Unrelated picture from today. Found a new way to keep her out of trouble!
If I had to describe our attempts at feeding Ivey solids in three words or less, it's been gaggy. Clunky. Confusing.
Food #1: Avocado. We started out with small strips which I hoped she'd pick up on her own. I got just a little bit on my finger and put it in her mouth to give her the idea, but after a little while she gagged. Gagging scares me; I'm sorry, but it does. We sort of mashed it up on the tray a bit and she had a great time rubbing it all over the highchair and herself. A little bit did get into her mouth.
Food #2: Sweet potatoes. I cooked one in the microwave and cut it into grabbable pieces. She was into this (after I dorkily demonstrated what she should do). A little sliver found its way into her mouth and she began to chew. Then it got too far back. More gagging and this time we got two little puddles of milk-puke to go with it. Apparently this gagging is normal when starting kids on solids, but I'd rather avoid it.
Food #3: Egg yolk. I thought, maybe our problem is that we should try a mushed up food just to start, and then we'll go to finger foods later. I boiled an egg and added just a little breastmilk because it was kind of dry, and mashed it up. When I approached her with the spoon, she indicated she'd like to feel the food a bit before eating it. I let her squish it on the tray and play in it a while, and then I put just a little on the inside of her mouth. She gave me this look as if to say Mama, why do I have to eat this weird stuff when you have two perfectly good boobies right there? But you don't have to take my word for it.
I told her not to worry about it and gave her what she really wanted. Here is her face a little after our nursing session:
Ivey, as our midwife Carey suggested the other day, is a "booboo baby." Other people are looking forward to the day she eats solid food, but she doesn't really care, I don't think. Yes, she has seemed curious before at the table, but when actually presented with an opportunity to eat food, she is unenthusiastic.
I remain unrushed. I am enjoying being able to eat huge amounts of food without gaining weight, the absence of a monthly visitor, dirty diapers that smell like butter and don't require scraping or spraying, and the convenience of solely breastfeeding. I may be a lousy cook, but I can make milk and it turns out perfect every time!
Next, I think we'll give bananas a go. As Amber mentioned, I think I'll get them sort of mushy and then pile them on the tray for her to fling around the room or gobble up, whichever she prefers. If that doesn't work, we'll wait a week or two and start over again.
Anybody else out there who took longer than usual to get going with solids?
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