Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Feeding this baby--What and how much?

Ok, all you moms with littles... I've never had a kid that eats before, so give me some help.

What do you feed a 7-month-old?
What's the progression from cereal to baby food to _____ look like?
How does the balance go between milk/formula and "other"?

And don't give me the "oh, you'll know...she'll tell you." I don't work that way... need some specifics here!

12 comments:

  1. Usually I would give Evan as much food as he would take (usually he would either spit it out or push it away when he was done) and then about 4 oz of formula and that was good and then try snacks midway between meals..of course he doesn't eat worth a hoot now because he decided to enter into his terrible twos and refuses to eat or plays with it.. if it isn't fruit (grapes or bananas) or Ya Yos(cereal) it is difficult so best of luck:) but they do tell you when they are full.

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  2. I think you are supposed to fill babies full of roast beef and tequila. That's what I feed her when you aren't hope. She loves the worm!

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  3. I'm still trying to figure out the 'I could go days without ever showing signs of physical hunger' kid...so pass YOUR tips on to ME when you get a chance, RK. I think we're spiraling into a nutritional black hole.

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  4. to move past baby food, start with soft stuff. cheerios, veggies cooked well (like carrots, sweet potatoes -- cook them soft, probably past where you'd like them yourself), peas, bits of toast. Soup was a huge hit with Abby, lots of variety and easy (particularly this one pasta fagioli one, little pasta and veggies and beans, great and nutritious). Soft fruits: banana, avocado, chunky applesauce. Mac and cheese.

    I just introduced new stuff gradually, and as they got better at eating, they got more chunky stuff. And the milk dropped off as they ate, until eventually it was 3 bottles a day, usually after they ate meals.

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  5. introduce only 1 new food every few days to make sure there's no food allergies... start with veggies. If you start with sweet fruits then she may never like the veggies... We usually did cereal in the morning and then a veggie for lunch and a veggie for dinner at the beginning (stage one) and worked up from there... and then I nursed in between. But I really just went on what worked for my kids. Good luck!!!

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  6. I think that if you keep the 1 year mark as the goal to have her transitioning to solids and a sippy cup, you'll do just fine. I don't think there is a rule about this progression. I have known people who have waited until 6-8 mo. to do anything other than milk and then they go straight to solids, little tiny bits of food that are so small the kid doesn't really have to chew them to at all, they just skip the baby food. Seems more cost effective and it teaches them to chew more than baby food does, but seems like they might miss some of the nutrition when they just swallow whole bits of food rather than baby food. I don't know, that's just my take on it. But it seems to me that it was an easier transition than what I did, so maybe it is better. I did it differently with both girls. Maddy made the progression between 4 and 12 months. We did about 2 months on each stage. 2months on cereal, 2 months on stage 1 baby food, 2 months on stage 2 baby food, and then between 10 and 12 months we worked on going to solids and a sippy cup while she was still eating some baby food. The sippy cup was tricky at this time because she really didn't know how to suck out of it, but she also would not nurse any more. So I was always worried about her getting enough fluids but she figured it out eventually. She never really liked the stage 3 baby foods, can't really blame her, they look more nasty than the other stuff. So by 13 months she was completely on a sippy cup and eating solids...no baby food at all. Both my girls got to a point where they wanted to feed themselves and really wouldn't let me feed them with a spoon. Gracie on the other hand I waited a little longer to start the cereal and baby food and that went well. At 6 months we started cereal and stage 1 foods. Then by 8-9 months she was doing stage 2 and at 10 months I started solids while she was still nursing, but not eating baby food anymore because she wouldn't let me feed her with a spoon anymore. She did great with this and then did not even do a sippy cup with her until 1 yr and it was much easier than with Maddy, she seemed like she just knew what to do with it. I felt like the progression with Gracie was easier. That's how it went for us, hope info helps some.

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  7. RK, I've written several times about starting solids on my blog with Ella. Check out the tag: Baby led weaning. I just made a video about it, too. :)

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  8. i have always given henry as much food as he wanted. i think it's part of the reason he is so healthy and big. he doesn't have any weight issues so right now it's not a problem for me and he has always let me know when he is done.

    i started with fruits one at a time for i think like 3 days, doing one by itself then moving onto the next to see if they were allergic. then veggies one at a time...them meat...and then game on!!! at first the majority of his nutrition came from formula. until they get to chunkier foods i think that their nutrition is suppose to come from formula/breastmilk. not sure. your pedi should have some stuff to give you to help you out. once henry got to the higher stage foods i gave him three 8 ounce bottles a day, then three jarred meals. i've never really done snacks. i would ask your pedi!

    and did i tell you yet that i had a great time meeting you and your kiddos yet. i'm trying to catch up on blogs/email! i think we need to go out just us moms next time!

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  9. RK,

    With both Aidan & Alayna I nursed only for 6 months, then started cereal, about 7 months I started them out on the green and yellow veggies (I had good luck with veggies first and fruits later both kids eat tons of different veggies and fruits). Peas, green beans, sweet potato, squash etc.

    I never bought baby food just used fresh or frozen veg and fruits and cooked it then pureed it. I would make a big batch and puree them then put them in a ice cube tray (holds about 1 tablespoon) and freeze. Then you can store in freezer bags and pop one out anytime you need or mix and match them when they have tried with no allergies.
    I started with cereal once or twice a day. I added a veg another time a day (I would try 1 tablespoon at first) then worked our way up to 3 "meals" a day (having a fruit at the other time).
    I nursed after I gave the solid foods as much as they wanted.
    At her age Kinlee is still getting all her nutrition from the milk so the food is just practicing and getting used to eating solids for later.

    Hope this helps.

    Good luck,

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  10. I'll be honest with you, I never could wait the requisite number of days between starting new foods and Rainer was on almost all table food by 9 months. But he got teeth early, too, so that is part of it. At 7 months I think he was just starting to go from 2 to 3 meals a day. That is also when he started to be able to take things with dairy. So I'd say he'd eat a banana and some yogurt for morning (maybe 2-4oz of yougurt and a whole banana) and at dinner two to three 4 oz jars of baby food. He has always had a healthy appetite. He was still nursing 4-6 times a day at that point but I was really wanting him to learn the straw so I gave him water in a straw cup at every meal. He LOVES his straw cup and he LOVES drinking water.

    At almost 11 months I still nurse 2-4 times a day, he gets one bottle of formula before bed (4-6 ounces), and he also drinks water all day. Occasionally we put a little juice in the water for taste, but not much at all.

    These days he eats pretty much whatever we are eating. We don't even cut up the banana anymore, he knows how to eat it a bit at a time which ASTOUNDS me! :)

    Oh yeah, at 7 months he LOVED things like puffs. Those Gerber ones, you know?

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  11. Oh, also, he used to eat and eat and eat and would have kept going, but now he is much more choosy and slower about it which I think is good ultimately. Better than being a steam shovel!

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  12. With all four of my kids (oh, what am I saying, not Tommy though) I nursed until 5 months and then switched to cereal and formula. Then a few months of veggie baby foods, a month or so of fruit baby foods and then right onto the soft foods at the table by 9 months. Whatever we eat, they ate. Fork smashed and tender. It's the most economical and I think it tastes a bunch better than the stuff in jars. All my kids (including Tommy) LOVED avacado. Applesauce with chunks. Rice and refried beans (yes, beans before a year old). Have fun. It's so different having one that eats over one that doesn't. I know the feeling :) Hope you got some rest this weekend. It does get tiring!

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Thanks for your comments! I love the feedback!