Questions on Solid Foods

Ok...my lo's have mastered all stage 1 foods and I went out today and bought biter biscuits, puffs and stage 2 foods. Here are my questions:

1.)How much baby food did you give your lo's at each sitting at 7 months and how often? once a day, twice a day, etc.?

2.) What is considered a typical snack at this age and how often did you give them?

3.)Did a solid feeding replace a bottle completely? Or did you offer a 2- 3 ounce bottle after?

4.)Since many of the stage 2 foods are mixtures of various fruits and veggies, do I need to introduce one mixture and then wait a few days before introducing another?

I feel like a lot of people are more liberal with the foods they're giving their babies at this age - crackers, cheerios, etc. I'm a little timid in this department and tend to be more conservative which may not always be good. Just looking for some guidance/experiences...thanks!

 

Hi Sarah!

I am probably one of those that is more liberal with our feeding. We make our own food so it's a bit different. They have been eating "chunky" food for about 6 wks now, it's much chunkier than the stage 3 food...but our pedi recommended it, she notice as did we that our boys are ready.

they have been getting just a bottle when they wake up the around 9am they get breakfast (about 3oz of food) then they will drink about 4-5oz (or vice versa-bottle first-eat after)

Lunch the same thing

Dinner the same
and a bottle at bed they usually only drink about 4oz
they are still getting about 18-25oz of formula a day...we follow their cues.

We are going to start giving them a snack aroun 3pm because they seem to be too hungry at dinner time.

we tend to give a mum mum with their sippy cup to keep them occupied while we make dinner...

I hope that helps? Sorry i'm trying to write this quickly while dh bathes babe #2...
reb

 

My girls are the 6 months. They have been eating the Stage 1 and all the 6 Month cereals. I have the exact same questions as Sarah.

 

I really don't think being conservative in this area is a problem. I think you are doing great!! I was very slow introducing things to my oldest. He only had cereal starting around 6.5 mos, and then I slowly introduced fruit and veggies, one at a time. I think you are right - introduce one mixture at a time, unless they've already had the two individuals. (If it's bananas and pears, for instance, if they've already had both individually, they should be fine with the mixture.)

We gave solids for dinner and lunch, mostly, and then still gave him 6 oz - 8 oz bottles in-between. I always read that all they really need is BM or formula through the first year. That eating solids earlier is just "practice" because they might reject solids if you wait to introduce them at a year. So, that was my strategy - the bottles are very important, and the solids are just for "fun".

Hope that helps!!

 

I started giving my LO's Stage 1 food at about 5.5 months and moved up from there. The stage 2 foods are almost the same, just a bit thicker in some cases (it depends on what it is).

To answer your questions:

1. At 7 months, they were getting a whole container of fruit at breakfast combined with cereal. At lunch and dinner they were getting a whole container of vegetables combined with cereal. So they were getting "food" three times a day.

2. At 7 months I attemped to give the Gerber puffs and yogurt melts, but they choked and it scared me. I would try again every week or so until they got it and would give them a few here and there between meals.

3. No, solid food did not replace bottles. The nurses at the pediatrician office I go to told me that baby food was about 80 water, so it isn't really that filling. They got the meals I described in #1 alone with a 6 ounce bottle. They were not satisfied and would get very fussy between meals if we gave them any less.

4. I did not wait with the mixtures and they did just fine with them. I think it just depends on the baby. Once we moved to stage 2, they started refusing peas and green beans, so we just mixed one half container of the green veggies with half of the yellow or orange! It worked and we laughed about how we didn't think if it earlier.

I thought this whole transition to food was very confusing. My boys are 9 months and I am still a little confused! Everyone does things at their own pace, so don't feel rushed to do anything! I am also just watching the boys for clues that they are ready for more foods. They seem like they could eat non-stop during the day if I would allow it!

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

April

 

Thanks everyone for the advice! They seem to like everything I give them with the exception of peas, so I just mix those with something else. I'm hoping to just follow their cues like many of you did and let nature take it's course. There isn't a manual for how to feed babies solids but I knew just where to come with my questions. Thanks again!

 

1.)How much baby food did you give your lo's at each sitting at 7 months and how often? once a day, twice a day, etc.?
At 7 months, mine were on one solid meal a day then. They werent overly interested in the savoury meal until about 8 months. The rest were bottles.

2.) What is considered a typical snack at this age and how often did you give them?
I gave them fruit puree as a meal. Apart from this and bottles I didn´t give any snacks. Mine ate every 3-4 hours.

3.)Did a solid feeding replace a bottle completely? Or did you offer a 2- 3 ounce bottle after?
In my case, yes, the solid meal replaced a bottle, as our pedi recommended it (I´m based in Spain). Mine dropped their bottles althogether by around 10 months as they didn´t want them. I offered formula in their sippies and special formula-based yogurts so they were still getting their nutrition from dairy.

4.)Since many of the stage 2 foods are mixtures of various fruits and veggies, do I need to introduce one mixture and then wait a few days before introducing another?
In terms of allergies, etc, I would go slowly and introduce one thing at a time and see what happens. Otherwise, I´d let your LOs guide you.

One thing I will say is to follow your instincts. Our pedi wouldnt let mine touch finger foods till 12 months and I seriously regret listening to her as now it is hard to get them to eat proper food. DS will eat bread, toast, puffs but wont touch anything else so I have to go slowly. DD isn´t interested full stop. I stopped pureeing their food so finely aswell. I have a friend in the UK who started feeding her DD food from 6 months. She never ate any purees and she never had a problem. I think you have to be careful but, at the same time, let them guide you. It is confusing, as the PP says, but we´ll all get there & so will they!

GL!