Starting solids is tough for first time moms. We have so many questions on how to begin. What do I start with, what do I give him, how much, premade or home made, what do I need? It's pretty daunting. I thought I would write a couple of posts on Introducing Solids. What I have learned so far, what works for us and how we made our food.
Let me just start out by saying, that I'm by no means an expert. Take what you want, and leave the rest here. I've done my fair share of internet research, (I know, very informative) but I've also talked with our pediatrician a couple of times to make sure we were doing the "right" thing. Which let me tell you, it's pretty hard to mess up. After talking to my pediatrician (who is super laid back) I pretty much felt like I could do whatever I wanted. That's when I started to look online for a little bit more guidance. But like I said, there are so many ways to start solids, you just have to decide what works well for you.
We started Noah on solids pretty early, around four months. At that point we had switched him to formula for a while and he just wasn't ever satisfied. He always wanted more and more. It was then that we decided he needed a little bit more substance. Here is a list of what we've given him so far and in what semi-order:
Rice Cereal
Carrots
Sweet Potatoes
Oatmeal Cereal
Banana
Peas
Apples
Pears
Avocado
Broccoli
Green Beans
Cauliflower
Zucchini
Squash
Pumpkin
Egg Yolk
Potatoes
Chicken
Peaches
So what do I start with?
Common First Foods
Rice and Oatmeal Cereal
Avocado
Bananas
Sweet Potatoes
We picked our first foods a little on research but a lot on what was available fresh in the store since we made our own baby food. More on that later. =) We did a lot of the common first foods and then just added things we typically ate at home anyway. I recommend picking your foods and your food order by finding whats obviously safe for your baby to eat but also what's convenient for your baby to eat. Because lets face it, later on when you do the cooking, they're going to be eating the same food as you anyway. I can't imagine any mom wants to make more than one meal a day.
What do I feed them next?
Well, we've only gone about three months in this process and this post is mainly to help just help you start. I have however started to look forward a bit and found this great chart.
I couldn't seem to find the website at all so no link back =( but I've also been looking at wholesomebabyfood's website. Not only are they a great beginning website but they have great information about feeding your baby for a long time, so check them out as well.
And finally, a couple of things to keep in mind:
1. Talk to your doctor before you do anything. Mine was pretty open about what we fed Noah but I've also heard other doctors who have a list they want you to stick to.
2. Wait a couple of days in between foods and look for any allergic reactions. I've heard three to four days. We did that at first and eventually did one or two days in between.
3. Make sure the food you are giving is food they can eat. Soft and finely mashed, so they don't choke on it. If you're doing Baby Led Weaning, BLW, I'm not much of an expert at all so you'll have to research that on your own. I do believe you start those kinds of solids later though, when they are more advanced with their hands and mouth.
4. Finally, do what feels right to you. Do as much research as you need but always trust what your mommy gut is telling you.
Once you have an idea of what foods you want to give your baby now you have to decide:
Do I want to make this food or buy it?
We'll work on those questions another time. =)
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