Could It Be Genetic?

For as long as I can remember, I have loved chocolate milk.

When I was little and visiting my grandparents, my grandmother would give my siblings and me one glass of chocolate milk a day. Grandma always prepared homemade meals, and I often found myself forced to eat a number of foods I didn't enjoy too much (like oatmeal, beets, okra, beans). After a rough day of healthful eating, drinking chocolate milk was heaven.

Somehow, I developed a habit of drinking chocolate milk out of a bowl (and sometimes a cup) with a spoon. In my mind, using a spoon to enjoy my treat made the chocolate milk last even longer. I didn't meet another person who drank chocolate milk like this until college, and yes, we are now best friends (we're just really awesome like that, Becca).

I haven't had chocolate milk in a bowl since Eliza was born. There is simply no time to savor my chocolate milk like there was before children (and yes, children are totally worth that sacrifice). I still love my chocolate milk, though, and so does Eliza. I attribute her love for the delicious drink due to my diet while pregnant. With both pregnancies, I had hyperemesis and was unable to keep any solid food down. The only thing I didn't throw up was Carnation Instant Breakfast. I am so grateful for that beverage and credit it with keeping me from getting a food tube again when I was pregnant with the twins.  So yes, my kids have been drinking chocolate milk since they were in the womb.

A couple of weeks ago, I gave Eliza a glass of Carnation Instant Breakfast and instead of gulping it down like she usually does, she ran downstairs. A few minute later, she came back to the kitchen counter with the tea set she received for her birthday. She poured her milk into a little tea cup, picked up a mini spoon, and proceeded to sip her chocolate milk.

Could a love for savoring chocolate milk be genetic? Quite possibly.