[mommamarci]

Another question:

When did your babes start eating real food? Cameron is still gagging every time we try Puffs. He is just not learning that he needs to chew it first. How do we teach him this? He chews on EVERYTHING: fingers, toys, etc. But he won't chew food. We have given him the little mesh bag that you put food in and he will chew on it (although he usually chews on the handle more than the food part...) But, he just won't chew food. We keep trying puffs because they are small enough taht he won't choke. Should we try a biter bicuit because he would need to chew a piece off? I have heard that is thicker though and does not dissolve as easily in the mouth.

He is 8 months old now. Am I worrying about this too soon?

[srusse24]

I'm glad you asked this because I have been wondering the same thing. Tyler is 7 1/2 months and we give him very small pieces of food, such as cereal. These are small enough though that he just sucks on them until they are mush and then swallows. We have given him a french fry to suck on (I know bad parents) and he will bite on it, but it scared me because he bit off a big piece and I worried he would choke. So when do we start biter biscuits and other foods like this?

[mrsdatabits]

I don't remember exactly how old DD was when we started with pieces of food (am I a bad mom for not recording that little tid-bit? ), but I do know she'd been eating baby food for a while and we knew that she knew how to swallow food more solid than liquid. DD was probably about 7 or 8 months, and her first solid food was a french fry (and now we think she's addicted just like me! ). However, DD seemed to know how to chew pretty well (my mom stills mentions that DD is the only person she knows that can chew applesauce )

I know that some of the Gerber foods say you can start food like the puffs/biter biscuits/etc when they are crawling with tummy off the floor and chews thicker mushier foods. I'm also pretty sure that most babies have a gag reflex to help them keep from choking, but that gag reflex can also be a sign that they just aren't ready (you basically have to know your kid, IMO). When we started giving DD pieces of food (except for fries, which we just let her suck/chew on), we made sure that they were very small (so she could just swallow them whole in case she didn't chew/mash them up very well).

I also think there seems to be a push to get babies to eat solid foods earlier, so you might just be letting yourself worry about it too soon. When I was contemplating breastfeeding DD the research I found was that babies are designed/capable of living off breastmilk (and formula) for at least a full year before needing sustenance from elsewhere. I think with formula its become common practice to introduce solid foods earlier and earlier, but its not really needed. So, if Cameron isn't ready yet, I wouldn't worry. Just try again in a week or so. If he hasn't been eating baby food for that long he might not have figured out yet that he can't just swallow everything like with formula.

[kelceesmom]

They need to have the swallowing reflex down with baby food first. I think Kelcee was closer to nine months before we started giving real food. She had managed to do the puffs because they melt so quickly.

I would try the 3rd stage baby food first and get a good handle on that before moving on to people food. I have heard that you should keep a good eye if giving the biter bisquits. They get soggy and can break off and get a choking reaction because of that.

mrsd is right you just really need to know your baby and let them guide you. In the beginning you will have some choking so make sure any piece you give can slide down until they are used to the chewing part.

[HBV]

H figured it out pretty early, so he was doing solids around 7 months---mostly Cheerios at that point. He seemed to like those better than the puffs.

You might also try getting some of those mini bagels---freeze them and give babe a chunk to gum/chew on. They can't bite off a big enough piece of the frozen bagel to choke, but they get the chewing + food idea.

[Emster]

I think take your time--If he chokes, back off a week or so and try again. Woob liked the puffs better than Cheerios for quite awhile. We're just now to all table foods. We continue to ease in one food at a time, and sometimes depending on what he likes, he gets some odd combinations. Oh, and you need to keep Cameron on baby food long enough that I can unload my cabinets of leftover jars into yours!

[mommamarci]

Well, I am not really ready to start table foods. I am just getting concerned that there is a problem. (Darn early intervention people.) He cannot even do the puffs. He cannot even do baby food that has anything other than a runny texture. I have been making a lot of his baby food. If a piece does not get pureed 100%, he gags. I mean like a miniscule string of a piece. We have been backing off and trying again, but dh and I are getting so traumatized that we are scared to try any more. I hate seeing him gag!

The early intervention people were trying to determine his fine motor skills and asked if he could pick up small items like food. I told them he is gagging so we don't let him have finger foods. They said if he did not improve, they would want to evaluate him to make sure he was not having issues with eating. ARGHHHH!!!!!

He's normal, right? He has been on baby food for almost 3 months now and he LOVES it. He just cannot take textures yet. That's normal, isn't it?

[mrsdatabits]

(((((Marci))))))

Are there other concerns that we (as a board) don't necessarily know about? (and I'm not saying you have to share or even tell us if there are... just for you to be aware) Because, I'm thinking if theres not other things going on that we don't know about, then he's just developing at his own speed. DD isn't crawling (though she has started scooting on her bottom and some people tell me thats considered a form of crawling), didn't turn over till she was 7 months (f to b) and 9 months (b to f), is pulling up to her knees but not her feet (at 12 months), and moves her feet in a walking motion very well (according to my mom who is almost a baby guru) if we hold her hands... but still people think she's behind. Yes, she is behind for when most babies do this stuff, but she was in a harness for hip dysplasia her first 3 months and didn't get to do all the moving and stuff other babies do at that age. Our ped still seems shocked from time to time that she's not doing something, but I remind him of the harness. We've been told as long as she's progressing we don't have to worry much. I would say the same with your little one (unless there are other risk factors) - he's just going at his speed. What does your intuition tell you? I feel, IMHO, that sometimes people that deal with lost of babies/kids/people sometimes want to lump everyone together and see that they all do things at the same times and if they don't then there MUST be a problem... instead of looking at the individual person and knowing their quirks, etc. as a parent is able to do. If you put aside the professional opinions that something *has* to be the matter because Cameron is not doing what other babies are doing, do you feel in your heart that something is wrong? From the very little I know because of what you've said, I'm just inclined to think he's developing at his own pace (IMO).

[Emster]

I don't think its a problem yet at 8 mos, Marci. consult with your Ped at the 9 mo checkup, but I think he's on track. He'll get it. Woob gagged forever, even past his 9 mo exam. And now he can eat like a champ!

[mommamarci]

We are seeing an early intervention person because Cameron has been having issues with rolling over, sitting up, crawling, etc. He is doing better. He can now sit up on his own and will roll occasionally. Still not working on crawling. When we put him on his belly, he lays his head down on the floor. Not sure if it is stubbornness or laziness...

Anyway, no major issues. He is just slightly delayed. We go back to the ped late April, so I will ask her opinion.

Em- I am glad to hear Reid had gagging issues and overcame them. I just don't want to be spooning baby food into him in kindergarten... Although I wouldn't mind following him around his entire life.

[redbonec]

I think some kids it just takes a while to get used to textures. My niece had the same problem--anything with the slightest bit of texture was gagged and thown up. At one year old, even tiny crumbs from cake was too much. At 12 months the doctor was going to wait and see--but wasn't really too concerned until 12 months. She also didn't pick up food. Now, at 18 months she is eating most things. No more gagging.

K is almost 8 months. I did try the puffs last week. At first I just gave her 1/4 of a puff at a time. Did okay. Now I can give her two at a time. I did try the Gerber zwieback toast once last week, but those are MESSY! Only do when you will be bathing a short time later. I need to remember the suggestion about the mini bagel. I did worry though about a chunk piece coming off, because they biscuit gets soggy, and couple pieces did come off, but on her bib. It did keep her occupied though.

I have tried the mesh feeder, but she seems to really dislike the texture of the mesh. A mashed banana on a spoon is fine, but won't take it in the mesh!

I have noticed K will gag if a food is too thick. Lumpy is fine, like mashed avocado, but thick like sweet potato will make her gag. I have to thin it way down.

I should say that K cannot pick up or hold the puffs yet (she will hold the z. toast). But I just read that pincer grasp is something more of a 10 month old, on average. I wonder why they would ask if Cameron, just turning 8 months, would pick up food yet?

K is just now sitting a few seconds on her own, and is nowhere near crawling, so don't feel bad. We put her on her tummy and she usually just flips to her back again! So much for tummy time.

I wouldn't worry about the puffs. My friend didn't try cheerios or the like until 10 months old. Today I spoke with another friend who didn't give any food at all until 9 months, and she said it took about 3+ months for her to really begin to like food, so over a year old.

I say don't worry, but I always do when I think K isn't doing something I wonder she should yet! The "all babies develop at their own pace" I get at the doctor makes sense for everyone else's baby! I just can't seem to remember that for mine!

I guess the more I think about it, the more inclined I am to say wait off on the textures a while, the come back to it later. I remember when you went back to food at 6 months, and you said Cameron had become a champion eater! So, sometimes I think things just happen when they do.

In the meantime, they keep us guessing!

[StorkWatcher]

It took us quite a while on the PUffs before A wouldn't gag on them.

And I noticed many of my homemade foods were still much grainier than the store-bought, so when we were trying to transition between Stage 1 fine puree type things to something with a little texture (I'm picturing my peas and green beans her e- MUCH better tasting than the jarred foods, but nowhere NEAR as smooth), I would start out on jar food, then move into my food.

Just my two cents! Oh, and we didn't do t he biter biscuits. I bought one box, but he didn't really like them,a nd I was worried about the choking.

[rredhead]

Hey!
mommamarci, I didn't read everyone's replies, just your posts. Jack, who loved formula so much he would try to eat even when he wasn't hungry, hated real food. Or baby food. For a long time, all he would eat was applesauce. It wasn't until he was 7 or 8 months that he started liking actual baby food. And he wouldn't let me puree it in the blender - that is, to make my own out of fresh, organic produce. No, he wanted the stuff in the jar (which was still organic). Hated chunks of any kind! I don't think we gave him Cheerios until he was 10 months old, because it never occured to me that he would want them, and I thought he would choke. He did OK though. We've been very slow in introducing table food. He still can't stand anything with too many chunks, though he will eat soft chunks (like peaches or pears that have been in juice). He won't eat pureed meat, just the jarred stuff. We're way behind in the feeding category, but Jack seems to be happy and healthy. I've found that he eats more when he watches other babies eat it first. I don't know if it's a "I want that too" thing or a "OK, that baby didn't die, so I know it's not poison" thing.
I honestly think Jack will be on formula until he's at least 18 months because I will not force him to eat, and neither will DH. But you know, that's OK. Every baby is different, and Jack talks more than any of my friends' kids, so if they gloat about their kids eating full-course meals, I can gloat about my son's being able to recognize Pooh characters from 20 feet away.
Hope this helps!

ETA: Biter biscuits. We only let Jack have them while seated. He never had a problem with choking on them. He really liked those, actually, but he saw them more as "chewys" than as food.
Jack didn't crawl until 11 months. My friend's son didn't start until the day before his 1st birthday. It's all good!