Solids questions

[linz]

How did you know your baby was ready? Did you wait for Dr to give you the ok?

-I ask because at their 4 month appt the Dr mentioned that we would discuss it at their 6 month. They turn 6 months on April 11 but their appt isn't until April 27. Wasn't sure if I should wait?

If you fed your baby oatmeal did you start with that or start with real food and then add oatmeal later when they eat more then once a day? I was planning to start with avocado but didn't know if that was right.

[kategm]

I waited until she was 6 months and it was convenient for me, whichever came later. Meaning, we were vacationing right around after she turned 6 months and I didn't want to deal with purées and solids when traveling. So I waited probably until she was 6.5 months to start. I didn't follow her cues really.

[degal99]

We started the day DD turned 6 months. First food was chunks of banana and second was avacado. We didn't get an official OK because like you, her 6 month appointment was several weeks after her 6 month birth date.

Oh, and she had been giving us signs like reaching for our food and mimicking our eating.

[smock]

I don't think you need to wait until the appointment. We started about a week before her 6 month appointment. We started with sweet potato puree, waited a few days, and then did peas, carrots, applesauce, and then tried oatmeal mixed with bm. She did better at first with really runny stuff and disliked anything thicker or with bits for at least the first month.

[kategm]

Avocado was the first food she tasted. Then I tried to do rice and oatmeal for breakfast as a "routine" but she refused to eat either of those. I had success mixing a fruit (banana) with oatmeal though.

[gibbinator]

You can start with whatever you want, cereals or vegetable or meat. Just make sure you're giving iron rich food, that's what's most important for bf babies after 6 months (hence why cereals are iron fortified). Meats are a really good source of digestible iron.

With ds2 I've been mixing fruit or veggie with oatmeal at supper time.

I'd just start when she turns 6mo

[sent]

We started at 6 months with rice cereal followed by oatmeal cereal and then I found a multigrain by Happy Bellies that she likes and still eats sometimes.

The first real food she ate was mashed up banana and I started it around 7 months.

She still doesn't like avocado.

Every time she is ready for something new like a new taste or texture, it's usually apparent. We'll try something new and she will take it instead of rejecting it. At 15 months, it is still a bit of a struggle to feed her because she can't handle mixing textures so the solid has to be chewed and swallowed before a soup or puree texture can be offered. She also can only eat a very small amount at a time so she has to have breakfast #1 followed by breakfast #2. To combine the two breakfasts means she will vomit.

[mrs07]

Started with purées of fruit. I wouldn't be surprised if the doc comes in at the six mo appt and casually asks you whether you've started solids yet, lol. I would go ahead and give them something choking safe whenever convenient to you and around six months, like if you are mashing potatoes and you offer a little mash on your finger before you add the milk and butter, super casual. Bc I personally regret that I was too tense and uptight about food with ds1.

[zarapipe]

hijacking- when you start how often do you feed? 1x per day? The same food for a few days? How much will they eat?

[kermit]

Mar 17, 2015 9:39:24 GMT -5 zarapipe said:

hijacking- when you start how often do you feed? 1x per day? The same food for a few days? How much will they eat?

I started at 1x per day but within a few days went to 3x per day because she seemed to enjoy it. The pedi said they wanted her on 3 meals a day by 8 or 9 months. She usually eats 3ish oz at breakfast and lunch and maybe 4 or 5 at dinner. I was told to feed her as much as she would eat. ( and not puke)

[linz]

Mar 17, 2015 9:39:24 GMT -5 zarapipe said:

hijacking- when you start how often do you feed? 1x per day? The same food for a few days? How much will they eat?

From what I read I think it's common to start 1x per day, about an hour after bottle or nursing. Then increase as they seem interested. I planned to start with dinner because I want to be the one giving them food at first. If they take to it well I'll slowly add lunch and breakfast and I guess increase volume if they are still hungry? It seems like all babies eat a different amount just like they eat different amount of BM/formula a day.

[ryry]

We didn't wait until the 6 month appointment. With DD1, she was ready at 5.5 months, so we started by giving her banana (we did a mix of BLW and purees, but realy only did purees at daycare for a long time). With DD2, she was ready at 5 months. I think we started with roasted sweet potato with her. We never did oatmeal/rice anything like that (unless I happened to have oatmeal for breakfast and wanted to share!). We would do 1x/day at first, usually breakfast or lunch, and then added on dinner.

[SJ]

At DD's 4 month appointment, pedi said we could try rice cereal but no fruits/veg until 6 months.

We tried rice cereal at around 4.5 months, but she wasn't into it. She also had Mum-Mums before 6 months and LOVED holding them/feeding herself.

After her 6 month appointment, we started with avocado and went from there. She has always, and still does, prefer BLW finger foods to purees, but we do a mix of both.

[theatre4life]

We started at around 5 months, after our pediatrician suggested it after our 4 month appointment. They pointed my in the direction of this website wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/solidfoodchartbyfood.htm, which I found really helpful.

[redheadk]

The pedi was adamant that we wait until 6 months due to issues with her reflux and weight gain. I'm not sure when we talked about it. It was prior to her turning 6 months but we were at the pedi at lot so it could have been after the 4 month appt.

We did BLW and started with avocado.