I wanna talk about Pee...
(just a slight adaptation of the Toby Keith song from my last post!)
In my last post, someone commented that reading my blog was like reading my diary. And it's true - the communication revolution that we're in is all about the blurring of public and private space. Our class this week was about ethics, and I think that blending of public vs. private is a big part of that. Maybe other people don't want me to post pics of our cute kids together - I usually don't because I don't want to put others in a place they aren't comfortable. Maybe friends don't want to be identified by name in my blog - I usually try to use nicknames. Maybe my dear hubby doesn't want me to talk about our family with strangers - he'll get over it. So, where do you draw the line? What information is too much to share in a public forum like this?
Here's a funny story that I would not typically say to a stranger on the street (the same stranger who is completely welcome to stumble upon my blog and read a discussion of our family's bathroom habits). You decide - TMI?
So, we all know what eating asparagus does to you. It makes your pee green, and it makes it smell really funky. Oh, come on - admit it. You totally know what I'm talking about. Well we had asparagus for dinner earlier this week, and Jay was all over it. Like, all over it the way normal kids are all over french fries. (Sidenote - you're wondering how I get my toddler to eat asparagus? My awesome friend TOJ is a nutritionist and has recommended a couple of fantastic books by Ellyn Satter: Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family and Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense. I am a total devotee - Satter says give your kids what you're eating, and they will learn to eat a variety of foods. And it's totally worked with our kid! My mom says kid #2 will eat nothing but potatoes and vanilla ice cream. We'll see.)
Okay, back to the story. So Derek and I were laughing about how amazingly fast asparagus starts to work its funky smelling magic. And then we began to discuss what it would do to the little man. I mean really, 2 stalks of asparagus in a person with a body weight of 33 lbs has GOT to have a stronger impact than 3 or 4 stalks to a grownup! (No, I am not going to disclose my weight on this blog. See - why do I draw the line there, when I'm willing to talk about my bodily functions?!) So, anyway, we were making bets on how green and how horribly funky the diaper was going to be in the morning. But you know what? There was nothing unusual about the diaper the next day! Babies don't get the funky asparagus pee!
So, weigh in: Too much information? Or funny story? Or interesting scientific discovery?
Posted at 08:19PM Jan 27, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[5]
Scientific discovery. ... Don't get too comfortable, by the way, with Jay's good eating habits. Riley used to get much more excited about broccoli than about ice cream. Then he really discovered how good ice cream is and, around the same time, realized that broccoli... eh... not so much. He still likes more foods than his daddy does, though, so there's hope. :)
Posted by Amy G. on January 27, 2010 at 09:52 PM EST #
I'm so glad Jay likes a good variety of foods, at least for now. I worry that if I ever have a child, it'll be a really picky eater and that I will NOT be very patient about it. I have a low tolerance for very picky adult eaters, anyway. (These are things for me to work on before embarking on child-rearing!)
I have a person close to me who, when this asparagus-pee topic came up one time, did not know what we were talking about. While I have not made arrangements to do a sniff test with this person (ew, ew, ew!!), I am wondering if it's just another one of those genetic traits that some people have, and some don't. I joked that the gene for asparagus-pee-smell is probably co-located with the one for liking cilantro. We are, um, at odds about that subject as well. ;-)
Posted by Brandi on January 28, 2010 at 03:25 PM EST #
Do you think it was just absorbed into the diaper? Maybe that takes the edge off? Hmm...
Posted by Lisa on January 28, 2010 at 10:04 PM EST #
Well, one thing I gotta say. No matter what's on your mind, you find an interesting way to discuss it. I usually stick to much more generic topics, but you always make me laugh. So just keep talking about what you think about!
BTW, Jay's acceptance of the healthy foods in life are probably due to some extent to the fact that he has not been offered much else because of food allergies. So when he discovers the joys of ice cream and chocolate, look for a different type of appetite!
Posted by Laura on January 30, 2010 at 10:20 AM EST #
Hahaha! First, this post cracked me up! Too funny!
Second! This is one of my favorite topics! (Okay, well, maybe not really favorite of all time, but I would definitely say favorite topic involving pee.) I actually did a little research on this a while ago and found that it IS genetic (or at least it is thought to be). Some people have a gene that causes their pee to smell funny after eating asparagus, and some people don't. Even MORE interesting, some people DO have the gene to make their pee smell, but DON'T have the gene to actually smell their funky pee! Whoa! Who knew!?!?!?
I don't remember where I found all this information, but I found this on Wikipedia real quick - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asparagus#Urine ...though here it leads you to believe that perhaps everyone's pee smells, but only approximately 22% can smell it...which I find to be a ridiculously low number. I think further research may be required on my part...and theirs.
Posted by Ginger on January 30, 2010 at 12:44 PM EST #