More experienced moms of the DIS..a little help here please.

[CEDmom]

I forget to also recommend you get those spoons that Sassy makes with holes in them. The holes actually help hold the food onto the spoon. They're also rubber so you don't have to worry about your DS hitting his teeth.

I also forgot to mention beans. Our DD being a girl liked pink beans and she also loved baked beans (it's one of the early foods recommended by Dr. Spock).

 

[kidzmom3]

If you don't want to give cheerios for finger foods, try the gerber brand fruit or veggie wagon wheels, or veggie puffs. They are good and healthy for him, plus it will be relatively neat

 

[disneygals]

another post to tell you you to relax! I know how it is with a first-born and no other mothers to chat with.

This is mostly what my 3 girls ate at this age........

macaroni and cheese, peas, scrambled eggs with cheese, gerber chicken sticks, cheese toast cut into tiny pieces, pizza crust, cheerios, yoplait yogurt custard style (great for learning with spoon, not runny) pasta, anything of ours they wanted to try, but we don't eat much meat.

Please let your son feed himself AND make a mess, it's great for pics! I am a Virgo, too...you will survive!

 

[piratesmate]

When DS was little his doctor recommended that we let him feed himself while we ate. Then when you see him doing more playing than eating, switch to feeding him. That way you're sure he's getting enough, but he has the joy of doing it himself as well.

Nuking potatoes & then mashing one for your DS is much easier than doing the whole boiling thing. I hate the fake ones in the box. However, Ore-Ida makes some that you get from the frozen food case. They're real potatoes & you just add water, broth or milk & cook them. I rarely make them from scratch anymore as the frozen ones are excellent!

I was never big on the kids dipping everything in ketchup. While I love ketchup, it adds relatively empty calories to your diet. I used to let my kids mix "regular" foods rather than dip in ketchup, but to each his own.

About the protein thing....I thought this blurb on foods that combine to make a complete protein might be of some help:

"Protein is an important component of the athlete's diet. Most foods that come from plant origins are incomplete proteins and differ from each other according to the amino acids they lack or contain in limited supply. Vegetarians have learned to combine proteins from plant sources to obtain a complete protein mix. A common example is mixing peanut butter with wheat in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The following table lists some examples of complementary foods that supply adequate amino acids.



SOURCE FOOD

Beans/rice

baked beans and bread, beans and wheat tortillas

Beans/rice
bean salad and rice

Peas/rye
split pea soup and rye bread

Cornmeal/beans
corn bread and kidney beans

Legumes/rice
stir-fried veggies and rice

Beans/corn
salad with mixed beans and corn

Legumes/corn
salad with sprouts beanand corn on the cob

 

[mtblujeans]

I guess I"m stressing more than I need to because I'm a first time mom and I really don't have anybody (other than youse guys! ) to talk to about these kinds of things. I don't dare talk to my mom..she'll tell me what I SHOULD be doing. If I ask my MIL, she'll criticize me and tell me what I am doing wrong and how I should do it HER way to make it better.

TOV

ARE YOU CRAZY?? ASKING THOUSANDS OF MOMS FOR THEIR OPINIONS??? Er, ah, I mean.......I'm sure you are doing fine. Sheesh, when my oldest was a baby, we were still putting cereal in their bottles to make them sleep all night! You can't do worse than previous generations did!

 

[KMH1]

TOV, our babies are the same age...Alyssa will turn one on 4/3. She also weighs 18 pounds. We have been working solids into her diet for the past five months...gradually, of course.

Finger foods are great, because they keep her occupied while I prepare the rest of her meal (and occasionally DH and I get to eat too ). Her favorite finger foods are: cheerios, baby goldfish crackers, Gerber fruit and veggie puffs, and toast cut in bite-size pieces.

Gerber Graduates are expensive, but I have found coupons easily. They have jarred veggies that are soft and in bite size pieces that make great finger foods too. They also make "meat sticks." That's what they're called! They have chicken sticks too.

Alyssa is not a big fan of chicken either, but I have always mixed it with other foods (pasta, mashed potatoes, etc.) She also loves cheese and scrambled eggs. If I make pancakes for breakfast, she gets one too. More ends up squished and all over the place than in her mouth, but she's learning. We have probably taken over 100 pictures of Alyssa eating!

Self-feeding is extremely messy, but she gets upset if I don't let her try. Often, I give her a spoon to hold and then she lets me feed her. Those Sassy spoons with the holes are great. I also put food on her tray that she can self-feed, and then she lets me feed her the more "liquidy" foods. Like Justhat mentioned, I have to monitor how much food I put on her tray though, because Alyssa loves to stuff her mouth full.

I don't have any advice to give you on the allergy thing. The only thing we're keeping out of Alyssa's diet for another year or so is peanuts. Yesterday she sucked down half of my vanilla milkshake. She wants anything I have!

Hang in there! Sometimes parenting is just trial and error.

Amy

 

[NHAnn]

Hey, a whole lot of parents are trying to get more veggies and fruits into their kids by mixing them (hiding them) in other things I say mix the chicken in and count your blessing!!

And like others have said...RELAX! Stop worrying so much about allergies and ENJOY this very brief period in his life!

 

[swea_pea1]

I'll chime in to second that self-feeding promotes valuable motor skills! We hated the mess with that too, so we started putting newspaper under their high-chairs before we ate. Afterwards, just ball up the paper, wipe down the high-chair, and the mess was gone.

I let my kids eat everything from the "adult" menu from the time they were your son's age or so. Really, there's not much difference between Gerber's lasagna and one that I'd make.

I was a very picky eater as a child and really didn't want my kids to be that way so I exposed them to everything. I always put a little of everything on their plates and let them eat what they wanted. Of course, as others have mentioned I watched for things that could be hazardous like nuts, peanut butter, popcorn, honey, etc. until they were age-appropriate and always cut up meats like hot dogs into tiny pieces so they wouldn't choke. As a result, my kids eat just about everything (coleslaw and tuna salad seem to be the only two hold-outs). At 3 years old, my DS will eat chili or sauerkraut. DD loves mushrooms and can eat a whole can of olives at a sitting if I'd let her.

I always figured if they spend one whole meal eating veggies, it was fine because the next day they may eat a whole meal of just meat. Relax. Let him feed himself. Follow the peds advice for age-appropriate foods and your gut on other things (when MIL gave DD miniature marshmallows at one year old, I freaked!). Give him a spoon, and let him try. Even if he doesn't use it at first, eventually he'll pick it up and it'll click. Meal times will be much less stressful if you encourage his further development.

 

[disykat]

NO, NO, NO! Don't let people talk you into giving wheat or peanuts! Children with ANY history of allergies (not just food allergies - we had no food allergies in our family) are supposed to avoid wheat, citrus, etc until age one and ALL children should avoid peanuts until age three. People saying their children survived it is not a good reason to go against current medical practice.

My children did not have wheat or corn until age one. Just buy "oatios" at the health food store instead of cheerios or go for unsweetened puffed rice - very cheap at the grocery store. My kids loved rice and beans at that age. The only meat they really liked was a meatloaf I made out of turkey, spinach, and oats. (It wasn't as hard as it sounded, I just served it for dinner one night and then chopped what was left into little cubes and put it in baggies in the freezer). I also kept cubed baked sweat potatoes in the freezer - so I had an easy meal to stick in front of the kids when what we were having couldn't be cut up. Rice and oats are plenty of grain -and there are other options available as well.

Mashed potatoes are easy - just microwave it and mash it with a fork. Babies aren't picky. It's probably even easier to cut it in little cubes and let it be finger food. My boys loved to eat with their hands - don't let anyone talk you into thinking cheerios are the only option!

My child is peanut allergic and I have a hard time not blaming myself. I ate peanuts while pregnant and nursing. I introduced peanut butter around age two and discovered the allergy then. Boy if I had only known what they know now and possibly been able to prevent his problems.

For some reason, food allergies are more prevalent now. You are very smart to be careful!

 

[poohandwendy]

NO, NO, NO! Don't let people talk you into giving wheat or peanuts! Children with ANY history of allergies (not just food allergies - we had no food allergies in our family) are supposed to avoid wheat, citrus, etc until age one and ALL children should avoid peanuts until age three. People saying their children survived it is not a good reason to go against current medical practice.

TOV's son has not been diagnosed with any allergies, if I recall correctly.

 

[disykat]

TOV's son has not been diagnosed with any allergies, if I recall correctly.

My mistake was in my post - I meant to say children with ANY history of allergies in their family (ie mom has hay fever) are supposed to follow food allergy protocol and avoid common food allergens until after their first birthday.

My point is that avoiding wheat until after age one is very common and she is not hurting her child by doing so. Because of my experience with a son with food allergies (a first for our family - no history), I applaud any parent who has clearly read up on the recommendations and takes them seriously.

 

[MUFFYCAT]

I wouldn't worry about too much. When my DD was 2 she didn't eat much.
We went away for a week and I don't think she hardly anything.

 

[Disney_1derland]

well, I'm a protein worried mom too, or at least I was when they were that age I used to buy tofu powder and put it in their yogurt, no taste, lots of protein. They also liked tofu at that age (they don't now.) My kids favorites were french toast dip the bread in 1 egg yolk and 1 tbsp milk mixed together, cook it like normal, cut it into tiny pieces. they loved that one.

Also, by the time they were just over a year they both discovered the art of the Dip. They will eat anything as long as they can dip it into some kind of sauce. When they were that age I would let them dip their green veggies into a pureed yellow or orange veggie, they thought it was so great. Of course, now at 2 and 5 they have discovered ketchup so pureed veggies are so not cool

Have you read the book Super Baby Food? It's a great book with lots of ideas and recipes, we lived by it here and still refer to it constantly.

also, as for the chicken seperate thing, is he eating baby food that comes all mixed together? If so mixed seems natural to him.

It's okay to be a paranoid mom, that's just the love showin' through

 

[tjmw2727]

I try to, but it seems like he eats NOTHING but veggies sometimes. I've been giving him oatmeal/banana cereal for breakfast but OMG does that make him poop like crazy! Stinky,too.

*ETA..nope..no bread. No crackers, no Cheerios..nada. Just meat, veggies and some fruits. I am hesitant to let him self-feed because I'm afraid he won't get the nutrition he needs. Bugs tends to play with his food more than anything and make a hugemongous mess if I let just put a plate of food in front of him. It's easier to make sure he's eating if I feed him.*

TOV

Ok - I have only read to this point and must respond, if I feel the need to I will post again after I have read the rest of the thread. If this is covered than I apologize for the repetition.

As a mom of a now wonderfully healthy 10 yo who at 2 was FTT (Failure To Thrive) let me beg you to start introducing foods, slowly and appropriately, regardles of your issues your son needs to learn to eat.

He also needs to self feed - this is more than jmho. A his age its as much about development as it is about nutrition. Self feeding develops hand eye coordination, develops independence and can start him on the way to being a confident person.

Hold of on the milk until after "meal time" he will fill up on the milk otherwise. Give him some cheerios (or an appropriate other cereal) if nothing else, they are a great first food!! If you don't know what is appropriate then grab a book, hit the gerber or earth's best asile and look for the toddler foods. He needs foods he can pick up and bite. If you don't like the mess then give him a few bits at a time and replace as necessary. If he dosen't like it the first time don't worry, serve again in a few days. Sometimes they won't ever like it at all other times after 2-5 introductions they will eat it. Don't worry about him getting enough or over eating, children are self regulating...until we mess with this regulation....

If he likes to dip, let him dip. The fact that you are posting tells us your worried, perhaps your health plan covers a nutritionist. I would seriously consider putting your issues aside (your description not mine) for the benefit of your child.

TJ

 

[Christine]

My mistake was in my post - I meant to say children with ANY history of allergies in their family (ie mom has hay fever) are supposed to follow food allergy protocol and avoid common food allergens until after their first birthday.

My point is that avoiding wheat until after age one is very common and she is not hurting her child by doing so. Because of my experience with a son with food allergies (a first for our family - no history), I applaud any parent who has clearly read up on the recommendations and takes them seriously.

diskat !!

I wish I knew then what I know now. I have hay fever and cat allergies. My husband has eczema. DD 13 was lucky not to get any food allergies. DS 10 is a different story. We had no idea of the allergy issues back then. His daycare center gave him peanut butter when he was 10 months old. He had a definite reaction. Now, I'll never know if we could have avoided the allergy if I had held off for until he was 3. Ticks me off, though. Knowing what I know now and the we have family history of *some* allergies, I would avoid the allergenic foods.

Not sure about the cheerios--don't they contain ground almonds or almond flour?

 

[tjmw2727]

Ok your getting some great advice. I had forgotten about feeding dd with a spoon in addition to having the finger foods on the tray - that is great advice. I would feed with a spoon, have a spoon available for her and have a few things on the tray for her to eat.

Good luck and relax - it will be fun! (just wait until he fingerpaints.....)

TJ

 

[tjmw2727]

One more thought and forgive me if I am out of line, I am sincerely trying to be helpful. Since you don't have support from family would you consider joining a mom's group or even trying a gymboree class or swim class with your DS? I was never a joiner but my friends didn't have kids or had grown kids and I was really the only one I knew with a baby.

I got a coupon for a free gymboree class and met some wonderful moms with kids my dd's age and it was great. I got out once a week with dd and moms in a like situation. My questions and concerns were not silly to them and I made some wonderful friends. In fact there are three of us who are friends to this day (9 1/2 ish years later!) as are our dd's even though we live in different citys and the girls go to different schools.

Honestly, I would never have thought I would enjoy a "mom's group" but going to the class with dd was very good for me. Just a thought ~~

TJ

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

That's why I'm so worried about allergies. Both DH and I have plant allergies (pollen mostly) and I am lactose intolerant. My brother has asthma and we BOTH took allergy shots for about 3 years (which didn't really help,tbh). I am scared to death to end up with James' having some sort of allergy, be it food or plant.

The bottle of milk ONLY comes in after he's eaten all his food and even then, it's a struggle to get him to take more than 4 oz or so because he's full from his meal.

I feel I did something rather..well..bold for me at dinner tonight. I gave him some corn on the tray of his high chair while I fed him sweet potato/corn baby food. He played with it more than he ate it, but at least it's a step in the right direction, right?

I will work on giving him more finger foods and make sure to get him some of the Gerber Graduates in a few days when we go buy babyfood. Maybe then the store will have some. When we went yesterday, they said they didn't have any (and neither did any other store, most likely) because there was a problem with the packaging at the manufacturing plant. We were told Gerber was holding production until they got the problem fixed, so the store was VERY VERY VERY low on ANY kind of babyfood, not just the graduates.

Oh..James' says g hhvn zf dvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv!

*ETA--if I had the time I would. It seems like all the Gymboree/Mom's type groups meet when I have to work, so it's not exactly convient. Plus..I am a little scared to join one of those groups. I don't exactly fit the SAH soccer mom mold that seems to be the norm around where I live. I drive a 3 year old car and it's not even an SUV. I really don't think I'd fit in, tbh.*

TOV

 

[Allabtprincesses]

My oldest DD5 is a great eater. My DD2 is just the opposite. I was concerned about her protein intake as well, but her pediatrician said that she is fine. She drinks milk, yogurt, yogurt drinks, cheese if it's in grilled cheese, and chicken only in the form of Purdue chicken nuggets! Every night we put a few small pieces of what we are having in front of her, but she is a stubborn one and refuses to even try it! She won't eat eggs or any meat except the nuggets. For awhile I kept giving her the Gerber baby food with the meat mashed into oblivion in it, but I knew I wasn't doing her any favors letting her continue to be a "baby" so I stopped. As long as your DS is happy and healthy, and you continue to TRY and get him to eat different proteins, he will be fine! Good Luck!

 

[Christine]

That's why I'm so worried about allergies. Both DH and I have plant allergies (pollen mostly) and I am lactose intolerant. My brother has asthma and we BOTH took allergy shots for about 3 years (which didn't really help,tbh). I am scared to death to end up with James' having some sort of allergy, be it food or plant.


TOV

TOV,
I wanted to add that lactose intolerance is not like a food allergy. You either will or you won't be lactose intolerant at some point in your life. It has nothing to do with early exposure, too much exposure, etc. There is an enzyme the body produces to break down lactose (lactase?) and when it decides it's not going to do it anymore than that's that!! So, give the milk if you want.

Now, back to the allergies. If you have such a family history, than you are doing the right thing. You should be careful introducting the seven highly allergenic foods (wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, dairy, eggs). Now, you see that "dairy" is in there...are you worried about the milk you are giving him as much as the wheat, nuts, etc?? Not trying to trip you up here, just want to point out that some of the things you are giving him can be just as bad as the things you are trying to avoid.

Whatever you decide to go with, I have to agree to at least stay away from the nuts. They are the worst offenders it seems.