something besides rice cereal?

i was wondering if there was anything that i could start my baby on besides rice cereal. something that i could make by myself. mabe chick peas, a hummus mixture? any ideas?

 

Certainly you can start your baby on other things! People ate raw fruits and veggies long before cereals, hehe.

Peas are good mashed up, as are green beans, carrots, apples (pureed), bananas, etc. i just boil veggies until they are soft enough to mash with a fork if your baby when has enough teeth, a food processor if they aren't yet ready for all that texture.

Just be sure to introduce foods slowly, and watch for allergies; if you do that, you can feed your baby just about anything (avoiding, of course, things that you or other family members are allergic to)

 

Cream o' Wheat, my favorite!

 

I've never been keen on baby rice (even as a baby) at that age babies are just learning about food. So they probably would be better of with something they'll eat as children/adults.

Good first foods are semi liquid purees of: apple, pear, banana, papaya, carrot, cauliflower, potato, corguette, squash, green beans, swede, sweet potato.
I got that from 'How to eat' by Nigella Lawson.

Those purees can be made up then frozen in ice cube trays (one ice cube would be about right portion wise) to be kept for later. Always label them though, or you'll forget.

TTFN
Sage

 

ya thanks you told me about that ice cube tray thing before, thatll be realy nice for the warmer days too . . .i have a garden with buternut squash and carrots so far. . .when the cooler weather gets near im gonna through in some sweet potatoes and some more butternut and carrots. i love my little homegrown baby.
its just i dont want to ween her off nursing yet . . .its like im gonna go through withdrawals, i know i have to start her on something, her naps are shorter. its time to put something heavier in her belly. and i dont like the fact of buying foods all ready for her . . .i rather make it myself.

 

Whiskey

Ah ha, seriuosly though bananas are great for infants.

 

Yeh everything is a good choice but cream of wheat....that can harm baby more than help that isnt made for babies undevelopped tummies
Pretty much keep to fruits and veggies if you dont want to go the rice root, there is also other cereals as well...(but then again you want to make your own so yeh.. lol)

 

I agree with the other posters. Anything but rice cereal!!!! It has NO nutrition, the artificial iron in it (ferrus sulfate) screws up the ability to absorb real iron from breastmilk and other foods, and it fills a baby up with empty calories. In several studies, babies who were given iron "fortified" rice cereal or "supplemental iron" in vitamin drops were MORE likely to be anemic at 9 months of age or older. It will do your baby no good.

What I did for my kids. Mashed potato, NO cow milk, mix it with your mama milk or water, mashed sweet potato, same, well cooked carrots mashed up, well cooked apple or pear. Some kids don't eat solids until they are ready to self feed. My second baby, Moon, NEVER ate baby food or anything mushed up. She went right to cubed potatoes and apples. I would boil or steam them, cube them and just put them in front of her for her to feed herself. ALL my kids ate like this, although the first and last ones got some regular baby food. (With the first one, I didnt know better, with the fourth one, I was TIRED!) Self feeding is SO good for babies, it helps them with eye hand co ordination, it gives them a sense of independence and self sufficency, (more than any "sleep strategy" ever could LOL) it frees you up while they are eating, to just watch or video tape it. (Of course I am sure you know to never let a baby eat unsupervised, even if they have been doing it a while.) After your baby has been introduced to a variety of foods, you can give him what is on your plate, if it is appropriate, and unseasoned.

Stay away from these foods as they are allergenic and hard to digest and or chew:

• ALL Dairy products. They are NOT meant for human consumption, they are meant for baby cow consumption. Exposure to Bovine a-Albumin protein (found in ALL dairy products including yogurt) has been associated with a 40% increased risk of Both types of diabetes and obestiy. STAY AWAY from it! Organic dairy has no less Bovine Protein than standard dairy, it still isn't meant for babies.
• Tomatoes. They may be yummy for adults, but they cause rashes and allergies in babies. They are also too acidic for baby digestive bodies.
• Citrus. Again too allergenic and too acidic. No Citrus until well after a year.
• Egg White. VERY allergenic. Not as bad as Bovine protein, but not for your baby. The yolk, in the other hand is fine for older babies. Make sure it is WELL cooked, to the "hard" stage. Undercooked eggs may harbor salmonella.
• Peanuts and peanut butter. Besides the choking risk, it is one of the most dangerous food allergies. NO peanut butter for at least 2 years. Maybe never. I don't give it to my kids. Also be careful with tree nuts, but these are not as allergenic.
• Melons and strawberries and raspberries. For some reason, these just don't agree with babies. Also the seeds in the berries are undigestable. A lot of kids will get non-histamine allergic hives from berries.
• Wheat, Rye and barley. Again, really allergenic. If you start wheat AFTER a year or more, your child is less likely to become allergic. I had a wheat allergic child and you do NOT want to go through that.
• Honey. Even if welll cooked, there is a form of botulism which older children and adults can destroy with their digestive juices but babies cannot. This can be deadly. It doesn't matter if it is "organic" (as it has nothing to do with the conditions, but is a given with bees.) Not until after a year.

 

maggie you amaze me with how much you know. I wish I knew some of this a while ago. Trial and error I guess

 

ya wow thank you so much . . .even in all my magazines i have never been so informed. thank you so much. the mashed potato sounds perfect . . .im gonna have then in my garden mabe this fall. . . i really needed something heavier in her bell for her morning naps and night time naps. i dont think ill be giving up nursing for a while. im kinda scared too . . . ill be going thru withdrawals . . .not her

lol

 

Maggie I seriously wish I new a smigin of what you know!!!

Where do you get all this info(other than being a consultant)

 

Thank you, mamas. I am your humble servant!

I do a lot of reading, I have trained in Lactation Consulting, and in Infant and Child Development. I go to a lot of seminars and conferences. I read everything I get my hands on. I just don't forget a lot of what I read, I can't find my damn keys, I forget appointments and people's phone numbers and even their names, but my brain retains stuff like this. (shrug)

I am always glad to help.

 

well thank god for people like you

thank you again

 

my lil boy hated baby food, he lived off cream of wheat, grits, and really soft oatmeal for a while.......
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