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Hi Leanne,
I started my baby on solids at 5 months old - that was two weeks ago. I`m still struggling to get him to eat from a soft spoon. At the moment he is feeding 800ml-850ml of formula and expressed breast milk a day plus about a teaspoon of rice cereal and a teaspoon of either carrot or pear puree. He gets very upset at meal times and I dont want to force him to eat when he starts grizzling. How long does it normally take for babyies to get used to eating from a spoon - or is it more likely to be a taste issue. Ive given him a slice of very ripe pear inside those mesh baskets and he nibbles on that for ages quite happily. Im wondering if I should take a break from solids and try again in a few weeks. What do you suggest I do?
Thanks
-Liat
Its all very normal, some bubs take to solids like they have been waiting for it for weeks, others find the whole thing a bit dreary at first. Having said that you can find that the bubs who take a bit longer, once they get going they can really start to eat you out of house and home.
So… What I am saying is they all `dance to the tune of their own drum`, its quite normal and forcing the issue as you can can simply put him off. At 5 months you still have time to get things moving, so don`t worry too much. At this age it`s not as much about nutrition as it is about texture and taste, baby will still be getting his nutrition from his `milk` feeds.
There are also times when some bubs completely skip the whole mushy food stage (who can blame them) and jump right to finger foods. That was a good idea to try bub with a feeding mesh, so keep on with the food options in that: Banana, avo, steamed veg, fruit even mixes of foods.
At the same time let your baby play with spoons during the day, it can help with familiarisation. Plus continue to offer him 1 – 2 feeds of solids a day. Take it away if rejected or offer something in a feeding mesh.
You can also find that on occasions solids and teeth happen at the same time, which can throw a spanner in the works. Hence, it is better to offer than to miss the mark. Feeding meshes can again be great here because the chomping pressure can abate the discomfort.
If you would like to read a bit more on solids I have some tip sheets on Huggies and also a book, the links are:
Solids
Which foods when and fridge chart
If find you are heading towards 7 months and things haven`t progressed (though that baby is keen on the feeding mesh I think this less likely), pop into see your CHN or GP.
I hope this is reassuring for you.
All the best, it will take off before you know it,
Leanne