When did you stop giving them "baby food"

My boys are pretty good eaters, they have a variety of things that they really like so I'm happy with that but.... I find it practically impossible to get them to eat a veggie off of their tray. The only way they get veggies is if they are in soup which I usually add extra canned veggies to (I know fresh would be better) or if I give them the Gerber pureed veggies. They will eat fresh fruit off their tray but sometimes it's hard to keep fresh fruit in the house all the time (same with veggies) and they will still eat the Gerber fruit very well if I spoon feed them. I guess I'm wondering if I am carrying on this "baby food" thing too long or does it really matter? The other thing is that they are allergic to milk so their ped still has them on formula which they get 2x a day so I know they get the nourishment they need. Should I be trying to get them to eat their fruits and veggies a different way?

On a side note, is it considered juice if I fill their cup with water and add a splash of juice for flavor? I am worried they are getting too much juice but they will not drink plain water and it is sooooo hot out. They each probably drink 2.5 6oz sippies a day of that

 

I would keep trying with the veggies, but if they still eat baby food, then give it to them!

Caleb will only eat apples - no other fruit or veggie. Connor refuses all fruit and veggies. I still give him baby food fruit and for veggies (and a bit more fruit), I juice Carrots, broccoli, kiwi, apple and pear.

I also hide things in their food - sweet potatoes in pancakes, carrots in muffins.

The book deceptively dilicious is really good!

 

We were off baby food by 9-10 months, but mine were not big baby food fans and liked table foods (of all varieties, including veggies) much better. I think a splash of juice is fine.

 

I mostly phased out the baby food around 13-14 months, but I kept giving both of them jarred veggies for at least another few months. Like you said, it was the only way they (especially Sarah) would eat veggies. (She still doesn't eat them -- but now she won't eat baby food either.) I also kept a stock of jarred fruit to mix with plain yogurt, figuring it was healthier than giving them sweetened and flavored yogurt. I just quit doing that around when they turned two.

Keep offering different kinds of "real" fruits and veggies, but there's no harm in giving them the baby food too.

I don't see any problem with a splash of juice either.

 

Mine just turned two and I still give them Stage 3 fruits.
It is the only way they eat fruit. They do not like regular cut up pieces of fruit, so it is much better than no fruit at all. I would not worry about giving it to them!

 

9 months, with the exception of apple sauce.

 

I'm so happy to read these posts. I am having baby food withdrawal issues, too!

My kids do some self-feeding, but mostly with carb-items like cheerios, puffs - dry things. They are not thrilled (especially DD) with picking up anything wet or sticky. They will take chunkier items like cut-up veggies, fruit, and meat from a spoon, but a lot of the time my DS spits it right out if it is too chunky (especially fruits and veggies).

So...in order to get them to eat fruits and veggies, I'm still giving them purees. I make most of them myself and have been just mashing or really lightly pureeing so it's not smooth, but I have felt guilty still giving them this "baby food." I just want to make sure they are getting their fruits and veggies in and if I try to force the cut up pieces on them, they don't eat nearly as much as if I feed them mashed/pureed stuff.

So, I feed them the "baby food" and always give them something on their tray to practice with as well. I try to tell myself that they'll learn to eat at some point and won't be in high school still eating baby food!

There is always something to worry about, isn't there??

Jessica

 

Mine kept eating baby food up until about 16 - 18 months of age. As long as they would eat it, I would give it to them, especially since that is the only way they would eat vegetables for a while.

 

Mine were off of baby food at 10 months. They are decent eaters (good at times and not so good at times). I would highly recommend continuing to give them some veggies (non baby food) with each meal. They will eventually get used to them.

 

Mine still liked the stage 3 dinners around that age, but by 14-15 months they were eating only table food.

 

Mine LOVE fresh fruit so no worries there, but veggies are another story! Ds will eat ANYTHING so he is not the problem, but dd will not eat veggies, she puts them in her mouth and then spits them out. So I still give them jarred babyfood veggies, and they spoonfeed themselves those. Who cares, it is kinda like soup, and its healthy. I always offer "real" veggies, but still give the jars.

 

As long they have their tooth for chewing it was at 9-10 mos. They're a good eaters but veggies can be difficult at times. We give them alternate with veggie/juice drink.

D, w/Rianna and Justin (20 mos)

 

I still buy the Stage 2 Gerber fruits and mix them with their oatmeal in the morning and with plain, whole-fat yogurt. I do it because it's easy and cheaper then buying the Yo Baby yogurt. I cut up pieces of fruit for them everyday, so they eat it that way too, but it's just convenient to buy the baby food. I still give them baby oatmeal too because I can't get them to eat the adult kind.

They used to LOVE baby food veggies, but now they refuse it. I'm having a really hard time getting them to eat veggies in any way, shape or form!

 

QUOTE(CHJH @ Jun 6 2008, 05:03 PM) [snapback]813923[/snapback]
9 months, with the exception of apple sauce.

ditto!

 

Mine are 2 1/2 and we still mix the baby food prunes into their oatmeal for regularity plus they love the taste of it.

 

We stopped around 9-10 months because the girls prefered table food. For the water/juice issue have you tried the flavored water. My girls will not drink plain water, but I can give them flavored water (it comes in a wide range of flavors) and they will suck it down. It has no calories and no sugar. I have to admit, that the girls still get night time bottles of water and I didn't want them to get the sugar in juice.

 

Mine still eat babyfood here and there. I buy some veggies and some fruits because my son loves them. He also loves the beef dinner so i get that for him too. My pedi said that his son was still on babyfood at two years so he is not concerned at all... Reading this post made me see that i need to wrok more on veggies and fruits though...

 

We went off baby food between 10-11 months.

Mine wouldn't pick up a vegetable for a while because they were "wet." Within the last month, they now will eat corn, peas, carrots, sweet potato french fries, and occasionally green beans. Not great...not bad. They also wouldn't eat fresh/canned fruit because it was wet but now they eat grapes, blueberries, apples, bananas, all varieties of dried fruits, peaches, and pears.

Before they'd eat this, I'd have to put extra veggies in mashed potatoes or pasta dishes and gave lots of applesauce and smashed bananas!

 

I can't comment too much on the veggy issue. We have so many problems getting the kids to eat vegs. They sit on the plate untouched most of the time. It is a real battle!

We always put a splash of 100% juice in the kids' water. They don't like to drink plain water (yes, I know, my fault) but we have had luck with grape juice or apple juice in
water. We also have tried the fruit spashers and the other flavored water. I hesitate using that too much since it has alternative sweetners and a bit of sodium but I'd rather keep them hydrated.

Good luck! I'm sure you're doing great.