My son is almost 6 months old. He is a big boy to say the least. I am not sure how much he weighs now, but at his 4 month visit, he was almost 18 pounds. He is in the top 90th percentile for weight. He has always been formula fed. I would’ve loved to be able to breastfeed, but I am unable to, due to some health issues.
We found out in the hospital right after I had my son that he is lactose intolerant. So he has been on Enfamil Lactose Free ever since.
On a side note – Enfamil is actually discontinuing the Lactose Free in May. So we have been going crazy trying to gather cases of formula from every store that carries it. We need 180 cans to last us until he is a year old. What a crazy dillema this has been for us. We finally were able to get one of the Toys R Us stores that we went to, to order 15 cases for us from an out of state store. They are shipping it to them to give to us. Thank God!
OK, so as I was saying, my baby is a big boy. My other two were always small, so this was quite odd actually. But of course every baby / child is different.
Now that my baby is hitting the 6 month mark, I am thinking about introducing food to him. I have already started adding some baby cereal into his milk, especially at night so that he will sleep better. This really has helped. He really isn’t showing signs of being hungry though, so I am not sure whether or not I should wait a while longer.
I have read that you can introduce some baby foods as early as 4 months. I may have even done that for my other 2, but for some reason my brain is a fog and I can’t remember exactly when I started giving them food.
I know I have a lot of mom readers out there and I would love to get your opinions / thoughts on this subject. What did you do? What foods did you start with? How old was your baby?
I really appreciate your input. I don’t want to push things too soon, but also don’t want to hurt my baby by not feeding him if he needs it. What are the signs?
OK, well, thanks again my virtual mommy friends! I will wait to hear from you and then decide. Can’t wait to hear your comments!
_____________________________________________________
Don’t forget to check out my current giveaways!!
Romantica Therapy Home Spa Kit
$100 Gift Certificate to My Wonderful Walls
Well, I learned when my kids were babies that the signs they were ready to eat food were increased drooling and increased sucking on their hands. Also if you feel you need to feed your son formula more frequently, that could be a sign as well. But, you know your son best. I would start by feeding him pears or applesauce for starters to see how he handles that. If he does just fine then you can add other things like green beans and sweet potatoes. Do you plan on feeding him baby food or pureed adult food? If you’re going to puree it, then start out with the consistency as thin as possible. My grandson, who just turned 7 months has been eating baby food for a couple of month now, but he gags sometimes and has thrown up mashed potatoes. All kids are different, and I know you’ll do what’s best for your son. 🙂
I started my little boy at a different time than my girls…I started all 3 of them at different ages based on when I thought they were ready. I thought my son was ready at about 5 and half-6 months…I first check with the Dr. (I have an amazing pediatrician) and he suggested starting off with a spoonful of baby cereal (rice) with or without fruit mixed with formula. And then later on in the day offer some jarred food. He suggested starting off with the veggies. And of course my curiousity for learning made me ask why veggies and not the meats or the fruits. He said cause the veggies aren’t as sweet as the fruits and you may have better luck introducing him to veggies he likes if he doesn’t really know the sweet fruits that are out there. Amoung my son’s favorite veggies were sweet potatos and squash. And even now that he is over 2 he still loves his veggies (so not like my girls who I didn’t know of this veggie tip when i began them). My son will devour a salad in no time flat. Ever see a 2 yr old eat salad..its kinda cutish funny. Anyways then when we did introduce the fruit, he liked most of them but his favs were the banannas (I recommend for bedtime cause they have a natural thing to make them relaxed) and apples. So there is my take on it. I hope this helped you at least some.
I forgot to add how I knew my son was ready…sorry…he began to not seem satisfied by the bottle alone..he began chewing his hands even after the bottle. (heck he was chewing his bottle). When you do decide to start feeding jarred food, I must warn you the baby will reject the first few bites but this is not intentional. Baby is just trying to figure out how to get it from the tongue to the tummy and the tongue will push it out not in…this does not mean he/she doesn’t like it. It just means laugh, wipe the chin, and try again lol.
I started both of my children with very formula diluted rice cereal around five months, mostly because they both have acid reflux and I was hoping it would help with their symptoms. When I started them more in earnest around 6 months, I actually began with vegetables, because a great mind told me that if you start with baby food fruit, they aren’t going to want to add in the bitter veggies later! One to avoid is that iron rich and therefore tough to digest spinach, but a great middle of the road veggie is squash. My daughter LOVED squash for months until she suddenly decided she never wanted to eat it again. 😉 Have fun! And grab a stain stick…. 😉
Well, with my daughter, I did start her at 4 months. Our doctor said it was okay. She was my first, and I listened to what they (being dr’s) said. She seemed fine with it. That was 6 years ago. Now, I have an almost 6 month old (When was your’s born? Mine was Oct. 28.), and I’ve already given him food. I was going to wait till he was 6 months, but I think we did it this time because it was fun, and he showed interest. Anytime I would eat anything, he would eye my food. He reached out for it a number of times. So, I thought, “Okay, guess it’s time.” I started him around 5 months. I give him rice cereal with real bananas, and I made him homemade yams. He likes both. Oh, and I actually gave him a teething cookie to start off with. I thought that maybe since he liked to grab my food that that would suffice him. Well, it didn’t, but he does like them. (He still grabs my food.) Anyway, Mary is right, you know your son best. If he takes the food no problem, then he’s probably ready. 🙂
I have 3 kids.
Max: I tried around 6 mos, he didn’t seem interested, so I waited. He reached for my steak at 11 mos. He weaned at 12 mos and hasn’t looked back! lol
Rachel: I started offering her solids around 10-11 mos but she wasn’t interested. She nursed till almost 3 yrs old due to severe sensory processing disorder. (The textures were too much for her to handle.) She’s extremely picky, but we’re trying our best to help her branch out. She’ll eat oatmeal now! (She’s 7.5 yrs old and has refused it since day 1. She also gags on mashed potatoes.)
Thomas: He is 17 mos and as you can tell from the pic I’ve already sent you, LOVES food! He was 7 mos when that pic was taken. I never offered solids w/ him, but since he saw big brother & big sister eating, I think it was just a natural response for him to go for solids sooner. He’s still nursing a lot during the day, but solids have been a big part of his diet since the Chili Incident of 2008. lol We focus on fresh fruits & veggies (he loves baby carrots and bananas) and limit breads (but use Ezekiel bread from the health food store when we do eat it). He’s a big fan of chicken, not so much red meats, and chili, of course, is a steady favorite. 🙂
Just offer a little bit and see what happens. He’s still getting the bulk of his nutrition from the formula right now, which if completely normal & expected until 12-ish mos anyway. And even then, I wouldn’t push weaning from his bottle until you can see he’s ready. Basically, trust your instincts. Don’t worry about what other ppl tell you he should be doing or you should be doing.
My little man is 8 months and is already eating table food and refusing the bottle. And he is not a big chunky baby at all. In fact at his last visit a month ago he was only 14.4 lbs. Anyway, I started cereal with him a little over 4 months and started gerber stage 1 at 5 months. I really didn’t notice any signs, I just wanted to start him on foods and when I asked the doctor she said it was okay. I started on the weekends (cause I’m home all day) and introduce it at a meal time. Then started doing veggies when I came home from work. What I did was give him a bottle, then two hours later the fruit or veggie (so he won’t be extremely hungry when giving him the food) then two hours later another bottle. I noticed he was eating the entire pack and didn’t really seem full. When his teeth started to come in I decided to try the stage 2 and I would mix it with the cereal from time to time. We went to the doctor he still wasn’t gaining any weight so she suggest to give him more food. To start feeding him like a toddler. I then introduced stage 3 and realized he still wasn’t full. So now at 8 months my little man is eating table food, and the gerber graduates. I give him the gerber graduates meal if I don’t cook that evening. He gets a bottle in the morning when he wakes up, he eats food through out the day, or a bottle here and there (doesn’t really drink an entire bottle during the day anymore) and I have healthy snack for him, and then a bottle at night right before bed. He is still slim and slender, but he is also very active, trying to walk, climbing the stairs, crawling everywhere. I never new what signs to look for other than him reaching for your food. At about 4 months he would stare at our plates. I am nervous to go to the doctor this week because I don’t want them to say oh he still hasn’t gained any weight. My little man can eat, but he won’t put the weight on.
my baby is 5 months old. i’ve been giving her baby food for about a month now and she absolutley loves it. but my doc said start her off with fruits the veggies. im just now starting to give her some vegetables. she will eat a whole bottle of stage 1 baby food with no problem. alot of times i’ll mix some cereal with her banana’s or pears and she loves it. she also started very early on the cereal. just her formula didnt satisfy her, i’ve been puttin cereal in her bottles since she was 2 months old. she wouldnt have it any other way. i think all baby’s are different, you just have to get your pattern of how you want it done. none is all alike.
my baby is two month today can i feed him baby food,like baby apple sauce???
I found this blog while searching for healthy pregnancy food today. Interesting.
Hi, My nurse told me that when my son reached 4 months that i could give him solid foods,but i thought that the guidelines were to wait till your baby is 6 months old? i was breastfeeding him but had to wean him onto formula because i had to go back to work. the nurse told me that the bottle alone wouldnt satisfy him for long…ive started giving him baby rice and veg but im wondering have i made the right choice?
Each situation and each child is different. If you child is showing signs of being hungry even after a bottle then I don’t see why you can’t introduce a little food in. My oldest had reflux as a baby and had a terrible spitting up problem. The doctor suggested I thicken his formula with cereal to keep it down better. You are the mom and you know what your child needs. Follow your instincts. And when you make a choice and someone has something to say about it, just tell them that you are the mother, not them. 🙂 Hope that helps!
DAWN