It's a very exciting time when you start to introduce your baby to solid foods. A whole new world opens up to them and the dynamic of meal times around your house is about to change. This episode is packed with information that we simply can't capture here so be sure to listen to our podcast and we hope that you pick up something new or interesting.
If you have any comments or experiences to share, please provide your feedback - we would love to hear from you. In this episode we talk about:
- foods to introduce
- organic vs. non-organic food
- introducing solids while maintaining breast milk/formula
- ways to prepare homemade baby baby
- freezing/storing baby food
- snacks
- feeding your baby on the go
Most books and resources now say that you can introduce your baby to solids from age 4-6 months however your baby will give you signs that they are (or aren't) ready. If your baby is pushing the spoon out of their mouth with their tongue and it appears that they don't know what to do, it may be a bit early for them. However, this is a new experience for your little one so a little bit of confusion and awkwardness will ensue.
While introducing solids, there are many signs to watch for - namely allergies and digestive issues. Most physicians recommend that you introduce food one at a time, and offer it to your baby for 3 consecutive days. If there are no signs of allergic or digestive issues, you can add this to your 'safe' list and introduce a new food. To offer some variety, I would offer a new food while still offering the 'safe' food because if there were any issues, it was likely caused by the new food. Also, if your baby is refusing a certain food - leave it, and come back to it later. They say that you need to introduce a food approx. 10 times before you can determine that your baby doesn't like it.
Here you can see that Sienna wasn't so sure about kiwi the first time she had it, but after re-introducing it again at a later time, she now loves it! Most people, including the 5 of us started our babies with infant cereal. The easiest cereal and most common that people will start with is rice cereal. As Jenny learned, this gave Taylor some serious constipation and was only relieved with the use of an infant suppository that they picked up at the drug store under the guidance of the pharmacist. Sienna also had constipation issues when introducing rice and Selin then introduced prunes which helped alleviate any issues for Sienna. Ashley however, didn't have any issues with the rice cereal. I was forewarned however that rice cereal may have caused some constipation while oat cereal may have made her stools loose. These are normal reactions to new food and therefore, introducing solids can be a bit of a juggling act.
We all chose to make our own baby food and found that it was easy, cost effective and gave us the confidence that we knew exactly what was in the food we served. In this episode we talked about how we prepared baby food - bake, roast, steam - puree and serve (or freeze if you've made ample food to keep you going for a few days). Even though we chose to make our own food, there is nothing wrong with buying jarred baby food; and there are some foods that we do offer from the jar - because they are more convenient for travel and/or it's a finicky type of food that we just didn't have any desire to make at home (ie: prunes).
In this episode, we also talked a bit about organic vs. non organic food for your baby. This is a personal decision that everyone should explore for themselves. Buy local and in-season where you can as this will greatly benefit your baby's taste bud development and will help them appreciate texture.
Our Mommy-sentials for this week:
Happy Baby- "The organic guide to baby's first 24 months" by Dr. Robert W. Sears and Amy Marlow. The link to it is:
http://www.happybabyfood.com/our-products/our-bookWholesome baby food -
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/Phil & Ted's portable highchair - this nifty little gadget attaches to any chair and acts as a high chair on the go.
Baby Cubes - easy to use, BPA free plastic cubes to store and freeze your baby food.
Svan High Chair - this is an exceptional high chair that grows with your child.
http://www.svanusa.com/svanchair.cfmKiddopotomus Tiny Diner: Easily suctions to any table - great for restaurants or taking on the go to protect your baby from germs.
http://www.kiddopotamus.com/p_tiny.phpThe Safe Sippy: A wonderful light-weight, stainless steel sippy cup to help transition your baby from bottle to cup. We LOVE the safe sippy.
http://www.kid-basix.com/thesafesippy.php
