Babies Eat

They work so hard to get those fat little fingers working. Then when the banana is successfully delivered to their mouths there is such joy!

I needed to sweep the floor and clean the kitchen yesterday. What to do with Lola? Hmmm... I plunked her in her seat with her very first Cherios in front of her. I reasoned she was probably ready to test out the old pincher grasp on something edible. I figured she might be distracted with the exercise long enough to get my cleaning done. She loved it and ate her weight in cereal. A half hour later my kitchen was sparkling.  


What a difference from the first baby to the the third. When Normy was a baby I was so excited to spoon-feed him that I had him propped in the Bumbo before he could even sit up on his own. Armed with a spoon in one hand and my camera in the other I started shoveling rice cereal into his mouth at 5 and 1/2 months. He lived off of those nasty Gerber purees in the little plastic tubs... But, I would never dream of giving him finger foods! What if he choked?!?!?! I'm sure he was over a year before he sampled bites of banana or a tray full of peas.

With Georgia on the other hand I skipped purees all together. By then I had read Nourishing Traditions and Feeding the Whole Family and the Gerber purees were not on the menu. But, I was also parenting two children very close in age (at least developmentally) and though I loved the idea of making baby food... it just never happened. (Well, maybe once. Pretty sure it was carrots.) So, about the time Georgia was 10 months old she finally starting eating a little bit from my plate that was soft and smooshable. But, before then it was strictly boobie-milk for her. 

I am not saying there is a right way or a wrong way. There are too many variables in personality to make such a claim. But, the fact remains Normy is a horrible picky eater and will only eat about ten different foods all of them either white or a fruit... and only if they are not mixed or combined in any way. Georgia will eat ANYTHING. Sushi, curry, onions, casseroles, burritos. She loves it all. (Though she isn't quite as adventurous as she used to be.)


Lola, now there is a different story. I didn't really plan on doing purees with her but around seven and a half months she made it very clear that she wanted food. With Lola I have found balance. There is a middle way. I buy little jars of organic baby food to have on hand incase there isn't something appropriate for her on our dinner menu. But, most nights she eats an unspiced and pureed version of whatever we are eating. As a result she has had guacamole, hummus, lentils, brown rice, squash, and a whole host of things my big kids didn't try until... well a lot of those things Normy still hasn't tried. 


Feeding babies is fun. I love the process of discovery they go through. The way their eyes light up when they taste something they like for the first time or the way they shudder when experiencing a texture they didn't expect. I think it is hilarious the way they gag a little while try to figure out exactly how to swallow. The whole process is exciting. And, I have found out over the years it is far less complicated then I ever though in the beginning.