As mum to two boys I have survived two bouts of introducing solid food, and when I say survived – I mean exactly that.
My youngest son Leo is two-and-a-half-years old (the half is important) and thankfully he can now chew steak with the best of them.
It wasn’t always this way. I remember the ups, the downs and the frantic 3am Googling of “How much banana is too much banana?”
Here are eight of the most common thoughts I had while introducing solids to both of them.
1. Everyone has an opinion. HALP!
Before I had kids, I wondered what could possibly be challenging about adding in some mashed banana to baby’s day?
What I forgot was that when you have a baby, you are tired and life is busier and messier than ever before. Also, people everywhere cannot help but give you their unsolicited opinion and advice on all things baby-related, including when to introduce solids and what type.
The experts say your baby will start showing readiness signs including; having good head and neck control, and looking interested in what you are eating.
Both my boys began eyeing my food around five/six months of age (the fact I probably looked very happy when eating helped) which I took as signs they were ready to eat.
As recommended I began slowly, trying a couple of teaspoons of puree after a lunchtime milk feed so they weren’t stressed and over-hungry.
2. Will I ever stop pureeing?
As not much of a cook, I remember being bored by the amount of chopping then boiling and pureeing an endless conveyor belt of fruit and vegetables. This was followed by plenty of mess to tidy up in the kitchen.
It wasn’t easy to do practically speaking either when Leo didn’t want to be put down, so my husband did most of the boiling and pureeing.
3. Will I ever leave the house again?
On the days when all the chopping and pureeing got too much (often) or I wanted to get outside and do the things, I had to give myself a break.
I had no qualms buying pureed fruit and vegetables. I'd pop one in the nappy bag with a spoon, bib or a little bowl and have them ready to whip out at breakfast, lunch or dinner.
I didn’t feel one iota of guilt about it either. There are really good ranges now like Rafferty’s Garden Nothing Else 4+ Month pouches, which contain literally NOTHING ELSE but premium fruit and veggies in a lovely smooth texture.
There are no artificial colours, flavours, preservatives; no added sugar or salt and no GM ingredients. Just delicious pureed ingredients, ready to go wherever and whenever.
We still keep a little stockpile of these tasty fruit pouches in the pantry for on-the-go toddler snack attacks.
4. So many emotions!
While I was keen to start introducing solids to my eldest to see if it helped with his terrible sleeping, I was less in a rush with my second son.
It felt very emotional to watch him transition to eating more and more food and less and less milk as the weeks and months went by.
My youngest was becoming independent and as I knew I would never be doing this whole baby-making thing again, I was a little blindsided by the emotions I felt at watching him grow up.
5. What about baby-led weaning?
Some mums and dads swear about only doing the baby-led weaning. They boil up the carrots and broccoli and instead of pureeing, simply place them in front of baby to let him or her choose how much or how little they eat.
I have friends that would religiously preach about using only this method. If I was home alone with either of my boys however, I was way too paranoid about them choking to always opt for the baby-led approach.
Like most parents, I decided on a mix of both pureed and finger foods. Once both Toby and Leo were used to the taste of a few different fruits and veggies I would place chunks of pumpkin or banana on their trays for them to munch while I watched on.
6. Dear God - the mess!
With a two-year old still in the house, I am not yet through the messy period of child rearing. I am regularly to be found swearing while crouched down to scrape bits of banana or minced beef out of cracks in the floorboards.
Cold scrambled egg stuck on high chair straps has always been a personal favourite to clean – enough to almost make me miss the sleep-deprived newborn baby days before food spillages were an issue.
7. Is it the food causing the latest sleep regression/leap/issue?
There is nothing us parents like more than a 3am Google to try and work out exactly why our four-month, five-month, six-month-old baby has suddenly stopped sleeping.
I remember cursing myself after giving Leo banana for the first time (which he loved and still loves) and then spent the whole night screaming. Was it the banana? Dr Google couldn’t be sure and Leo couldn’t tell me and so I guess I’ll never know.
8. This is actually pretty fun!
There might have been some tough times during the intro to solids phase, but what I remember most is watching Toby or Leo’s happy little faces light up when they tried a delicious new taste.
Whether they were excitedly chomping on mango, yoghurt or mash potato, witnessing their unbridled full-body delight was definitely worth the pain of scraping it out the cracks in our floorboards’ moments later. Just.
Any thoughts you want to add from your experiences, parent tribe?
We believe that real food tastes best. The Rafferty's Garden NOTHNG ELSE range is made from delicious, premium, pureed fruit & vegetables. Proudly made in Australia with NOTHING ELSE except for the real ingredients in the name, it has a smooth texture making it the perfect first food for babies trying solid food for the first time.