The Straw- A Life Changing Invention

Who would have thought that a thin plastic tube with a hole in it would one day mean a small amount of freedom for me?

For a couple of months I have struggled to get Evangeline to drink out of a sippy cup. She never really got the hang of it. I’d have to sit with her at the table and give her sips from the cup because her coordination was not yet there to put cup to mouth and then, raise cup to drink. Then, as if struck by lightening, I had and idea, I could try to get her to drink from a straw. Three weeks later, I was still holding the baby’s sippy cup to her mouth.

One fine day in Hartsville, SC we went to a delicious fast food place called Zaxby’s (No Zaxby’s in AZ). I forgot her sippy so we had to use a juice box instead. We then discovered the secret to teaching a baby how to drink through a straw. We squeezed the juice box so juice would come up and out of the straw. That’s it. By squeezing the box with the straw in her mouth, she discovered there was juice in it. From there, Evangeline discovered that by sucking the straw she could get some very sweet juice. Yummy!

How is this life changing for me? Well, now she can pick up her cup and bring the straw to her mouth. This sounds like a small task. Do not be deceived my friends, this small task now frees up about a half an hour a day, and I’m not concerned about how much fluid she is taking in day. So not only do I have time on my hands, but peace of mind.

So to that I say, thank you Marvin Stone, inventor of the drinking straw, for making my life a little easier today.