Jacob's eating has really taken off. I remember people were trying to get me to start him on rice cereal at just four months because that's what they did with their own kids. Being a first-time mom and not truly trusting my own instincts, I tried feeding this to him a few times and he obviously wasn't ready yet. Around five-and-a-half months or so (I think), I tried again and started gradually progressing to the regular commercial "Stage 1" baby purees - bananas, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, etc. Once he started eating pretty well and actually liking his food, he started grabbing my hand and trying to help feed himself with his spoon. He was doing pretty good, but once we moved onto finger foods... he found that it was much easier to use his hands as his utensils instead. Occasionally he'll grab for the spoon these days, but it's mainly just to stick it in his bowl and play around, bang on his highchair tray, or to chomp on the metal end of it with his teeth.
Originally I had planned on making most of his food from fresh fruits and veggies - steaming and pureeing things myself -, but working full-time and then taking care of him in the evening just didn't allow much time for that. Every now and then I would make a few things up on the weekend and have extras leftover for his meals later in the week, but he mostly got jarred baby food. I've tried to avoid baby food fruits and veggies that are on the "Dirty Dozen" list of the most contaminated (pesticide-laden) foods, so just about all of the apples, potatoes, pears, and peaches he's had have been organic up to this point (Earth's Best Organic baby food). There aren't very many other Dirty Dozen foods that he's tried since he's not a chewer yet - peppers, celery, kale, leafy greens. He wasn't old enough for strawberries at the time when they were in season, and I just never got around to buying blueberries last year. I might pick up some frozen organic berries one of these days, though, to have in pancakes or something. Aaaanyway...
Little by little, I added more and more different foods and gradually increased the texture of his foods, so he's now eating like a champ. :) So far he seems to like just about anything, but carbs are by far his favorite (Baby Mum-Mums rice crackers, whole wheat bread/toast, and pasta) closely followed by fruit. I know at some point in the not-too-distant future there's going to come a time when he starts getting picky and may only want pb&js for breakfast, lunch, and dinner... but I'm happy with the variety of tastes I've introduced him to so far. I can only hope that I can be a good example of a knowledgeable, healthy mom for him (I'm working on that myself!)... that he grows to love our food... and that in time he grows to understand, appreciate, and hopefully agree with the reasoning behind why we (I) eat the way we (I) do.The past few days, he's taken to picking up a piece of food between his fingers and leaning across the tray towards us to try to feed us! Too cute! :)
Jacob's Familiar Foods and Spices
acorn squash * apples * applesauce * avocados * bananas * basil * beets * black beans
* black pepper * broccoli * brown rice * carrots * chick peas * cinnamon * corn (in an Earth's Best puree) * cucumber * curry powder * eggplant * french toast * green bean casserole * green beans * hummus * jasmine rice * lasagna * leeks * lentils * mango * marjoram * mushrooms * oatmeal * onions * oranges * oregano * pancakes (1/2 white flour, 1/2 whole wheat) * pasta sauce * pear * peas * pickles * pinto beans * potatoes * quinoa * raspberries (in an Earth's Best puree) * spaghetti * spinach * summer squash * sweet potatoes * thyme * tofu * whole wheat bread * zucchini
