Everything You Need to Know About Introducing Solid Food to Your Baby -

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Welcome to your new and messy life of solids! This is a huge milestone for your little one.

This is an exciting time. With the introduction of solids come more choices than you would think. I’ve got some tips and pointers to help you navigate this new phase.

Let’s talk about introducing solid foods to your baby!

Introducing Baby Food

How do you plan on introducing solids to your baby? Are you going the purees route or taking the baby-led weaning approach? One involves you feeding your baby with a spoon while the other allows your baby to handle the food and eat on their own.

Do your research and figure out what works best for your family. We tried and used both methods together.

If you go the purees route do you plan to purchase them or make them yourself? If you have the time I would recommend making them yourself. That way you know exactly what went into your baby’s food. It can also be more cost-effective. Check out my article How to Save Money by Making Your Own Baby Food.

When it comes to introducing food it is strongly recommended to offer one food at a time. Watch your baby for any sign of a negative reaction. This way if they have a negative reaction you know exactly what caused it. I have a full article you can read here about How to Figure Out if My Baby has Allergies.

I suggest introducing vegetables more often than fruit in the beginning. It is typically easier to get your little one to eat fruit so start with the challenge of veggies. Once they start getting that sugary fruit taste they may not want to go back to vegetables.

Talk to your doctor about introducing foods that have a higher risk of being allergens such as peanut butter. Learn when and how to best introduce them.

One possible way to do so is by watering the peanut butter down. Another is using peanut powder and mixing it into purees. It is often recommended to continue regularly giving them this food. You don’t want to do peanut butter once and then not do it again for six months.

What Food to Give Them

Sweet potato is a common first food. Other suggestions include carrots, peas, avocado, and bananas.

Once your baby gets a little more advanced and can use their fingers don’t be afraid to serve them meat. Just be sure it is cut up or ground into safe portions.

Talk to your doctor about their recommendations on food such as peanut butter and shellfish.

Other foods to avoid before your baby hits one year are corn and honey. When you do introduce corn don’t let your little one go crazy. It can be hard on their digestion.

Environment for Introducing Solids

The best place to start introducing solids is at home with just you and your partner.

Keep the environment calm and quiet. Avoid distractions such as the tv.

Don’t make the food this huge and overwhelming thing. Let them taste and explore it, but don’t force it on them.

We want them to have a positive experience.

If you are able consider introducing them to the high chair or booster seat before introducing foods. For example, place them in the high chair at meal times with the family but instead of food at first give them toys to play with.

We don’t encourage toys at the table long term, but this is a great way to calmly introduce the environment before introducing foods.

What to Expect the First Time

Do not go into the first time with high expectations. Your baby may not actually get anything down. This is perfectly fine, and actually can be a good thing. You wouldn’t want to give them a huge serving their first time. Just imagine how that would feel on their little stomach. It could be quite overwhelming.

Expect a lot of funny faces. They are having a new experience with touch, taste, and smell. This is so much for them to handle. Watch their faces as they process what is happening.

Accessories

Ok time to talk about what you are going to need now that you are starting solids.

Some sort of a bib or smock would be great. I have enjoyed using the silicone bibs with the food catcher at the bottom. It is amazing how much you find in there once you start doing finger foods. Consider purchasing one bib for at home and one to keep in the diaper bag.

You will need a spoon and while you are at it might as well get a fork. The spoon will be your go-to tool if you do purees, but before you know it you will be ready to introduce the fork.

Cups were tricky for us. Some are designed for babies to suck, similar to a bottle. Other cups are designed for babies to pour into their mouth, like the 360 cups. Then you also have cups designed with a straw. Typically the recommended age is older for this style.

Because I exclusively breastfed we felt like our little one didn’t get this as well as a bottle-fed baby might. Practice drinking out of the cup or a similar adult cup to model it for your baby. Wait for them to be looking and focused on you when demonstrating.

Another cool method for cup introduction is assisting your baby to drink from an open cup. This is part of Montessori style parenting. You are teaching your child that things can spill if they aren’t careful. You help guide the cup to their mouth and progress to them doing it more independently over time. If you plan to go this route remember it takes time, effort, and patience.

Plates, bowls, and mats. In the beginning, you may not allow your little one to handle a plate or bowl. You could go with the suction placemat that cannot be dropped or spilled by your little one. Over time it is important though to teach your little one that plates and bowls are for holding food and do not need to be dumped. Once again patience and time will get you there.

Clean Up

Let’s just start by saying expect a mess. For the next however many months your floor will constantly need cleaning. Your baby’s chair will be a mess. And you baby, depending on how much freedom and independence you give them, could look unrecognizable by the end of a meal.

Just accept this. It’s how they learn.

First of I recommend at least using a bib, if you want to kick it up a notch consider a full shirt cover.

If you are at home and your baby has a nice outfit on, consider striping them out of it. Otherwise expect stains.

Once your baby is really digging into their food and handling a lot of it themselves maybe move bath time to right after dinner. You just might need it.

When you are out of the house and your baby needs to eat try to pack foods that are easier to clean up. For example, I would never take spaghetti- o’s to a restaurant, everything would be stained orange. I would take applesauce instead because it is a light color.

And lastly, make sure you have plenty of wipes packed for outings. You are going to need them.

Food Safety

Please please please always consider your baby’s safety.

Always make sure you are giving your baby food in a safe form. Whether it is pureed, baby-led weaning style, or cut into bite-sized pieces. Safety is our priority. If you have any doubts about what your baby can handle error on the side of caution.

Learn the difference between gagging and choking. Babies often gag. And it is ok. They are keeping themselves safe by doing so. Gagging has sounds associated with it.

Choking on the other hand can be silent. Educate yourself on what to do if your baby is in fact choking. This could be taking a full-on class or watching a tutorial online.

As a parent of a baby with allergies, I recommend tracking what you feed your baby. Every time you introduce a new food makes notes on if they react.