Solids: Feeders/Mesh Strainers

[catbus]

Spun, have you started solids yet? What approach are you taking (baby-led weaning/table foods, purées, other...?).

[jennlin]

we have/had (i think i returned them?) the munchkin brand ones....i didn't find them necessary as long as i cooked the veggies long enough.

[catbus]

This sounds almost exactly like us. We also planned on six months, but in the past month or so E has been so incredibly interested in what we're eating or drinking, and reaches out to grab at our utensils and food. So last week I finally started offering him things. Day one was sliced avocado--like Thor, he was apparently disgusted by it! He didn't even try to put it in his mouth (which I know is normal), and just looked grossed out by it when he'd touch it. Then I'd pick up a piece and eat it, and he acted super interested again, but as soon as he touched it he gave me the "WTF?!" look again. LOL.
Steamed butternut squash slices were a bit more of a hit. He enjoyed squishing them in his hands and licking his fingers. I also plan to do oven sweet potato "fries" like you did.
We did hummus on Sunday (a baby-friendly homemade version--no tahini, almost no salt). BIG HIT. I loaded a spoon for him and once he got done just flailing it around and actually put it in his mouth, he couldn't get enough. He was licking his hands to get the last of it.

Our family physician is fairly crunchy, which I'm happy about. At E's four-month check, she said we'd discuss starting solids at his six-month appointment. I'm actually a little afraid she'll chastise us for starting "early," LOL.

And now I totally need to get some bananas.

[catbus]

Mar 26, 2013 13:37:51 GMT -5 spunbutterfly said:

Mar 26, 2013 13:32:25 GMT -5 catbus said:

This sounds almost exactly like us. We also planned on six months, but in the past month or so E has been so incredibly interested in what we're eating or drinking, and reaches out to grab at our utensils and food. So last week I finally started offering him things. Day one was sliced avocado--like Thor, he was apparently disgusted by it! He didn't even try to put it in his mouth (which I know is normal), and just looked grossed out by it when he'd touch it. Then I'd pick up a piece and eat it, and he acted super interested again, but as soon as he touched it he gave me the "WTF?!" look again. LOL.
Steamed butternut squash slices were a bit more of a hit. He enjoyed squishing them in his hands and licking his fingers. I also plan to do oven sweet potato "fries" like you did.
We did hummus on Sunday (a baby-friendly homemade version--no tahini, almost no salt). BIG HIT. I loaded a spoon for him and once he got done just flailing it around and actually put it in his mouth, he couldn't get enough. He was licking his hands to get the last of it.

Our family physician is fairly crunchy, which I'm happy about. At E's four-month check, she said we'd discuss starting solids at his six-month appointment. I'm actually a little afraid she'll chastise us for starting "early," LOL.

And now I totally need to get some bananas.

Me too. I'm actually nervous trying to figure out what to tell our pediatrician for starting 'early'. ;-; Oh well... better tell the truth and not lie, right?

What's your recipe for baby hummus? I want to try some for Thor.

I always totally wing it on hummus. I used home-cooked garbanzo beans (bought dry from the PCC bulk bins), lemon juice, olive oil, fresh garlic, and just added the tiniest pinch of salt. I set his portion aside and then added more salt and the tahini.

And I think tahini is totally fine for most babies, but I have a peanut allergy, so we're being cautious (peanut and sesame allergies can be related/comorbid).

[catbus]

Good luck! Yep, I soak overnight. They're stinky while cooking, but that's normal for beans. I prefer the flavor and texture of dried over canned.

[picksthemusic]

M was pretty good with solids. She loved bananas, cereals (with fruit purees mixed in), sweet potatoes, all of that. And it just gets more fun when they have teeth to chew with!

A good baby food recipe book in case you want one:

Start Fresh by Tyler Florence. I love his philosophies on feeding babies (he's a dad of three, I think) and has some good recipes that you can incorporate for adult dinners too. He does start off with purees, but you can just do the steamed whole version if that's your thing. But his combos were some of M's favorites.

Another book I like is Le Petit Appetit. Good recipes and substitutes and has nutritional info on the sides of the recipes which is super helpful.

www.amazon.com/Start-Fresh-Childs-Lifelong-Healthy/dp/B005X497KM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364324554&sr=1-1&keywords=start+fresh+tyler+florence

www.amazon.com/Petit-Appetit-Cookbook-Organic-Recipes/dp/1557884536/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364324578&sr=1-1&keywords=le+petit+appetit

[jennlin]

bjl looooves hummus. i make it myself sometimes, but usually just buy it. we don't have a lot of allergies in the family, so we were okay with sesame (she seems okay with thetop 10 food allergies, except milk).

[catbus]

Mar 26, 2013 14:00:01 GMT -5 spunbutterfly said:

catbus: Oh, question. Have you transitioned him to eating some solids at daycare yet? Every time I think about it, I'm not sure what to do. They are equipped to deal with purees and the meals they provide, and said I could provide steamed sticks (he's not the first blw baby they've had), but somehow, it makes me anxious. I want a few more foods under our belt before I unleash him into the world without me.

Man, solids are scarier than I thought it'd be.

Scary and exciting! I'm still trying to figure out the logistics of us eating dinner together, since right now we get home around 5, start bedtime at 6:20ish, E's asleep at 7, and then we worry about dinner. I really like the idea of a family dinner, but uh... I'm not sure how to pull it off.

I'm not going to have daycare do anything until after we have the official go-ahead from E's doc... but yeah, I think we'll probably hold off even longer, until we've tried a good range of foods. No clue when that will be... 8 months maybe? But I could see it being earlier. I love that BH does fresh purées. I am certainly not opposed to him getting purées, but I hope they're willing to let him feed himself.

[picksthemusic]

Mar 26, 2013 14:06:17 GMT -5 spunbutterfly said:

Mar 26, 2013 14:03:17 GMT -5 picksthemusic said:

M was pretty good with solids. She loved bananas, cereals (with fruit purees mixed in), sweet potatoes, all of that. And it just gets more fun when they have teeth to chew with!

A good baby food recipe book in case you want one:

Start Fresh by Tyler Florence. I love his philosophies on feeding babies (he's a dad of three, I think) and has some good recipes that you can incorporate for adult dinners too. He does start off with purees, but you can just do the steamed whole version if that's your thing. But his combos were some of M's favorites.

Another book I like is Le Petit Appetit. Good recipes and substitutes and has nutritional info on the sides of the recipes which is super helpful.

www.amazon.com/Start-Fresh-Childs-Lifelong-Healthy/dp/B005X497KM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364324554&sr=1-1&keywords=start+fresh+tyler+florence

www.amazon.com/Petit-Appetit-Cookbook-Organic-Recipes/dp/1557884536/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364324578&sr=1-1&keywords=le+petit+appetit

did M ever eat from Tyler Florence's line of puree pouches?

also, bought the book. XD thanks for the tip.

Yes, all the time. They're super convenient for travel and daycare and stuff. Now that she's a toddler, she loves the pouch purees as a snack (she just sucks them out of the pouch herself, haha).