Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Nom Nom Nom

So, Little Man is eating solids. And he has definite preferences, but, like mother, like son, he's also somewhat of a pig about it.

The intro into solids proves what a lax mommy I am. We started with rice cereal, mostly as formula thickener in the bottle. Later, I read that one should NEVER give cereal in a bottle. Apparently it should always be done by spoon, even if the ratio of cereal to formula is 1:5. Why, though? Never found an explanation for that.

Then I was a careless mommy because I fed him more than one type of a food every day. Meaning I didn't wait for the allergy period to pass and I introduced more than one food per week. COME ON. Baby does not thrive by rice cereal (known as glop) alone.

Then I was bad mommy because I fed him mashed up food that was prepared for adults. Mashed potatoes? A problem because, GASP!, they had milk and butter. Dude, Little Man is on formula. Made from cow's milk already. And it has fat in it, just like butter.

And what made me stupid mommy is that I started with fruits and not vegetables. My day care provider, who I otherwise love, told me if I did that he will only want sweet and he will hate vegetables. Frankly, though, who wouldn't rather have apples than peas?

Even though I broke all of these rules, Little Man is thriving and eating the solids like a champ. Sure, we started early if you look at adjusted age (4 months) or late if you look at chronological age (7 months). I'm thinking it was just right because he has been having food in his gut since about a week after birth. And he seemed pretty into watching us to figure out how WE eat.

So, what have learned that he likes? He's a fan of sweet potatoes of all kinds. He's down with squash. Apples are good. Prunes (given to him by the day care provider, because honestly, I launder his diapers at home and I don't want to deal with that mess if I can avoid it) are fine. Bananas are yummy, but they aren't sweet potatoes. He'll take peas, though they aren't his favorite at all.

In terms of cereal, he thinks barley rocks (as does his Bad Mommy... my dinner last night was a bowl of barley cereal with warm apples... again, like baby like mommy). Rice cereal is meh. And Oatmeal? Untrustworthy.

To assauge my Bad Mommy guilt, I have been getting him the expensive, small batch made Homemade Baby Food from the refrigerated section at Whole Foods. It's like the baby food version of a microbrew. It also makes me feel less guilty for not being there all day, like if I give him the best, most organic food available he'll grow up healthy and hearty and fulfill his baby genius potential, in spite of being in day care 5 days a week and getting formula instead of breast milk. It's dumb, I know.

But it does make me feel better to give him food that is younger than he, that is more freshly made. Even though sometimes I throw it in the freezer myself. If I were a better mom, I'd be making it myself. But this is good enough.

And, frankly, I like the way the Homemade Baby Apples taste. One day, I'll have to take Little Man to the Baby Food Tasting Room.

6 comments:

Jessica said...

The explanation I've read for the no-cereal-in-the-bottle thing is that it can lead to overfeeding, which can lead to vomiting. I guess it makes some kind of sense - it's probably easier for a baby to overfed him/herself from a bottle than from a spoon. But frankly, D's managed to overfeed himself to the point of vomiting on breastmilk from the source, so I tend to think it's just one of those things babies DO sometimes, no cereal necessary.

(Is picking up a baby and having him instantly spit up 9 oz of half-digested breastmilk into your hair a milestone? 'Cause I kind of think I deserve a sticker for that one.)

badmommy said...

Jessica, it's a milestone when that happens and you are on your way to work, dressed and ready to go.

badmommy said...

That reminds me! We should totally have Mommy Scout badges! SERIOUSLY!

Jessica said...

Mommy Scout Badges! LOVE!

Devra said...

Well if you are worrying about being a bad mommy because you didn't follow the rules, then I must be going straight to hell.

After we established our baby wasn't allergic to anything, I bought a food grinder and just ground up whatever we were eating. This included, pot roast, kung pao beef and fajitas. I figured I could always adjust the spices if the kid had a reaction or didn't like it. Both of our kids are really good eaters and while they wouldn't touch mac and cheese, they would gladly accept beef medallions with a brown butter reduction glaze over field greens infused with wasabi. Admittedly I am exagerating, but I think you get my point. Jar food has a purpose, but in the end, do adults eat that stuff? Nah, we like to eat a variety of foods. So do kids. Getting nutrients is the goal, how they taste? Well that is just personal preference in my opinion.
You aren't a bad mommy for bucking some of the rules. As long as your doctor isn't on your case, no one is breaking out into hives and your child is thriving, then it would seem to me like you are doing just fine.

If not? Then I guess I'll just move over in my handbasket and you can sit next to me. ; )

lala_lisa said...

There was a story in the paper this morning about doctors prescribing adult reflux meds to babies who are spitting up. I guess in a small percentage of cases these babies are actually suffering from bad reflux and the meds are warranted but mostly it's just normal baby spitting up. Anyway, one of the doctors quoted who was concerned about the over-prescribing suggested that if your baby is spitting up a lot (due to bolting a bottle...hmmm babies maybe are a lot like cats) that you mix some rice cereal in with the formula so that baby has to drink it more slowly.

Which is like the opposite of the reasoning Jessica mentioned for NOT putting cereal in the bottle.

It's a wonder anybody manages to raise a kid at all with all the conflicting advice you get!