I don't know if any of you know this about me, but I'm not an experienced parent. In fact, I only have six months under my belt. It's like an accident waiting to happen.
My friends (and family!) who have children don't know it, but I'm constantly observing techniques and methods for parenting.
It's true.
I'm like a little blond sponge, wherever I go.
Now I know I'm not a fool, I can figure it out – with God's grace and a million prayers. But I am still very thankful to be surrounded by amazing examples of what a parent should be.
I'm drawing on such examples for one of our newest challenges:
Starting the wee one on solid foods.
Here is my disclaimer: This is not a “how-to” post. This is a “tell-me-how-to” post. Teach me, oh wise ones.
I read this wonderful post over at Passionate Homemaking the other day and it got my thinking – how the heck do I want to go about starting all this?
Well guess what. I haven't figured it out yet. I suppose I have embraced a “we'll just jump and see where we land…” sort of mentality. I think that Lindsay makes a good point about being aware of the first foods you give your baby, as they greatly affect their development. I think she also points out an important fact: fruits and vegetables are the easiest food to digest, and thus, are a great starter food for babes.
So far, I've found that avocados, bananas, and plums are a success (that is, of course, if you consider food mostly being smeared on the face with a few bits actually making it in the mouth a success). She's still learning to swallow and move things around with her tongue. And I gotta tell ya – it's just wonderful to watch. It makes me belly laugh…which makes my belly jiggle…which reminds me that fruits and vegetables are also great foods for adults!
We have a large supply of homemade baby food that we made last summer, so I am beginning to bring it out of the deep freeze. Sometimes all that storing up like a mouse for the winter pays off! Free baby food? Why yes, yes that would be wonderful!
On a completely different note, GUESS WHAT HAPPENED. Remember how much my husband loves scotch? Well with his special birthday money (thanks Mom and Dad!) he bought himself a special bottle of this liquid gold. Last night at dinner, I tried it for the fifth time – AND VOILA! It was delicious! More on this later. Let's just say, I think Stuart won't have to divorce me now. Which is great news for everyone. Ha. I kid.
Well give me your advice on introducing solid foods parents. I dig advice. Especially my readers advice, because frankly, they are the coolest readers in the world.
Yeah, you. I'm talkin' about you.
Have I told you I love you lately? Because I do.
Kendra at New Life On A Homestead
Okay, here’s my two cents… and don’t stress about it too much, as long as you are feeding baby healthy stuff, it really doesn’t matter how you go about doing it! With my first baby, I did everything by the book, to a “t”. By the time my third came around, I was brave enough to just go with whatever. Baby Xia didn’t have solid foods until she was a year old. I skipped the cereal, and pureed stuff, and went straight from breastfeeding to table food! She did perfectly with it. Oh, I tried cereal, and I tried pureed baby food, but she wanted nothing to do with it. So I figured, hey, if she’s getting enough from me then I’m not gonna force it. When she finally developed an interest in food, all she wanted was whatever she could pick up herself- she wanted no help from me or a spoon! Of course now she feeds herself with a spoon, but she never did like me doing it. Little miss independent. Less work for me is definitely a plus!!
Okay, so what I was planning on recommending was starting with the sweeter veggies, like carrots and squash, before moving on to stuff like peas and green beans. If it tastes good to them they will be more likely to accept it, and learn how to take food from a spoon and swallow and all of that stuff more readily. That’s just been my experience, anyways.
Well, have fun Mama!! She’s just a doll 🙂
Kendra at New Life On A Homestead
Okay, here’s my two cents… and don’t stress about it too much, as long as you are feeding baby healthy stuff, it really doesn’t matter how you go about doing it! With my first baby, I did everything by the book, to a “t”. By the time my third came around, I was brave enough to just go with whatever. Baby Xia didn’t have solid foods until she was a year old. I skipped the cereal, and pureed stuff, and went straight from breastfeeding to table food! She did perfectly with it. Oh, I tried cereal, and I tried pureed baby food, but she wanted nothing to do with it. So I figured, hey, if she’s getting enough from me then I’m not gonna force it. When she finally developed an interest in food, all she wanted was whatever she could pick up herself- she wanted no help from me or a spoon! Of course now she feeds herself with a spoon, but she never did like me doing it. Little miss independent. Less work for me is definitely a plus!!
Okay, so what I was planning on recommending was starting with the sweeter veggies, like carrots and squash, before moving on to stuff like peas and green beans. If it tastes good to them they will be more likely to accept it, and learn how to take food from a spoon and swallow and all of that stuff more readily. That’s just been my experience, anyways.
Well, have fun Mama!! She’s just a doll 🙂