My husband had a grad class tonight, and I was in the mood for green beans so I decided to take a Mommy-Baby food adven
ture and cook up some organic greenies for Gabe and myself.Sidenote: A bag of organic green beans at Trader Joe's is about $1.29 max.
I just made a small amount-- enough for a Mommy serving and four "baby's first" servings. But I will never waste my time making a small batch of baby green beans again. Because of the skins on green beans, you have to push the blended beans through a mesh strainer. It was pretty time-consuming-- next time, I'm doing a big batch and knocking out the mess in one shot.
I was a little daring (for some, not for others) this evening, though. Gabe was HATING his pureed green beans-- spitting them out and crying horribly-- so I thought to myself as I eyed my plate, "What would he think of my green beans?"I sliced a bean in half, used my knife to swipe out the beans (choking hazards) within, and handed him some real cooked string beans.
Instantly the crying ends--Instantly he starts grabbing beans. Yum. Yum. Yum.
What struck me here was that after nomming and sucking on his green beans as I ate mine, he then gobbled down his ounce of green beans and an ounce of apples with a grin on his face. I wonder if finger-fooding it up allowed him to explore the taste before the puree overpowered his mouth? Maybe he liked having some control (alla baby led solids which I will definitely be writing more on later)? Whatever it was, it changed the entire mood of dinnertime, and it was awesome.**I will note that finger foods are not generally recommended until about 8 months of age or when baby has mastered the pincer (pointer finger - thumb) grasp. Gabe is pretty close to having the pincer down, and he has all four of his front teeth now. He creepishly crawls and he's figuring out how to cruise. He is developing quickly, and it just feels right to let him carefully explore some finger foods at almost seven months. I think it's important to listen to your baby and medical recommendations when it comes to food timing guidelines, and letting G try real green beans was my choice for him today. Please don't think I'm pushing early finger foods across the board.**
wow!! babies do need a change for their taste buds~~
ReplyDeleteIt's so great that you're making your own baby foods! I wish I would have made more of my own when my kids were babies. It's so much better for them if you can do it - much cheaper too.
ReplyDeleteAll of my kids had early little nibbles of mushed-up grown up foods, my first born especially. He wasn't happy with breast feeding alone, which of course worried me. So he was given first foods a bit earlier than is normally recommended. I think it just comes down to each individual baby - they definitely will let you know the foods they can and cannot handle. But of course, common sense on the adults part is critical too. Peace. :)
I just made a ton of baby food this last week! Green beans was one of the many! I love making my own, cause then I know what is in it :) It is soo easy also!
ReplyDeletegood for u for listening to your baby. corbin has really started liking feeding himself and in the beginning he used the "whole fist" grasp but i figured he needed to practice and now he has the pincer grasp down perfectly!
ReplyDeleteLittle man just knows what he wants.. :) He take after his mommy!
ReplyDeleteI'm a mom of 5 and all of mine have teethed on carrots, celery and peppers. From my personal experience they do better with foods they can hold onto while chewing. I didn't think about green beans until my last baby. She 18 months old and has been easting raw green beens for awhile now. When we go to the grocery store she points to them and asks for them. She loves them!
ReplyDeleteI made our own baby food very rarely but I also never bought a jar at the store, they just ate from my plate whenever they were ready. They will without a doubt tell you when they are ready!
Enjoy your baby and trust your instincts, no one knows your baby better than you do