At My House

This week I’m getting busy in the kitchen with Pebble’s food. I gave up the yoghurt after a chat with a lovely Child and Youth Health nurse, who confirmed my suspicions that the 10g per 100g of sugar in that stuff was perhaps not the best thing to be feeding Pebble. Particularly as it was the ONLY ‘solid’ food she was eating.
I can get the yoghurt back out again soon, when Pebble is eating a wider variety of foods, but for now it’s back to the rice cereal. And to my great surprise it only took two days for her to be chomping down on the stuff with excitement (as long as she holds the spoon herself!).
I decided to test the waters with a little apple, which also went down a treat when mixed with the rice cereal. Next up is pumpkin, which I diced, steamed, blended and froze before bagging up into labelled zip lock bags.
Excuse my excitement at this new world of food preparation - I’m sure that soon it will be a very tedious job indeed. But for now I’m enjoying this new stage of Pebble’s life and take delight in preparing food for her.
What’s happening at your house this week? Be sure to pop on over to Lou’s and let her know.

Yoghurt!

With a spoon of her own in each hand Pebble is happy to open up (just a little bit) and try some yoghurt. I’m not sure how much it actually gets in her mouth, but she’s interested.

Apart from anything else, I’m trying to be more relaxed. Whatever happens, happens. She will eat eventually. Thanks to your advice to just chill :)

To eat, or not to eat

So I’m still trying to get Pebble to eat solids. Ever since the dreaded medicine got forced down her gullet she has had no interest in opening up for food (is it any wonder?). I’m giving it a rest for a week or so, and coming back to it again, but I found this post by It’s Not About Nutrition to be so interesting and a reminder of what’s really going on.

“Here are 10 things your infant might say about weaning if he could:

1) My food used to always be the same – same taste, same texture, same smell. Now it changes from meal-to-meal. I never know what to expect.

2) I used to snuggle with Mommy while I ate but now I don’t.

3) I used to eat while lying down.  Now I have to sit up.

4) I used to decide how quickly or slowly to eat.  Now someone else picks the speed at which food is put into my mouth.

5) I used to take big sips or small sips of milk. Now someone else decides how much food is in each bite.

6) I used to have a soft nipple in my mouth.  Now there’s a hard spoon in there.

7) I used to eat whenever I was hungry.  Now Mommy often makes me wait for meal- or snack-time.

8) Mommy used to be the only one to feed me.  Now lots of different people take turns.

9) I used to decide how long meals lasted.  Now whoever feeds me decides.

10) I never could see what was going on in the room before.  Now I can check out all the action.”

No wonder it’s not happening so easily. All in good time.

Do you have any tips for starting solids with reluctant eaters? 

Carrots

I did a little research and found that carrots are recommended as a first puree for babies. I thought that real food (not bland cereal) might be more tasty for Pebble, so I blitzed up a steamed carrot for her to try.

To me, the consistency seemed too chunky.
I tried again, this time steaming the carrots for carrots for even longer. Pebble is clearly interested in eating, she watches the spoon and opens wide, but she spits out (or gags on!) the food. This time she did a massive, red-faced gag and projectile vomited all over her high chair (first high chair spew – huzzah!).
Slowly, slowly. No rush. And no more carrots. For now.

Munch munch munch

A month ago we started giving Pebble solids – just a teaspoon of watery Farex in the mornings.
Our journey into the land of real food hit a few speed bumps along the way. Pebble was sick with a cough for two weeks. I wanted to avoid giving her anything else to cough up or choke on, so I stopped the solids for a week or so.
Now we’re back to giving it a go, but after having a long white stick (full of antibiotics for her ear infection) shoved into her mouth three times a day for a week, somehow Pebble has NO interest in opening wide anymore.
Instead, she’s using the cereal as a rice facial.

It must be working because she gets more beautiful every day.

Solids. So it begins.

So I said to Pebble: Dude, do you want some real food?
And she was, like:

I know, right?

So then, I said: Hey dude, taste this.

And she was all:

 
We’ll try again tomorrow, maybe. But maybe not, because she’s been a Grumpy McGrump since then.

Maybe it’s the carbs. I get the same way.

How did your kiddo go the first time you gave them solids?