9 Month Old Only Eats What She Can Feed Herself

Assuming she must have teeth???? lunch meats cut in small finger size pieces,hot dogs again cut up small (skinned if need be),apple slices peeled,banana,bkd potato/sweet potato ( chunked),peas,jello cubes,peaches or pears cut in slices,pretty much anything we eat;except things with hulls,thicker skins,seeds. It is always a challenge with little ones until they are big enough to handle "big" people foods. Good luck and enjoy her while she's little. J.

Wow! what great advice so far. Our daughter was the same way. Here are some things that we did: tofu, avocado, lentils, any bean( garbonzos were always a favorite,some may need to be mashed or cut in two), ricotta, ground meats (turkey, beef, chicken). Be prepared for some messes, but we gave her a spoon quite early and did yogurts, humus, smoothies. Good luck!

She can eat anything that you eat that isn't too hard (peanuts, raw veggies...) Like apples for instance, either steam them for a bit or just cut them into tiny bits that she can gum. Cut them into tiny bits so she can't choke. I use to also take cheese from the block and cut into tiny bits. It just melts in there mouth and it is a great finger food. Scrambled eggs, ham cut into tiny bits, any fruit or veggie steamed or cut into tiny bits...avacodo and banana are good ones. Rice is great and it keeps them busy trying to pick up those individual pieces. Fish or chicken cut into tiny bites. Bread or bisquits torn into small bites. Just remember small, semi-soft, and make sure they don't stuff everything in at once.

My daughter is 9 months and will also only feed herself. She ats in addition to what you are giving yours- tofu cubes, fake chicken nuggets, veggie burger, waffles, bagels, pasta, quinoa, couscous, garbonzo beans, veggie dog cubes,fake ground beef, toast. Pretty much anything! Oh and she has no teeth. They do not need teeth to mash food.

someone on mamasource previously suggested roasted sweet potatos - it was a great success with my little one. Baby can pretty much eat any berry especially blueberries(cut in half if they are really big), toast, bread, pastas, most vegetables, grapes cut up, melons cut up, nectarines, peaches, kiwis, plums (all cut up), dino chicken nuggets from costco (very popular with my little one), tofu,eggs (scrambled, in cup with bread crumbs, omelette etc), pancakes, brocoli florets, cabbage (cooked and shredded), spinach, meatballs, shepherd's pie, mashed potatoes, hash browns, rice (i mix it with spinach babyfood sometimes), cooked beets(beets are allegedly the new spinach :)), mushrooms, little pieces of meat, tilapia, salmon, quesadillas, quiche, all kinds of tarts, beef stew (if beef cooked to be very soft), squash, curry vegetables, cheese and ham on toast, red beans (somewhat messy), yoghurt, fish sticks. My little one eats just about anything. I cook the veggies a little longer than I would normally cook them so they are soft - likewise the meat. Fish is great for them as they get omega 3 and 6. I avoid the ones that might have mercury but use the others provided they are boneless. Good luck - have fun.

A great way to make finger foods easy to pick up (things like cut up foods: bananas, peaches, tofu, etc.) is toss them in graham cracker crumbs. Graham crackers themselves! I've also made my little guy baby-size meatballs made w/ meat, apple, fresh parsley, onion (Make a batch, separate individual servings into sandwich bags then put them all in a ziplock freezer bag - take them out as needed)

Also, Dr. Praeger's spinach (& potato) cakes are good. Have you introduced yogurt - my little guy loves YoBaby? Avacado, sweet potatoes, scrambled egg yolk & cheese (whole egg after 1yr), cream cheese, bagels, hummus.

I also recommend getting a cookbook (SuperFoods for babies & children - Annabel Karmel) or this site has been helpful http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

My little man loves avocado. Also, have you tried tofu? We have also given him pieces of plain manicotti noodles (from when I make manicotti for the rest of us). Another favorite of his is salmon. He eats it warm at dinner when I make it for our family, and also eats the cold leftovers! At this age, they'll try almost anything. Just be aware of any possible food allergens!

Avocado. Rice cakes with cream cheese or humus or other healthy spread. Don't forget that you can mix Baby Muesli or rice cereals into yogurt and apple sauce or fruit smoothies to thicken them up so they will stay on her little spoon once you give her one. Same for mushed-up bananas too. Lentils are easy to cook and so flavorful, same for split peas. It all turns into a nice thick stew that can be eaten off the fingers or a spoon.

I like those little net devices that you can put the harder fruits into for babies to gnaw on without a choking hazard.

Bon appetit!!!

Mine was the same way -- she was over purees at 9 months and I ended up giving a bunch of Stage 3 away -- she never ate any!!

Your list sounds great! At the early end, I also did edamame (poked out of their skins or cut in half if they were big) and tofu dogs cut in tiny pieces to get the protein in. Otherwise, everything you are doing and what others have said. She always ate plenty by herself, so it was never a worry

Take a can of progresso soup- heat it up- strain it- and there's a meal!

I have been giving that to my 16 month old for a while now for lunch...he usually eats our dinners.

Be happy she will self feed! (:

I have a similar 11 month old that has been that way for months. Some things I've tried are instant oatmeal mad a little thicker and rolled into balls, scrambled cheesy eggs with broccoli, hot dogs (the healthier kind from the butcher), vegetables from low sodium soups. Good luck!

Hello M. F.....When my boys where this small, I also on occasion eat hot dogs. I pilled the skin off and cut them in slices and then in half. Also chicken nugguts. Also taking the skin off and cutting them in small peices so they wouldnt choke on them. My boys where very picky eaters so you are very lucky that your daughter will eat beans etc. Good luck.

avocado! she may just love it, great natural fats too. the variety she's getting sounds wonderful. i bet she's a very healthy girl. good job! (fiori shape pasta was a favorite of my son). a thought...maybe allowing her an interesting range of spoons to explore will help...the baby einstein had long and short handled,contoured kinds. my pediatrician gifted us a lovely long thin silver one. the small demitas and sugar bowl or cappachino spoons are a nice size. but it may just be an oral transition or preference, fingers just feel and taste familiar. also i recieved baby food grinder, (hand held-crank kind). this let me give him the foods he saw on my plate, or the minature version for him. the smell and warmth were there without the texture being quite as slimey as jar food and she can use her fingers for it too. chick peas/garbonzos, corn, chicken, ground beef, it amazing the stuff you'll find.

lucky you... my daughter did this too, and while i was frustrated at first, it was awesome to just be able to chop up little bits of "human food" and not have to worry about it!

cut grapes up into quarters, pita bread cut into chunks, sliced olives, shredded chicken, diced apples or pears, oyster crackers, frozen waffles, cut up grilled cheese, lima beans...