I am nearing the end of my quest to find THE food that Caleb will eat more than 2 baby spoonfulls of. As some of you know, I allowed DH to give him pizza crust 2 weeks....loved it. Tuesday we were out to eat and there were dinner rolls on the table so I put one in the mesh feeder...again, loved it. Last night I thought what the hay, I'll try a biece of wheat bread in the feeder while I feed Braxton his baby food...LOVED IT! This boy is a carb fool apparently. But I'm worried that this is bad for him. I have seriously just about given up on spoon feeding for a while but I would really like to see him start experimenting with foods because he's such a little slim Jim. So is it okay to give him bread? Here is a list of what I've tried in the feeder and what I'd like to try: Tried- 1. Bread obviously-hit 2. Carrots-hated 3. Bananas-hit 4. Dry grilled chicken-hit 5. Apples-hated Would Like to try: 1. Pears 2. Some sort of vegetable (not sure of the logistics on this one 3. Tofu (not sure how to prepare it) 4. Cheese (not sure if that's okay yet) I'd love to hear more of your suggestions/recipes/experiences with the mesh feeder and/or your super picky eaters. Thanks ladies!
Okay I'm showing my ignorance here - but what is a mesh feeder? I'm not sure what it is so I have no idea what you can put in it.
We use canned pears and rinse them off before we put them in. The kids love them. They also like ice cubes and bananas!
Ripe raw pears would be really good - canned have a lot of added sugar. Thawed or semi-thawed frozen fruit of all kinds works really well in the mesh feeder - peaches are really safe, so are mangoes, plums, papaya, apricots and apples, though it can be hard to find some of those frozen and a piece of apple in a mesh feeder sounds like recipe for frustrated babies You could also do pieces of potato - sweet potato or white - or squash that have been baked and cooled. That might suit your little carb fiend Standard advice on dairy is to start with yogurt around 7 or 8 months and add cheese later if yogurt is ok. We're avoiding it because they react when I drink milk. The only thing to watch out for with bread is 1) if they react to the wheat, and it sounds like you're ok there and 2) anything else in the bread that they might be allergic to, whether it's a certain kind of oil or milk or other additives. If neither you nor your husband or your immediate families have food allergies, and the babies haven't reacted so far, you have a little more latitude to try new things.
This is kinda OT, but your kids don't mind those mesh feeders? Do YOU mind them? I tried them once with DS, and he made a ROYAL MESS! haha ... and he didn't seem that interested? Do you guys think it is worth it to give another shot? so far we've done just small finger goods after their normal baby food meal ... cheerios, chicken, cheese, even some pizza the other day ... although they didn't like that. Silly silly kids.
QUOTE(caba @ Jan 28 2008, 02:09 PM) [snapback]593473[/snapback] This is kinda OT, but your kids don't mind those mesh feeders? Do YOU mind them? I tried them once with DS, and he made a ROYAL MESS! haha ... and he didn't seem that interested? Do you guys think it is worth it to give another shot? so far we've done just small finger goods after their normal baby food meal ... cheerios, chicken, cheese, even some pizza the other day ... although they didn't like that. Silly silly kids. My girls LOVE the mesh feeders! And its not too messy unless you put mushy foods in it. So far I've only put apple and pear slices in it. They love to chew and suck on it and I like that I can give them fresh fruit! I wouldn't put bananas in it because it would be impossible to clean... beside mushy foods they can handle without the mesh feeder (even with their totally wacko neurotic mom who is deathy afraid they will choke!). To clean it, I turn it inside out and rinse it out and then put it in my Muchkin basket that goes on the top rack of my dishwasher. When I take it out of the dishwasher I rinse it again and then ring it out and let it dry.
QUOTE(Zabeta @ Jan 28 2008, 01:28 PM) [snapback]593374[/snapback] Ripe raw pears would be really good - canned have a lot of added sugar. Hmm the only ingredients are pears and water. The label even says no added sugar! I feed these to my diabetic husband.
I now only use the mesh feeders for frozen chunks of peaches or mangoes (or whatever frozen fruit pieces I have in the freezer at the time). For me it's more like giving them something to do, instead of really filling up their bellies from it. We still have a couple of Stage 2 fruits/veggies per day, but other than that they're strictly on finger foods now. They LOVE any kind of bread or pasta (favorites are bites of whole-grain waffles or pancakes, pieces of wheat toast, and pieces of macaroni or shells) and they eat soft pieces of ham and turkey, and little bites of veggies (favorites are green beans, carrots, peas, and lima beans). We used to do cheeses and yogurt but we're staying away from dairy now so our choices are more limited. They always finish off a meal with either a hand full of cheerios or a chunk of frozen fruit in the mesh feeder (this gives me just enough time to clean up everything before getting them out of their seats). - Carrie
so can they have cheese? I am nervous as to what i can and can not give them! I am dieing to be done with baby food, as the cost is insane... I just want them to be ready to eat it all since they are in daycare now and not just with my mom. LOL>.. the stage 3 are not a huge hit with mine... anyone else having a hard time with them?
I haven't used mesh feeders. Before my babies made peace with the spoon, I'd just give them pieces of toast or waffle or whatever to eat. I tried to give them some fruit & veg by spreading the puree on the toast, and that worked ok - they got just a little taste of new things that way. Don't worry too much about feeding him anything like a balanced diet right now. If all he'll eat is bread and pizza crust, that's really ok. The "balanced diet" is your milk, and the food is just for learning that other things can be interesting too. My babies were super picky for a long time - all they'd eat was toast and cheerios and apple slices, pretty much - but I didn't pressure them, and now they like lots of stuff, and eat something much more like a normal diet (fruit and some grain thing for breakfast; fruit, a protein thing and a grain thing for lunch; table food, fruit & grain for dinner). As far as tofu goes - my babies are crazy about the White Wave brand baked tofu. They make different flavors, and I go for the mildest and least salty ones, like tomato basil and lemon pepper. I cut it into pieces and they cram it in like there's no tomorrow! Another sort of controversial idea is to try giving him some table food (pureed/mashed as necessary), if you're having something without any no-nos in it. My babies would much rather eat something with seasonings than a bland puree, and I don't blame them!
QUOTE(ceb023 @ Jan 28 2008, 07:24 PM) [snapback]593509[/snapback] For me it's more like giving them something to do, instead of really filling up their bellies from it. I totally agree as far as Braxton goes, but I just really need to dind a way to fill Caleb's belly with something and he won't take it any other way. Thanks for the suggestions so far. So do you guys think I should continue with the feeder for actual feeding, or just keep trying to give him the baby food. eta: certainly he's too young for finger foods, right?
Will he pick up and put something small in his mouth, like a Cheerio? You could break one in half and see how he does -- if he does well, then it's fine to give him very soft bits of finger foods. Mine are not there yet (I tried bits of banana, but Karina gagged and threw up), but your little guy might be fine with finger foods....
I've tried avacados and kiwi fruit. I've never tried the mesh feeders?? But they like them in little pieces on their trays. I second the cooked sweet potatoes chunked up. The sweet potato and the avacados are pretty mushy. Little pieces of melon (water melon, cantalope). Once your kids get good with the cherios and a few other things you'll feel more comfortable. Be sure and toast the bread stuff you give them so it doesn't turn into a dough ball in their mouth. I knew mine were pretty much done with baby food when they gave me the raspberries (pfffttthhh!!) every time I tried to feed them something mushy in a spoon. If your will take food from a spoon and you can do dairy then go with the baby yogurt (whole milk) and maybe some cottage cheese? Good luck! Mj
I was never really wild about the mesh feeders except that I thought they were perfect for teething biscuits. You can feed them cheese. Make sure it's in shreds or pea sized cubes. Tofu is best served with something else. Buy the soft tofu and mash some of it into a banana or avocado. You can buy sugar free pears and feed those. Dice or mash them. With vegetables just cook them until tender (steam or microwave) then dice them small or mash them. My guys loved fruit cocktail. I would drain a couple of cans then pulse them in my food processor and freeze them in ice cube trays. It took 20 seconds to thaw out 4 cubes. They also liked beans of every description.
I was confused about finger foods too, but I read in a book to try something that mashes easily and can be grasped easily, like a 1/4 graham cracker. So that's what we tried and they are a hit! The first couple times I was so paranoid about choking, but they eat them like little (messy) champs. So now we've expanded our repertoire to include arrowroot cookies and pieces of banana. I have seen those mesh feeders... I may try that with the frozen fruit. As far as tofu goes, they can just eat it raw. I've been a veg. for 8 years and tofu is the next thing we're going to try since it is such a huge part of my and DH's diet. I am going to try plain first, but if they aren't into it I will probably try the baked/flavored ones like the previous poster mentioned.
QUOTE(jschaad @ Jan 28 2008, 02:38 PM) [snapback]593553[/snapback] so can they have cheese? I am nervous as to what i can and can not give them! I am dieing to be done with baby food, as the cost is insane... I just want them to be ready to eat it all since they are in daycare now and not just with my mom. LOL>.. the stage 3 are not a huge hit with mine... anyone else having a hard time with them? Hi Jennifer Mine are sick of baby food too. They've really been into very small pieces of english muffin with lots of butter, waffle with lots of butter, straight cream cheese -- little balls or cubes of it or on the end of a spoon. My DD would probably eat plain butter but that notion doesn't appeal to me much! Mine get scads of yogurt too. I drain out the water to thicken it (in some paper towels in a colander). Stage 3 aren't a big hit in my house, but there are not many varieties available for vegetarians. I'm going to try some baked tofu as suggested by PP. Sotto
Regarding cheese or dairy in general...my girls are 2 and allergic to dairy. We discovered this around 12 months after I had been feeding them dairy for a few weeks. They quit sleeping through the night, moaned and groaned all night long, became really clingy and whiny, and had really gassy stomachs. They also got their first ear ache which is a symptom of dairy allergies. I say try it but look out for these signs along with the traditional allergy sign of redness around the anus. They always got that too!
In reference to the mesh feeders, my boys LOVE frozen grapes in theirs! I think the combo of the cold on their gums, the funky shapes, & the 'grape juice' they get once they start to melt is what makes them such a big hit. I'd highly recommend it!
