Not Interested in Solids..

pump or give him a bottle so you can go out. or feed him just before and be back in 2.5 hrs.

He's still early for solids--esp if he has no interest. I started my boy on solids too soon and he ended up with all sorts of allergies + eczema! I wish I'd been more patient back then.

I had the same problem. I ended but not giving my son an option, I just stoped breastfeeding and once he was hungrey enough he would each whatever I gave him. I know it sound kinda harsh. but thats how I got him to eat.

I have a 9 month old daughter who isn't eating solids yet either. She will eat some but only if other people are at the table eating with her. It's more of a social thing right now and that is just fine. If she wasn't getting the nutrition she needed there would be definite signs she needed something. Babies are smarter than some people think they are, they won't let themselves starve. Listen to your baby, he can tell you what he needs.
As for getting out, pump and leave him with someone he is comfortable with. My baby won't take a bottle either, UNLESS I'm not there and she is hungry, then she is ok with it. Funny little things but oh so much fun!

My third child wouldn't swallow a bite of any type of food until her first birthday. VERY healthy kid, age 7 now.

Hi N.,
Looks like you have some really "solid" advice here. :) Don't worry, it's OK if he's not interested in solids. For what it's worth, our little one didn't really get into it until he was around 8-9 months old. I've actually seen medical documentation that says it's fine (and even beneficial) for babies to nurse exclusively for their entire first year, and that the "6-month" rule is primarily for babies who are formula fed. Just keep offering food periodically, but don't be concerned if it's not received enthusiastically. Sooner or later it will be. :)

Keep offering but at 6 mos he really doesn't need solids yet. Pump and offer him a bottle when he is hungry and have your hubby do it, not you. He prefers to nurse so smelling your breasts can cause confusion. Keep offering a bottle as I realize it is a freedom thing so you can go out and not worry if he gets hungry. I firmly believe that is very important. You are still giving him breast milk but you get some freedom to go out!:)
The solid thing is trial and error. My daughter took longer then my son by far. It wasn't until about 7.5 mos she would get so excited if she saw me making her real food! :) I would mix formula with cereal and then mix in bananas, sweet potatoes, peas and so on. Don't get his palette too used to sweet foods though then you will have a hard time with veggies. Just focus on maybe cereal plain with breast milk mixed in. Those Gerber puffs are good for them to self feed and pick up well and not choke.
I wouldn't worry about the solids so much as if you want the freedom, just have your hubby try giving him the bottle, when he is hungry but not starving with you out of the room! :) He won't starve, promise. He is wired to eat instinctively when he is hungry. It is just a matter of preference for him right now. My son liked flavor too so I opted to give him more of what we ate, like scrambled eggs with cheese, cottage cheese, tiny bites of toast or pizza even. 6.5 mos is still young and they are not used to textures. Exposing him to different flavors and spices will help him not be so picky when he needs to depend on solids for nutrition. Right now the breast milk is all he really needs.

My daughter was the same way- never interested in food until 9 months or so. She was a nursing addict. I tried cutting down on the nursing, offering solids when she was hungry but not starving. Also, my husband offering food instead of me helped a little. Just keep trying, eventually he will try something new. I can relate - the addiction to nursing is really hard on Mom's body and energy levels.

I had your same experience...had a baby that wouldn't do ANYTHING other than nurse, and it was frustrating to never have free time!! But, I would say, don't push it. Eventually they all eat food, and you may start to cause an unpleasant association with food if you force too much.

Also, my daughter really didn't catch on to sippy cups either, until much later. I had much better luck with straw cups, particularly semi-soft ones that you can squeeze to help start the liquid flowing. Rubbermaid (and the like) make a straw "juice box" that you can find in the aisle with tupperware at most big-box stores.

Good luck and hang in there!!

My son is the same way. Don't push the feeding. He will eat when he is ready. I tried feeding my son at six months and he wouldn't eat more than a few bites. I tried everything you have tried. I am just now re-introducing cereal again at eight months and he is doing better now. Try again a little later. Good luck!

My daughter also refused to eat any solids/food until 8 months, partially because she had a bad "gag" reflex. I nursed too, though had the luxury of her taking breastmilk in bottles. I was in the grocery store one day, and a friend was feeding his son Veggie Bootie (he was 6 mo. older than my daughter at the time). I gave her a piece just to see, and it worked! I know it didn't accomplish the matter of nutritious food, but it got her over the hump. We then started to give organic cheerios, cut into 16 pieces I swear, being paranoid about choking. Though she never ate much of the traditional pureed-style food, she did start to eat and began moving straight into easily disolved solids. Believe it or not, she even ate fork-mashed navy beans early. Frozen mangos in those mesh bags were also one of her favorites, especially when teething. Brown rice cakes, organic teething biscuits, and a few other things helped. In my opinion, when they are nursing, they are getting such incredible nutritional value that if you can hold her over for an hour or so while you go out for dinner with "other things" she will still be better off.

It wasn't until the last part that I understood why this is so important to you. However, I can only say to wait. 6 months is just the MINIMUM age for giving solids. With my daughter I saw it as a no-pressure experimentation stage. She would play with the food and gnaw on it, but didn't really eat a substantial amount until 9 or 10 months.

Hi N.,
My daughter was the same. She is now one (today actually). She would never take a bottle and would only eat sweet potates, carrots, bananas, and a few finger foods. That actually sounds like a lot, but it would take her 2 days to get through one stage 2 jar of baby food. It was a bit frustrating, but I was not too worried because she is a healthy weight. Anyway, she is much better now. I didn't do anything different I just kept offering her food. I am sorry I don't really have any good advice, but I wanted to let you know I had a similar experience and it seemed to have worked out on it's own. Hopefully, he too will just out grow it. Good Luck, K.

Well, if you're giving them the baby food yuck, who can blame him? I take a little bit of our dinner and just stick it to the side in my 8 mo old's cheek. I find that if I put it right up front he has a gag/choke reflex, but if I put it in his cheek, he can roll it around and taste it. He loves food!

As for bottle, well, if you keep trying it, one day they'll take it!

Hi N.!
Just thought that I would suggest maybe mixing a mashed banana with the cereal. Or even applesauce. My son wouldn't even touch the cereal if it didn't have some sort of fruit mixed in with the blan rice cereal. You can use the baby food fruit and mix any of them with the cereal. To first see if he likes it, use more of the fruit than the cereal. If he seems to enjoy it and not spit it out, mix just a liittle bit more cereal. If you keep doing it slowly, pretty soon he'll be eating solids like everyone else.
Hope this works out for you, it did for me when my oldest was trying new things out.
D.

N.,
My 6 1/2 month old son is the same way. We have been trying to get him to take solids since he was 4 months old w/ little success. At our 6 months appt. the dr recommened stop baby foods, and just blend up what we eat and give it to him. And it has worked! For example, the other night we had roast beef, potatoes and carrots. I blended them to a chunky mush, and let him eat with his hands for a bit, and then I fed him. Now, I let him try to feed himself first, and then I fed him with a spoon. he's actually starting to get excited when he sees me coming to him with a spoon! also, I try to nurse him a little bit before we eat, that way he is not starving. It is slow going but I have seen so much improvement over the last 2 weeks, that I am much more encouraged. My son's tried and true favorites are: sweet potatoes, and spagetti (I make him a special batch with very bland tomatoe paste) He also likes chicken noodle soup with a ton of crackers in it, so it is more like a paste. I hope this helps.

I agree with most of the advice you've gotten... it's early. He may just not be ready yet.

You could try different forms if you want. My 10-month-old isn't too enthused about purees (we started him late because of some food sensitivities), but loves chunks of food & things he can feed himself. There's some good info & some informative links here:
http://www.tribalbaby.org/babyLedEating.html

To get a night out with the hubster, you might need to try some different types of bottles (of those we tried with DS1, the only one he'd drink ANY small amount of milk out of is the Playtex nurser. DS2 did okay with the Adiri nurser when he was tiny). Try different nipples, or even a sippy cup, spoon or cup. And have someone other than you try it. You might get a nice surprise! :)

Good luck. I know it's important to stay connected with your spouse. Worst case scenario, maybe you can get someone to watch him just for a couple of hours & nurse right before and after.

Here is a great link for you to check out: http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/index.html Lots of info there.

You're not the only one to deal with this. My daughter wasn't interested in solids until she was nearly 8 months. She, too, preferred mama milk straight from the source, although people other than me could get her to take pumped milk from a bottle. Is it possible your son would accept a bottle from someone other than you?

The interesting part is that when she did get started, she completely bypassed baby food (although we did discover that she could spit it a really long way) and went for softened, chopped, or coarsely mashed up versions of what we were eating. Her first successful solid food was rice - not rice cereal, but the real thing. To this day (she's 7 years old now) she does not enjoy smooth foods such as apple sauce or mashed potatoes. Perhaps your little one is put off by the texture of what you've been offering.

Hang in there just a little longer - he may grow out of this in another month or so. And try changing the texture of what you're offering - that might be the key.

You were right to notice his cues of watching you eat...but there's no magic to 6 months for solid food. Keep offering a bit now & then - the other suggestions here are great. But let him set the pace. Don't stress about it.
As far as getting away: leave an ounce or 2 of pumped milk, a sippy cup, a bottle and go. Leave him with his next favorite person (grandma?). Stay away a little beyond when he would feed. You might be surprised that they will cope wonderfully. Or he may cry some, but it won't be for long because you aren't staying away all evening.
Good luck.

N.,
I have a 6 month old as well who just started solids. I tried him on Avocado first. I know it is a strange first food but he loved it! It was recommended from the book: Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. Also, have you tried mix a little breast milk with the solid that you are trying out? Then it won't be so foreign to him. Good luck.

solids are recommended "about the middle of the first year" so that doesn't mean that by six months they HAVE to be eating solids. also, for many months it's just tastes, not jars full or even tablespoons full, its just teaspoons full. refusing foods could be a sign of allergies, waiting another month and trying again would be fine. how early we feed our kids solids is completely cultural, some cultures don't even start solids until 1 year. good luck, i'm sure it's hard to feel like there's no time for you and hubby. . . . they're only little for a little while and then you'll wonder where your babies went :(

other tips: nurse first, babies are generally unwilling to try new things when they're STARVING!!! and try feeding baby while she sits on your lap. since all her meals have come from you and while being held by you, she may feel more comfortable eating while being held.

My dd was the same way. She got a lot better with solids at 8 or 9 months, and started taking a cup then as well. She also did well with drinking out of a straw. But she never took a bottle--so I hear you on feeling trapped! Anyway, looking back now (with a 30 month old) the time goes quickly--but it seems long while you are there. I would just try a bite or two a couple times a day, and be patient. Good Luck!

My ten month old is barely eating solids, but he just got teeth. My midwife says that babies can't handle digesting solids until they get in their teeth--does your baby have teeth? I know it seems like a lot now, but this time will pass very quickly. Hang in there and let your baby be your guide to eating. Before you know it he'll eat everything in front of him. He knows what's best for his body and I know you want what is best. Trust him and soon you will get a break from feeding. In the meantime you get to cuddle your baby more who will very soon not be a baby anymore.
J.

My little girl was the exact same way and I felt the same way as you do! She never took a bottle either and it took her a long time to eat solids! As hard as it is don't push the solids. He's still pretty young so nursing is the best bet. What I did was I kept trying solid foods at least once a day. And when she wouldn't eat anything I didn't make a big deal out of it. I just took the food away and got her out of her high chair and tried again later. Finally around 9 months she started eating it and cruised right through the stages and was eating all table food right after she turned one. I still nursed her for a few more months but only at nap time and bed time. I promise if you don't make a big deal out of it and you just let him do it on his own time frame it will be much better for both of you and he will do it willingly. Good luck and hang in there!