New Foods!

We are slowly introducing Jack to solids. However, I wonder, can one call them solids when they are basically vegetable purees? I bought squash the other day and it looks slightly thicker than orange water. When I read the ingredients, it said: Squash, water. Well, there you go! It doesn't look so appetizing but little Jack is really starting to be interested in what we are eating. If I am eating cereal in the morning while he is in his Exersaucer, he intently watches me until I am done eating.

On Sunday, we took him out with our team for dinner after our softball game. I held him and ate fries while Paul ate his sandwich. Jack grabbed for my food basket numerous times, got a fistful of wax paper and then whined when I pulled it away from him. After Paul finished his sandwich, he took Jack so I could eat and he started in on his french fries. Jack swiped at them everytime Paul put a fresh fry in his mouth. Needless to say, we think Jack is ready for something more than formula. So I will put a running list of the foods he tries and his reactions to them. I am only allowed to give him a new food once every 3-5 days so that I can watch to see if there are allergies, so it may take awhile to fully develop this list!

Rice Cereal: Ah, every baby's first food. Low risk of allergy, easy to digest. Tastes like crap. But Jack seems to like it. We started while we were in Florida. We have been using it to practice the whole spoon thing. Jack has gotten way better at it as he has had more practice, though he was pretty good at the beginning. This should be no surprise since he is nearly 20 lbs at 5 months! He usually takes the cereal with minimal face smearage! He sometimes attacks the spoon and sometimes he likes to try to blow bubbles in the cereal. Overall, I think he likes it. He gets smiley when I say silly things while he is eating and you see a pasty white face in a big goofy grin. I don't think he loves it but I think he finds it interesting for the most part so he usually wants to keep eating.

Squash: Jury's still out on this one. He first had it in Florida but then we put it on hold due to the fact that it was hectic, we were traveling, etc. We started it up again on July 30. He was hesitant on the first spoonful, even making a bit of a yucky face. I make the same face when I am eating squash! But then he began to take it better. He didn't want much and switched back and forth between readily opening his mouth and making a stink face. He may have been full from his formula. We'll try it again over the next few days and see if the squash gets a more favorable response.

Today, July 1, I warmed the squash and he made a stink face and kind of gummed at the food and blew bubbles in it. So I dumped it and gave him cold squash. Sounds repulsive, but Jack attacked it! Maybe he liked the cold on his teething gums or maybe he just likes squash but he was a champ! He polished off the cold squash and I opened a new one. He ate the room temperaure squash with no problem. He really seemed to take to it better than rice cereal, which could bode well for the future! Maybe he'll love veggies!

Up next. . .Sweet potatoes or carrots!

Sweet Potatoes: Jack tried sweet potatoes on July 5. One might say it was a five month old birthday present! I think Jack would consider it the best present he has ever gotten (at least after the Jumperoo--and you can't eat that!). He took the first bite, squished it around in his mouth, considered it and then began attacking the spoon with each subsequent spoonful. I would say that he likes sweet potatoes better than squash but I really think that he would like anything you put on a spoon. He really likes trying new foods. I have been giving him half of the package per day but I think he would take more. I get the feeling, however, that I will need to be the one to stop him, rather than waiting for him to tell me he is full. He doesn't get too much on his face while eating. I think that he is afraid of wasting it!

Carrots: Surprise! Jack likes carrots. I think I am going to stop writing about the foods that he likes, and instead mention those that he doesn't. I don't think I am going to be writing much about foods. Jack basically likes anything you put on a spoon.