Solid Foods - Lake Worth, FL

My daughter is 12 1/2 months and only has 2 teeth. You would be amazed what they can eat. She can eat chicken nuggets, all kinds of fruits and veggies, pot roast.

i have a 3 year old and a 9 month boy and he eats solid food i just cut it in really small pieces and try with soft food like noddles or rice she will like that

I recommend:
fried egg (chopped up)
yams (chopped)
french fries (broken into small pieces)
peas
rice with cheese
orzo pasta (cook it with a little chicken or beef bullion)
pancakes (cut into pinkie-nail sized pieces, i recommend adding a little syrup beforehand and letting the cake soak it up)
cooked carrots (cut into pinkie-size)
banana (smashed or cut)
cheerios (plain for the least sugar)
vienna sausages (cut them in half lengthways then into pieces)
various cookies,crackers, and chips (broken up if needed)
small pieces of fruit
cooked chicken (chopped small)
**(I cook meats (sliced into thin strips)in extra virgin olive oil quickly in a non-stick pan. takesd about 5 minutes to have fresh food)
beef, pork, or other (chopped small)
if you're NOT worried about allergies try seafoods
(my daughter LOVES shrimp!)

Also try: (for the more advanced eater)
pizza (bread and a little sauce, cut small)
breads of all types
grilled cheese (chopped small)
macaroni and cheese
roasted potatoes (chopped small)
chicken nuggets (chopped)
chopped broccoli tops
celery sticks
animal cookies
fruit salad (from a can, rinse the syrup off)
cereals (like part of your Basic 4 or frosted mini-wheats)
Kix cereal (kid tested, mother approved!)

***Chopped up little bits of whatever you're eating!**

Keep in mind the only things you should NOT feed your munchkie are:
Honey (until age 1)
Anything you or your hubby are allergic to
Solid candies and hard candies
Hotdogs (unless you cut them VERY small)
Popcorn
Nuts

Good luck and happy eating!

You have to do what you feel most comfortable doing.

My beloved son is 11 months old and I feed him Stage 3 foods, chopped veggies, diced fruit, crackers, and diced chicken (on rare occasions). I decided to start him on Stage 3 around 9 months and at 10 months I introduced some "adult" food.

In regards to meal plans you can go to www.gerber.com; some pediatric offices provide suggested meal plans or you can go to the book store and get Super Baby Foods. The book informs you the amount of calories your baby should be consuming (per age/body weight) and the types of foods that are important in their development.

I agree with you that it is scary to start with "adult" food. There have been times when he chokes and it freaks me out but he is okay. Heck, the boy tries to eat the wood chips on the play ground.

I wish that I could be of more help.

Both my kids ate table food by 9 months, I bought a chopper and they eat everything I did even meat. I just chopped it and placed it on the plate, gave them a spoon and let they go! It sure ws nice to sit and eat with them instead of feeding them.

at 9 months I give proteins, as in poultry, meat, beans...
egg yolks are good too

you can make french toast w/ egg yolk

you can give waffles (I don't give syrup w/ these as there is no need)

chunks of baked sweet potatos, apples, squash, etc

you can bake slices of sweet potato and make 'fries' (to be healthy I don't fry food too much for baby)

steamed veggies like broccoli florets...

chicken soup & other soups where everything in the soup gets nice and soft, yummmmmmmmmmm

I see a few people mentioned eggs here. I thought you weren't supposed to feed them eggs until they were 1 yr? Might want to check. It sounds like others have been giving their kids eggs before a yr though, and it sounds like their kids are fine so who knows.

Hi B.. My daughter started on table foods with less teeth then that and she's been fine. Good ones to start with are pasta, rice, soups and chicken cut into very small pieces. Soups are good because all the veggies are soft. Hope this helps!
Cathy

My little girl will be 1 at the end of the month and has been eating table food for about a month now. It is hard to be creative when it comes to feeding her. She goes to daycare so she has to take breakfast, lunch and snacks. Somethings that she really likes are the Gerber Pasta Pick ups which I cut in half, I also make her a half of a grilled cheese sandwich and cut into little pieces, she really likes green beans and peas, toast, yogurt, sugar free pudding, sugar free applesauce (just found that at Wal-Mart super ctr. the other day..its made with splenda). She also likes french toast sticks with a little sugar free syrup on them. Can you tell I'm trying to hold off on the sugar for as long as possible.... Macaroni & cheese is also a big favorite. I usually buy the shells, they seem to be easier to pick up. Sometimes I'll just boil some egg noodles and add a little butter when I need a quick side dish. Gerber also makes the little meat sticks that I just warm a little and cut into bite size pieces. I know I just rambled on and on but I hope some of these meal ideas help. I am always worried about her choking so I cut all this into little pieces. My daughter has 4 teeth. Good luck and enjoy.

Hey!! I have a little boy who will be a year old next week and we started feeding him table food at around 9 months and he only had two teeth! Chicken is really good, just pinch off a little bit and try him out on it, they will 'chew' the food with their gums and if they are having any trouble they will move the food to their teeth to help out. Green beans are also good, peas, corn (especially cream corn). I try not to give Michael too much pork (because of the salt content) but he eats everything else, even fish. Your baby is more than likely ready for table food, just don't give him too big of chunks. Hopefully this will help you out!

Table food is just fine at this age - regardless of the number of teeth, children will mash around the food in their mouths for awhile. Whatever you are eating (with the exception of shellfish and a few other foods) is fine for her. Offer soft, slightly overcooked veggies like broccoli, spinach, peas (a huge favorite), cooked carrot, cooked green peppers, etc. For the first week or two, you can gently mash the food between your fingers. Let her pick it up off her tray and scoop, mash, and shove into her face.

I prefer to use my fingers instead of a knife and fork to cut pieces for my son, who is also 9 mo. So I will pick off small bites of pork chop, chicken, even steak. Also potatoes, especially sweet potatoes, tofu, brown rice are favorites. No need to fully mash or puree food.

It is best for you to start her on the food you eat, rather than special meals. There is always something she can eat off of your plate. The sooner you start her on regular food, the easier it will be as she gets older. My son probably has a jar of baby food maybe twice a month - when I make something like Shrimp Scampi that is not really appropriate - but I will still give him the pasta plain while I feed him the baby food.

Also fruit is excellent - especially canned fruit as it is nice and soft. Canned peaches and pears, mandarin oranges - and fresh banana. Figure food sizes can be about the size of a cheerio. Oh and cheerios are another great food, so is regular old fashioned oatmeal or irish oats. For example, last night Jack had bits of chili (turkey burger, black beans, tomato, carrots, onion), brown rice, and some plain whole milk yogurt with wheat germ for dessert. Today for lunch he had some barbequed pork, brown rice, and corn. For things with a sauce, I usually just take some out of the serving dish with a slotted spoon.

The baby cereals and jarred foods are not nearly as nutritious as the real thing. Plus offering real food makes your life easier! Be sure to have her join you during mealtime, rather than feed her separately.

Hope that helps!

My husband got me the most WONDERFUL cookbook for our son and I HIGHLY recommend it! The Everything Cooking for Baby & Toddler Book. It is great. It has a ton of super simple, quick and healthy meals for infants and toddlers and each chapter is divided by age group and only uses or introduces foods that are safe and pediatrician recommended. My son is 2 1/2 now and I still use it. He loves the baked chicken nuggets and oatmeal cookies. When your little one first starts eating table food, it can be a little scary. You'll probably be making separate meals for a while until both you and kiddo feel comfortable. Best of luck to you and happy eating!!

My Son who is 17 months now still only has seven teeth and finally just got two molars. At 9 months I think he only had maybe three teeth in the front. Anything I did give him was so small. I tried cheese, pasta, and any veggie I gave him was steamed pretty well so he could just chew with his gums. My ped. told me that their gums are actually very strong, bc the molars are right there ready to pop up.
In one of the parenting magizines I read they had food for babies and it was pretty uch everything we eat just cut up bit size.
EX : Cherry tomatoes, chick peas( dont have to cut up) blueberries, strawberries, watermelon...watch out its messy :), deli meat, even chicken. Oh I forgot grilled cheese.
I hope some of these ideas helped a lil.
Jen

I'm a mother of 3 kids. I made the mistake of making seperate meals for my first 2 kids, and slipped into a bad habit of making them kid foods for several years-- and last summer when a 24 hour stomach virus went through our household, my 8 year old son was unable to get better for over a week because his body just wasn't healthy enough due to too many chicken nuggets/hot dogs/mac and cheese, etc and not enough veggies. Our family now eats much healthier because I cook adult food and we all eat the same meal. I now have a 6 month old-- no teeth yet-- my other 2 didn't get their first tooth until nearly a year old-- I try to feed the baby a bit of whatever we are having for dinner. So far, he can only have soft things he can much between his gums, but I know that pretty much anything can be cut up teeny enough that I don't have to stress over choking--- nothing super hard like raw carrots, and there is that list of foods most docs recommend to avoid for toddlers due to choking like raisins and popcorn

Hey,
I don't have any meal ideas for you, but I just wanted to share. My son is just about 8 months now and I've been giving him more table foods everyday. I'm also terrified of him choking, but I'm always right next to him watching him like a hawk. I've already had to stick my finger almost down his throat to fish out big bites he tries to swallow whole. He's a pig, he tried to shove a whole pickle slice down there today! It was as wide as his mouth. We've been doing mostly fruits and veggies because they're soft. Anyways....maybe you could take an infant CPR class to give you piece of mind. Good luck!