means they weren't used to solid foods or they weren't used to Western solid food. I know Maggie has a couple of teeth, so she 'could' chew, but just hard to know if she has had the chance. At this point, I am leaning towards buying food for a younger baby, and supplementing with congee and chow mein. I am worried it may not be hearty enough for her. If I guess wrong, she will get hungry and scream to high heaven...been there done that with her sister...and we may or may not be able to get to a store quickly in China.

Of course, the other part of this challenge is we will be in a hotel room. Not a US hotel room, a Chinese hotel room where every drop of water will need to be boiled. Anything that is "Just Add Water", means "Just boil a pot of water, let it cool enough to not burn, then hope you boiled it long enough to kill all the bugs! Then if you have a rough night, remember what is boiled and what isn't, before you mix a bottle". Funny how the details of that first trip are starting to flash before my eyes. Hmmm...lots of thinking to do on the packing front. This isn't like just buying Size 3 at Costco and calling it a night. Goodness, decisions, decisions!