Introducing Solids

Hi S..
Just be patient and she'll like it. When my youngest was starting out I would use rice cereal and jar baby food mix it together.

Hey S., I was always told to do the opposite. Try feeding the solid food first and then nurse. Sometimes they don't like certain foods,My older two both hated peas so I haven't even tried them with my 6 month old:) You just keep trying and eventually they will eat it. I will often mix a fruit with a vegetable if they aren't fond of it at first and then just put less and less of the fruit in it each feeding. I also mix cereal with my fruits and vegetables, my 6 month likes the texture of that better.

Hope this helps:)
R.

My 3rd child never ate baby food- including rice cereal. I figured he was just not ready because he refused to eat it-- but one day, I was eating a muffin and he was starring at me... so I gave him a teeny crumb of it and he loved it!! He's been eating table food ever since! My mom said I did the same thing as a baby.

I think the advice to breast feed first is because you don't want them to be starving when you are offering something new... However, keep in mind that it may backfire in a way because if they are too full they won't want any food either. You need to find a happy medium-- like breast feed and then wait a while and try feeding when it's in between meal times. Also, if your baby is like my 3rd, he rarely will eat alone. He likes to eat when everyone else is sitting at the table eating.

Don't worry too much about it. Remember, during the first year, baby's primary nourishment comes from breastmilk (or formula). Introducing solids is pretty much just to start getting them used to different tastes and textures. My 13 month old wanted NOTHING to do with baby food whatsoever...so I didn't bother with it. Once he got closer to a year and was able to chew better, I started introducing little bits of table food, and he's doing fine with food now.

My daughter did not eat any solids at all until 10 months, and it was not babyfood... by that point, she was able to pick up and eat soft table foods. I think that she didn't like the texture of puree. She's now a 38-lb four year old who eats everything we put in front of her. Follow your mama instincts and don't worry! As long as she's getting breastmilk (or formula), she's fine... remember that 6 months is the minimum age where you should be offering solids anyway. :)

Trust you mother instinct.

V. P

Hello. Try feeding her solids first and then breastfeeding her. That's what I did with my daughter. Milk seemed to fill her up and then rejected the solids. She never ate a lot (and she still doesn't , she's almost 2), but she at least ate some and then she had milk. And don't worry, be consistent and keep trying. Sooner or later she will eat better. Well, hope this helps. Good luck!!!

You are right about not worry about this. Just keep trying, she will figure out that it's yummy and keeps her full longer.

Both of my kids did that too. Just offer it at least once a day.

Good Luck.

Hi S.,

In our case this was normal. We breastfed first and then did solids. My daughter simply wasn't interested until about 8.5 months. In the window of time you're currently in, I worried too, but there was no need to worry. It was just a very gradual adaptation in her case.

Your motherly instinct is right, follow that. Some kids take longer than others. My step sister's son took closer to 9 months before he started eating well. He is chubby and happy and the Dr told her not to worry. Just keep offering them, but don't force. You could stick with the rice cereal for now if she likes it. When they aren't really eating, find one thing she likes and stick with that. She might be reluctant because she never knows what she is going to get. Get her really eating off of that one thing she likes and then start introducing new flavors and textures.

I'm having the same problem with my 5+ month old. She started out opening her mouth for it and now she refuses. Now I simply put the baby food into the formula as well as rice cereal to ensure she's getting enough calories. I'll keep doing that until she eats again.

Babies are so funny about solids. Some take right too them while others don't. But eating solids is a learning experience for them--they are learning about the taste and texture, moving their mouths, swallowing thick things--it's a lot! Which is why the primary source of nutrition for babies up to one year is Breast milk or formula--it's one reason why you don't switch them to cows milk beforehand.
So her response is very normal. Just keep offering her things and keep offering her the same things--even if she refused them before. It takes sometimes 13 tries before a baby may eat something. Also their tastes change. My son would have nothing to do with strained or jarred green beans. Once he got old enough to eat whole ones, he gobbled them up for about 6 months, and then refused them for another 6 months, and now he eats them again. I just kept giving them to him on a regular basis and he eventually ate them again.

One of the very best books that was ever given to me and I read regarding raising children was Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellyn Satter.
http://www.amazon.com/Child-Mine-Feeding-Love-Sense/dp/09...
It answered so many questions a I had about feeding,when to introduce foods, etc. and has really helped me have a low-stress and healthy approach to feeding my child. And I really think my son eats the variety of foods he does now (for a toddler he eats very well) because of the fact that I read that book.

Hey S.,

I went through the same thing with my 4 children.

Finally with my 4th born child after speaking to her doctor and reading a number of articles about feeding issues, we got a food chopper and chopped up the food prepared (much of which is organic) for us at meal time and fed that to her. We don't add many seasonings to our food and never delt with an upset tummy.

She like the chopped food better than that jarred baby food stuff we would buy. Feeding her from the table also help reduce our grocery bill a bit too. To this day we don't have many issues with what she will and won't eat.

Best of luck to you

S.,
Don't worry. Your instincts are correct. My son started teething about the same time I tried to put him on solid foods and so it actually hurt for him to "gum" his food. You could try doing things to make the food have a little taste, try giving a small slice of steak to gum on while the rest of the family eats dinner..she may be more apt to try new foods if she see's everyone else eating something similar.

Remember how mom's dinner always looked better than what was on your plate when you were little. LOL.

Trust your instinct! You and your baby will know when it's time.

my ped always told me not to feed my kids out of the jar we are just teaching them to drink from a spoon, offer her things from your plate, some green beans, sweet peas need to be mushed because they can choke on the but only fork mushed not pureed if your having pizza offer her the crust to naw on, that kind of thing, mix cereal with juice to add flavor, i always fed the a lil milk in between bites then the rest of a reg feeding, remember all this is at this stage is teaching them to eat. they get all the nutrients they need from their milk so no worries there. just keep offering it or try some table food ours tastes so much better than theirs does. you may get to save money and introduce her to foods off the table. altho with corn i think i'd try cream corn since its already mushed :)

ahh the joys of introducing foods into the diet!! My son hated mushy food. I thought I was the worst mommy in the world because I could not get the kid to eat his cereal no matter what I added. Finally after feeling like a total failure we realized the kid just does not like mushy food!! He is now 3 yrs old and still will not eat anything like mashed potatos, oatmeal, pudding, whipped cream, ice cream, etc.. I know. A kid who does not like ice cream!!! Anyway, this may the problem, she may not like the feel or texture of the food. Just a guess, kids have so many quirks. Have fun and good luck.

T.