Hey Baby, What's On The Menu?

When my daughter Bee was about seven months old, I introduced my exclusively-breastfed first child to her first solid food – delicious, nutritious, homemade organic sweet potato mush. It was an exciting event, with the mess to prove it, but it marked the end of what crazy me actually considered the easiest part of infanthood. To be sure, until that afternoon, my child had been the ultimate in portability – have boob, will travel.

Although I was happy to usher Bee into this new chapter of life, to be honest, I was not all that psyched about having to worry about packing food for her when we left the house. So we took it slowly with solids, and eventually, like every added dimension of parenthood, we got used to it, and I think, got pretty good at  it.

Now that my little one, Dove, is five months old, I am starting to think again about first foods. Also exclusively and successfully breastfed, I had planned to wait even longer before introducing food, following Health Canada and the WHO’s recommendation that infants be given only breastmilk for at least the first six months of life. Fine by me. I’m busier now than I was the first time ‘round (having, of course, to take care of ‘first time ‘round’ in addition to the new baby), and was more than willing to wait a few more months.

So you might imagine my surprise when I inadvertently fed my five-month-old her first food just the other week. And you might be surprised yourself when I tell you what that first food was.

I’ll give you a hint: Me and Bee were eating it on the front porch on a beautiful spring day. And it rhymes with pocolate chopsicle.

Yup. So, here we were, sitting on the front porch, Bee beside me and Dove in my lap, just enjoying the spring afternoon, eating chocolate popsicles, and well, all I was thinking was, ‘Hey! This popsicle is really cold. In fact, it’s frozen. I bet it would feel really good on Dove’s gums!' (seeing as she’s teething like a toothless fiend these days)  And without further ado, I stick the chocolate popsicle in Dove’s mouth for her to suck on.

And then I clue in to the fact that I have just stuck a chocolate popsicle in Dove’s mouth for her to suck on.

Do I even have to tell you that Dove went totally apeshit for the chocolate popsicle? Or that, when I yanked it out of her drooling, chomping maw that she started waving her arms and literally buzzing for more?

Sigh. So there you have it. Bee was not even allowed to have a taste of cake at her first birthday party, but I have already fed my five-month-old chocolate popsicles. It really is different the second time around.

Anyway, for all you better (than me) parents out there, here is

Kgirl’s Do As I Say, Not As I Do Guide to Preparing First Foods

Easy-Peasy: Sweet Potato, carrots, parsnips, squash, apples, peas, pears, anything really

1. Steam it - 20 minutes should do it for just about any fruit or veg. Reserve the cooking water to add while smushing for a thinner consistency.

2. Smush it – I just use a Braun hand smusher.

3. Freeze it – No more plastic ice-cube trays please. Use small glass mason jars – sterilize, but no need to boil closed.

Even Easier: banana, avacado, chocolate popsicle (psyche! Just threw that one in to see if you were still paying attention)

1. Peel it
2. Smush it

Voila. Making your own baby food is neither time-consuming nor expensive. But it is healthier for your child, your wallet and the environment. As always, I’m going to say, go organic, because that’s what I’ll always say. Except when feeding your infant chocolate popsicles. No need to go organic then.

SoundBITE
Your baby is born with enough iron stores to last through at least six months of exclusive breastfeeding, regardless of the iron levels of the mother. One tablespoon of iron-fortified baby cereal mixed with one tablespoon of homemade fruit or veggie mash will ensure that your baby is getting enough iron in the first few months of solids, or until a more diverse diet is introduced.

Comments

[kittenpie]

Pumpkinpie got only breast milk for six months, too, and then eased into baby cereals, one grain at a time, then orange veggies, then green veggies, then fruits, and meats last. This was the order my doctor recommended, with at least 3 or 4 days between each new food. I was a freak about iron, so even when I started her on yogurt, I'd mix in some baby cereal, and I fed her toddler cereal with iron and some fruit puree when she got bigger for quite a long time.

[motherbumper]

Where were two years ago when I was crying over my food mill for inspiration? Oh and that popsicle story cracked my sh*t up - second child obviously RULES!

[nomotherearth]

Oh man, you crack me up! I'm pretty sure that the baby is going to try peanut butter before the Boy ever does. He still won't touch it.

(And, um, for those of us who don't own a steamer - can you just boil the veggies? Or does that leach out all the vitamins? Help!)

[Beck]

Hee, yeah. You do get WAY MORE RELAXED with the next kid. My poor firstborn had a sugarless carrot+wheatgerm cake for her first birthday. I'm sorry, sweetie.

[blah, blah, blog]

I love that story!

Following WHO recommendations, I introduced solids at 8 months the first time around (unless a bite out of a magazine qualifies as a first solid?). I don't think we're going to be able to hold off that long this time. Just last night girl child, the second plunged both hands into my (fortunately cooling) pasta dinner and was on track to the mouth...

[Nadine/Scarb]

Dude! Our girl was grabbing all kinds off the table at 5 months. She was too huge and too hungry to put off until 6 months -- and I am a total psycho when it comes to those recommendations.

Way more relaxed with the second kid for sure. (sugarless carrot+wheatgerm cake will have me laughing for a long time!)

I started her with pear and haven't looked back. God bless the ice cube tray. I do boy PC Organic sometimes to have on hand for convenience. But the homemade stuff is just SO good.