baby stuff again, including solids
Not a lot of exciting purchases made, but a lot learned! Solid food is breastfeeding round 2. Next time, I'll remember that it didn't work to force Alta to eat 3 meals a day right way. What works (I think) is to introduce the idea, give lots of finger foods, have them sit in their high chair for a few meals a day, until they start nursing a little bit less and want food! Here's how it kind of worked for us:
5 months - start giving her little bits of things - bananas, avocado, etc
5.5 months - start putting her in the high chair, giving her little bits of things anytime during the day
6 months - put her in the high chair for 1-2 meals everyday. give her some time after breastfeeding, even a 1/2 hour - hour.
Slowly decrease the amount of time between nursing and eating and if you get sad/upset that she's not eating the precious food you made, just don't feed her food for a a day or two. Honestly, it's not worth getting frustrated over because it doesn't matter. If you aren't there to nurse her, you can just give the babysitter a bunch of cereal puffs and she'll be happy as a clam until you get back. (maybe)
What Alta eats (she only has two bottom teeth)
Purees/liquidy food:
Oatmeal (cooked to death) made with water + a spoonful or two of prunes and applesauce and greek yogurt
Cream of Wheat with the same stuff above
Roasted Squash + Cooked Carrots pureed in a blender with chicken broth
Yogurt
Peas + Potatoes and Carrots
Squash + Spinach + Red Pepper
She loves the TJs soup cartons - just get low sodium and add rice cereal.
Finger Food:
Apple slices
Carrot sticks
Bell Pepper chunks (loves these!)
Toast
Bread with Peanut Butter
Bread with Avocado
Noodles
Peas
Hardboiled Eggs
Chunks of cheese
Steamed Broccoli
Chunks of cheese
Clementines
I think what you have to figure out from the beginning is if your kid knows how to chew or is going to attempt to swallow everything. Alta figured out chewing and chewing and chewing stuff or smashing things to the roof of her mouth pretty early on so I'm not too afraid of her choking on things. If your baby just swallows everything, you may want to avoid a lot of those finger foods. I pull a lot of weird stuff out of Alta's mouth - like oranges that have been sucked to death and broccoli that is smashed totally flat.
Also, make sure you are feeding your baby a balanced diet with fiber. I know that seems obvious but I was somehow feeding Alta the BRAT diet without thinking about it and making her life real sad. Spinach, Peas, prunes, peaches, etc are good options
Also, the straw sippy cups are great! We just started giving her formula tonight (at 8.5 months) in her old, soft spout sippy cup and have had some success. I'm not quite sure you pick the ideal sippy cup - probably depends on the kid.
We bought Alta a few toys for christmas but the most happiness has come from plastic cups, lids, spoons, toothbrushes, crinkly bags etc. I'm serious. I save safe garbage like crazy around here. She's moving from the biting everything phase to the clapping everything phase - meaning that all toys are clapped together, swung around, and shaken.
Also at 8 months, stranger anxiety. Look out.
5 months - start giving her little bits of things - bananas, avocado, etc
5.5 months - start putting her in the high chair, giving her little bits of things anytime during the day
6 months - put her in the high chair for 1-2 meals everyday. give her some time after breastfeeding, even a 1/2 hour - hour.
Slowly decrease the amount of time between nursing and eating and if you get sad/upset that she's not eating the precious food you made, just don't feed her food for a a day or two. Honestly, it's not worth getting frustrated over because it doesn't matter. If you aren't there to nurse her, you can just give the babysitter a bunch of cereal puffs and she'll be happy as a clam until you get back. (maybe)
What Alta eats (she only has two bottom teeth)
Purees/liquidy food:
Oatmeal (cooked to death) made with water + a spoonful or two of prunes and applesauce and greek yogurt
Cream of Wheat with the same stuff above
Roasted Squash + Cooked Carrots pureed in a blender with chicken broth
Yogurt
Peas + Potatoes and Carrots
Squash + Spinach + Red Pepper
She loves the TJs soup cartons - just get low sodium and add rice cereal.
Finger Food:
Apple slices
Carrot sticks
Bell Pepper chunks (loves these!)
Toast
Bread with Peanut Butter
Bread with Avocado
Noodles
Peas
Hardboiled Eggs
Chunks of cheese
Steamed Broccoli
Chunks of cheese
Clementines
I think what you have to figure out from the beginning is if your kid knows how to chew or is going to attempt to swallow everything. Alta figured out chewing and chewing and chewing stuff or smashing things to the roof of her mouth pretty early on so I'm not too afraid of her choking on things. If your baby just swallows everything, you may want to avoid a lot of those finger foods. I pull a lot of weird stuff out of Alta's mouth - like oranges that have been sucked to death and broccoli that is smashed totally flat.
Also, make sure you are feeding your baby a balanced diet with fiber. I know that seems obvious but I was somehow feeding Alta the BRAT diet without thinking about it and making her life real sad. Spinach, Peas, prunes, peaches, etc are good options
Also, the straw sippy cups are great! We just started giving her formula tonight (at 8.5 months) in her old, soft spout sippy cup and have had some success. I'm not quite sure you pick the ideal sippy cup - probably depends on the kid.
We bought Alta a few toys for christmas but the most happiness has come from plastic cups, lids, spoons, toothbrushes, crinkly bags etc. I'm serious. I save safe garbage like crazy around here. She's moving from the biting everything phase to the clapping everything phase - meaning that all toys are clapped together, swung around, and shaken.
Also at 8 months, stranger anxiety. Look out.
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