This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Gerber. The opinions and text are all mine.
This boy. Gosh I love him. He has taught me so much since he was born!
After parenting for almost 11 years now, you'd think I'd know everything there is to know about the baby and toddler stages. While I thought I did, he has proven me wrong. Every baby truly is different. They all follow their own individual curve, and do things at their own pace; when they're good and ready.Sometimes that means that they're running around the house by 10 months. It can also mean that you have to wait a little longer for them to jump on board with a new milestone.
When our youngest was 3 months old, I shared how we were beginning to transition him to solid foods. We started with a small amount of Gerber Organic Brown Rice Cereal, mixed with breast milk. He seemed to enjoy it. For the first week or so, things appeared to be going well. Then, he suddenly decided he preferred nursing, and refused anything else that was offered. This continued for about 3 months, until he was 6 months old.
While it concerned me, because I hadn't experienced this with our older children, our pediatrician assured us that it was normal. Eventually with some gentle persistence on our end, he came around. After a few weeks of mastering rice cereal, we began to explore purred vegetables and fruits, offered in the 2nd Foods line from Gerber.
Now, he's mastering Gerber 3rd Foods with Lil' Bits, and he LOVES them! Gerber sent us Gerber 3rd Foods with Lil' Bits in two delicious flavor combinations to try, and both have been a big hit. His current favorite is Sweet Potato, Apple, Carrot & Cinnamon with Lil' Bits. The mixture has small, fairly soft, chunks of fruit that are helping him learn to chew. As a mom, I love that while he's experiencing new textures and gradually learning to chew, the "bits" are soft enough that it doesn't take a ton of work for him to break them down. It's a great way to introduce new textures, and explore the next phase of solids.
Transitioning baby to solids can be a fun, albeit challenging, time. After experiencing this transition 3 times now with my own children, these are my top 5 tips for transitioning babies to solid food.
- Start out gradually, and remember every baby is different: Consult your pediatrician in regards to timing for starting solids with your child. Our pediatrician recommended starting solids between 3-6 months. My older children started at 3 months and took to solids quickly. My youngest started at 3 months however, he wasn't consistently comfortable with solids until he was around 6 months old. Remember every baby is different, and progresses on their own individual curve. If baby isn't quite ready, give it a few days, then try again. If baby is still reluctant, wait a little longer, and try again. Gentle persistence is the name of the game. They'll come around eventually.
- Choose the setting and be consistent: Babies love schedules and consistency. It helps them to establish a sense of security, in knowing what's coming next. Choose a time and setting where your child will enjoy their first foods, and be consistent. Maybe you've chosen to start them off in a familiar setting, such as an upright bouncer. Or perhaps you've decided that they'll sit alongside the family in a slightly reclined highchair. Wherever you start, make sure to maintain consistency in the time and setting where your child enjoys their first bites. It will make for a smoother transition for you all.
- Start out with familiar flavors and new textures: With sentiments echoed from above, babies enjoy consistency. Whether your child is nursed or formula fed, start this journey off with similar flavors. and new textures. We started with thinned down Gerber organic brown rice cereal, mixed with breast milk. Once baby has had some time to the new texture, mix in a teaspoon of purred bananas or peaches. Gradually introducing new flavors has always worked best for us. Baby will be more apt to adjust well to the transition when your simply introducing a new texture, with a familiar flavor.
- Choose the right 2nd and 3rd foods: Choosing the right foods for baby as they transition to solids can be key. After baby has adjusted to rice cereal, and new flavors. Now it's time to kick things up a notch! Start off with one or two new flavors. We have always used the same "menu plan" for our children when transitioning to 2nd foods. Rice cereal mixed with a spoon or two of fruit puree, for breakfast. Fruit puree for lunch, and vegetable puree for dinner. While transitioning to solids, we maintain the same bottle/breast feeding schedule to ensure that baby is still receiving the necessary calories and nutrients. When you're ready to introduce yet another new texture to baby, and master chewing, give Gerber 3rd foods with Lil' Bits a try. They're a great tool for gently introducing yet another new texture / stage in transitioning to solids to baby.
- Let baby lead the way: Remember, every baby is different. As I mentioned above, our older children followed a different schedule when transitioning to solids. Our youngest was busy mastering physical milestones, and was a little slower to transition. He did transition nonetheless; simply in his own time. Let your child lead the way, and enjoy this fun new stage/adventure with your little one!
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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Gerber. The opinions and text are all mine.
