No Use Crying Over Sour Milk

My 1 1/2 year-old's empty bottle looked funky this morning. So I got a clean one, and gave him some fresh, organic whole milk.

At least I thought it was fresh. My wife bought it a week ago today, and organic milk lasts longer than "regular." Except that the expiration date on this milk was 1/11/09, or seven days ago, the exact date my wife bought it.

I absolutely never buy milk without checking the expiration date. That's why I didn't notice it being expired in the refrigerator: it wouldn't even be in there were it expired! My wife seems to be more concerned about expiration dates than I. If I recall correctly, she won't even use bread past the expiration date. (I think she gets it from her mom, who's even worse.) If it's a couple days past "due," but it looks and smells OK and has been in the fridge all the while, I'll eat it. I think most would.

But she missed it this time and, subsequently, so did I. I figure the milk has been certifiably sour since yesterday, because I actually had a taste of it Friday, and it tasted awfully strong. I shrugged it off then as my just not having had whole milk in a while and thus not being used to the taste. I shrugged off the experience in the bathroom later as just "one of those things."

I now know, thanks to Google, the "funkiness" of his bottle was due to the seperation of the curd and whey, which happens in this stage of milk going bad. The stronger-than-normal smell from his diaper is no longer a mystery, either.

As for the little guy, he seems fine right now. He's happily playing and tormenting his big brother. But I'll be glad when the sour milk runs its course by the end of the day. And I can guarantee I'll never miss another expiration date - at the store or at home - again.