When did you/are you planning on starting some solids?

Toni - posted on 09/27/2011

Poppy is losing her tongue thrust now, I've noticed the difference with her when we give her calpol, more stays in her mouth now, but she still has it.

Ianina - posted on 09/26/2011

Sofia does the same...Isa is eating some apples.

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/26/2011

Fierna still has tongue thrust reflex, I checked with a fourth of a cheerio and she pushed it right out.
She sure seems to want food but just isn't ready yet :)

Toni - posted on 09/26/2011

What I don't understand is why people think rice will fatten baby up, there are less calories in baby rice than in their milk so it may fill them up but won't help them gain weight.

My son was eating from a spoon from when he was born (breast milk) so babies can spoon feed at a month old it just takes patience. Oh and everyone does it isn't a good reason, if everyone jumped off a cliff you wouldn't would you? Now making your own choice based on real information (not word of mouth) is a different matter.

Jessica - posted on 09/25/2011

I have given Rose the rice rusks when she's having a fussy eating day. She loves them, and now I have to give her both (2 in a pack) or she gets mad! I think we will start rice cereal next week, when she turns 5 months. I haven't noticed any differences in her mood, sleep or poops so I guess it's onward and upward from here! She can hold the rusks and tries to get them to her mouth, but mostly misses. Amazingly though, she can grab the food right off my plate!

Jennifer - posted on 09/25/2011

Thanks Karen!

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/25/2011

Yeah I really and truly hate medicating her for the reflux :( if I could get the same results with some organic or natural ingredient I'd darn sure do it! But I detest pumping and formula isn't an option so I do the meds here and there if she's having a bad day. Most times it's like half a dose every three days recently :)
But yeah like I said before I only get riled up if I see moms advising weaning to use cereal in bottles, or encouraging cereal for longer sleep. I think it can be used safely, but if misused it can be deadly so moms just shouldn't advise it willy nilly.
I like forcing myself to grow and expand my tolerance for different parenting styles.
Of course sometimes I feel like MY styles are BEST but obviously I'm not every babies mom and I can't speak for them. but I'm glad I feel like I'm making the best choices for my kids, I just need to continue realizing that what's best for mine might not be what's best for everyone's.
So thanks Jennifer, we might never agree on most stuff but we can gain mutual respect that different doesn't mean wrong. And what's wrong for MY baby might not be wrong for YOUR baby :)

Karen - posted on 09/25/2011

Since all of this started Right after my post about MY son I feel I need to chime in. My son's Dr. and most of the mothers I know (I took a poll after I started reading these comments), all gave Rice cereal in a bottle BEFORE attempting it from a spoon. It is NOT thick by anymeans. ONE Teaspoon to 4oz Minimum, is the ratio my Dr. Reccomended! My mother had 6 children, my sisters each have 3 and they have ALL given rice cereal in a bottle before a spoon. Not to mention, what are you going to do for a one month old who is in the 5% for weight and NEEDS the extra calories? A One month old certainly will NOT eat from a spoon so it HAS to be given through a bottle (My sister's son was a slow gainer and this needed to be done). My Son's DR. said most babies will get cereal through a bottle for about a month before trying a Spoon (and thicker cereal). So usually around 5 to 6 months old is when a Spoon is introduced. Because My son needs oatmeal instead of rice, we had to start the spoon Early, and my Dr just said to keep it very thin and be persistant, to even try a Dropper if we need to! The "sleeping better through the night with a bottle of cereal" is BS! I suppose TECHNICALLY my son sleeps longer.... by about an hour! He is up at 330 now instead of 230, that certainly is Not sleeping through the night. Even though it's been stated that "it is not a jab at anyone's mothering" It most Certainly IS a jab! I DO take offense! Just because YOU would not do it, does not mean it is Wrong! When I brought this conversation up to a few women they seemed very suprised that anyone would feel so strongly Against cereal in a bottle. No nipples have been cut, and the cereal is not thick at all. Breastfeeding has NOT been sacrificed to feed my son. I pump and my son Only get bottles of Breastmilk at bed time, while we are away from home and can't nurse or when daddy is nice enough to let me take a little nap and he feeds our son. My son still nurses in the night, and through out the day. This site is supposed to be Supportive for mothers, to get Advice, NOT to Attack others because you disagree with their mothering style. A few of you on here have made statements of thing that I personally do Not agree with, I said nothing! Just because it is something You do that I disagree with, does not make either of us Wrong. Back off ladies and Play Nice!

Martha - posted on 09/24/2011

thanks for clarifying jennifer..:) like I said when I asked...Ive only seen the moms who put LOTS IN and then CUT THE NIPPLES....and to me it seemed like the easy way out instead of feeding it to them on spoons...LIKE I SAID this is what Ive seen..not you ladies...and when I told that mom that 2 mo was a bit young...(my one mother book had just told me...please wait till 4 mo unless told by a doc..) her response was...I need sleep..this was ONE MOM and I dont respect most of what she does as it seems pretty selfish..but I was curious why other moms would :) Thanks for the clarification!

Jennifer - posted on 09/24/2011

Laura I understand that and I apologize if I came across as a jerk responding..but I did feel personally attacked. Thanks for understanding that. I add one teaspoon of barley per 6 ounces of milk so it is not even thick at all really. It does NOT effect her sleeping at all (although I won't be complaining when she DOES sleep all night lol..I just wouldn't push cereals or anything in/with/or milk for that specific reason.
I did NOT get the doctor to agree with me. The doctor suggested it first and I figured I would try. Her reflux is no longer severe so a tiny bit of thickened milk for her 8 pm feeding and her 2 am feeding is not harming her. Not arguing or meaning this in a mean way at all Laura, but you don't understand why most people do anything that you personally don't do. And I understand that because I disagree with some of your thinkings, but its YOUR kids so I try to understand. Again..I didn't mean that mean! I don't feel like I am risking anything at all by doing this because it is "thickened" so little that the same nipple is used for the barley bottles as the rest of the day. Now if I was adding more and more cereal or it was effecting her in any negative way..you better believe I wouldn't ever do it again. However, you (you in general..none of you specifically) can give your baby reflux meds and other kinds of meds for many issues without truely knowing the side effects or long term effects. I don't understand how anyone can think that slightly thickened milk at two feedings to help keep it down is worse than pumping meds into your infant's body. Now THAT is a risk I am not willing to take.
My daughter does eat it off the spoon very well. However, like I said, her milk is slightly thickened. Off a spoon would be much thicker and I wouldn't feed it to her within 1.5 hours to putting her to bed so what good would that do? (feeding a baby baby food or cereal within an hour-ish of putting them down for the night can be dangerous if they vomit in their sleep.. This is upped for reflux babies.)
Certain things stay down better for people with reflux. My mother has it severely and she will only eat certain things before lying down. Same with babies. Certain things stay down better..including barley.
As babies grow, the majority of them outgrow reflux. From what my doctor said and from things I have read...a lot would outgrow it no matter what, but a lot outgrow it when milk becomes a smaller portion of their diet and they are eating more solids in a variety.
Once again, I wasn't trying to talk down to anyone or judge mothers who give their babies meds or anything. I was just simply stating things IMO and things from my personal experience..

Martha - posted on 09/24/2011

ok ladies...I am sorry if I started this...Ive only heard moms say that they would put the cereal in to keep them asleep longer..and as most of you have said and Ive seen it firsthand with other moms...that DOES NOT WORK....so then the reflux thing is new to me...As some of you are first time moms I guess it was more a "hey do you know youre supposed to put it in their mouth on a spoon" so if youre not tell me why...PLEASE...so again...a mom will do what they and or their doc think is best...theres a lot we do that is not exactly by the book...ie my lil one falls asleep in our bed after nursing a lot with these teeth coming in..but a doc would freak if I told them that..bc of suffocation...ETC...so Im sorry if I started something...RANDOM LAST QUESTION..for the reflux...ie Jennifer I believe...could you feed with rice or barley cereal and then do milk? so it coats tummy and then helps with the reflux....JUST CURIOUS..:) Again...Im sorry if this started something..:(

Ianina - posted on 09/24/2011

Jennifer, since you have a baby with reflux, can you answer me this?
The way I (me) understand it for what I've read, when a baby has reflux, the content of the stomach goes back to the mouth, right?? Is like having acid reflux when you are pregnant...
So why thicker milk stays longer in the tummy? I remember when I had reflux during pregnancy nothing stayed longer :(
I am just asking, not argueing or anything like that. Just a simple question

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/24/2011

Well I just don't understand why you'd risk it. I mean you can get a dr to agree with anything these days. And I do feel like it's a risk. But then again I think the risk is likely more when moms are trying to get their baby to sleep from it and their adding tons every bottle to try to make them sleep more.
Using it for reflux I don't disagree with as long as breastfeeding isn't an option already. But making women quit nursing to add cereal to formula is really crappy IMO.
My dr tried to tell me this.
So in your case I don't disagree. But as a general stance I try to discourage all cereal in bottles because overtired moms could over do it.

Sorry, wasn't ment as a jab at your mothering.
Honestly :(

Jennifer - posted on 09/24/2011

Like she said.. not trying to start anything but I feel like you are insinuating that I am trying to hurt my baby by doing this, Laura. You'd have to make it pretty damn thick to choke the baby.

And the thicker milk DOES stay down better when baby has reflux. You say she is doing great on just nursing but before you said you are tired of constantly smelling half digested milk that she spits up. I only add barley to her night bottles because she does spit up so much. I'd rather have her drink her milk a tiny bit thicker at night than have her on meds all the time. So yeah..I guess I do know my baby best and I know I sure as hell am not hurting her by doing so.

And I don't get why moms think it helps them sleep better because Rylie is still up multiple times a night to eat.

Plus its NOT going against the recommendations if your DOCTOR told you to try it. You can find anything you want online to back up your own personal opinion. I personally don't believe any one way is better than another. Just what is right for that particular child and family.

But like I said..not trying to start anything just explaining why WE do it for OUR daughter like we do.

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/24/2011

Apparently the thicker milk stays in the belly easier then the thin milk. There's even thickened formula you can buy for reflux babies.
But Fierna does fine just with nursing so idk if the benefit is worth the risk.

Ianina - posted on 09/24/2011

What I don't get is why rice cereal when a baby has reflux...

Ianina - posted on 09/24/2011

rice cereals in the last bottle=baby's tummy full longer and sleeps better.
We don't do it here...

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/24/2011

Martha wonder that too. But usually the explaination I get is 'I'm the mom and I know best' stuff and honestly who can fight that. Moms can go against all the recommendations and info available but as long as they're not breaking the law no one will stop them.

A baby has to be getting seriously injured before they're breaking the law so pretty much cereal in a bottle is fair game until your baby actually suffers brain damage from choking and loosing oxygen to the brain. And that's so rare barely no one thinks it's a serious risk. Or the mentality of 'it won't happen to me, cuz I'm a good mom'

Martha - posted on 09/24/2011

ok ladies...I am not judging...just wondering..why are some of you putting rice cereal in bottles? Ive never heard this suggested as it can be a choking hazard and cereal gets them ready for spoon use...so fill me in :) Im happy with our choice but would love to hear your reasoning...and or thoughts :)
AGAIN..LETS BE NICE ABOUT IT PLEASE :) NOT TRYING TO START ANYTHING!

Karen - posted on 09/23/2011

RJ did sooooo good! His Dr wants him on Oatmeal instead of Rice cereal because the Rice can be so constipating. Oatmeal doesn't disolve in bottles of breastmilk, so I had to mix it in a bowl and spoon feed him. He actually Ate more than ended up on his bib! He had 1.5 servings and acted like he wanted more! I didn't give anymore because it is his last meal before bed and I would rather he fill up on breastmilk than on oatmeal. He even grabbed the spoon and tried to get it in his own mouth! Got pretty close too! I am sooooo proud of him and impressed at how well he did! Looks like he gets Cereal with Breakfast and dinner now. I always thought the first spoon feeding was just practice and to not expect him to actuall Eat much, but he Ate a lot of it! My baby is so friggen awesome!

Karen - posted on 09/19/2011

Started Cereal in RJ's nighttime bottle of breastmilk on Saturday the 17th. He just turned 4 months on the 16th. So far he is doing good. No upset tummies. He seems to like it so far.

Ianina - posted on 09/19/2011

17 hours divided in 2 flights...14 hours and a short one of 3 hours...going to Chicago for Thanksgiving...we are travelling night time so hopefully they can and let the entire plane sleep...otherwise I'm going to be one of those moms banned from a flight HAHAHA

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/19/2011

I hope your trip goes well :) should be 'fun' with twins :)

Ianina - posted on 09/19/2011

or when the ped told me...they are almost 5 months, have full control of their hands and lost the tongue thrust, also very interested in food and since we are travelling we decided (the ped and me) to start trying and see what happens.

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/19/2011

Ianina, I thought you were following the 6 month recommendation?

Toni - posted on 09/19/2011

Poppy is nowhere near solids yet (she's 4 months tomorrow) so we're waiting for her to show some signs, such as loss of her Tongue thrust, sitting unaided (she's almost there now) and gripping things (she's started really grabbing stuff this week).

I weaned my sonat 3 1/2 months because he was ready and had all the signs (and was eating 8x 9oz bottles a day), each child is different just watch for the readiness signs and go from there.

Ianina - posted on 09/19/2011

The pediatrician gave me a green light to start the twins in some solid. I can give them apples, bananas, pears, prunes and home made vanilla pudding once a day during lunch time. We also got a new formula, wich is Enfamil since we are travelling to chicago for thanksgiving and there is no Nutrilon in US. I'm excited. The girls are 4.5 months and Sofia wants to eat whatever I have in hand...go figure, she is 14 lbs and Isa 12..hahaha

Lydia - posted on 09/15/2011

I've been mulling over this, and unless he shows me some serious signs, I'm going to wait until 6 months.

Chelsea - posted on 09/14/2011

we are waiting till 6 months :)

Martha - posted on 09/14/2011

i love that site..they have a few other charts....enjoy figuring out the rest of the site!

Ianina - posted on 09/14/2011

Thank you for the chart!! Seems very useful :)

Martha - posted on 09/13/2011

http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/s... HEY GUYS..HERE IS A GREAT WEBSITE...it has homemade baby food recipes...and this chart..in the link...are suggested ages to start different foods...ie citrus is harder on their tummies so wait till....etc....I PRINTED IT..bc I love charts..and hung it in my baby food cabinet as a good reminder..and check off what my baby has tried and what I have made to keep track! HOPE YOU ALL USE IT if you want that is...that website also has homemade baby snacks...healthier cakes for birthdays..etc....Im not a big organic type eater but I do like making more conscious choices for our little ones!

Martha - posted on 09/13/2011

lol steak might be in our future...lol we cut our first tooth..(corner) already! my first son had 8 teeth by 8 mo and they say about 7 mo you can start SOFT!!! meats...:) lol just thought the steak comment was cute!

Martha - posted on 09/13/2011

Were doing 4 mo...and you said no reasons..so heres a suggestion..??? since they say you should introduce foods one at a time..and about 4-6 days at each food to rule out allergies........we noticed with our first son it took him a few weeks to even work up to eating more than just a bite or two...sooo use that time from 4-6 mo to introduce foods??? we liked our plan! we did cereal for 1wk and then mixed it into some veggies if they were runny....after we made it through all the veggies...so about 2 mo bc I made a bunch myself to expand his pallate...lol we started fruits! :) they say sitting in the high chair well or unsupported decently is a good sign too..or being hungry even with nursing! :) were confident with our choice...and each mom has to be with their own! :)

Lydia - posted on 09/08/2011

I'm thinking 4 months although I'd like to wait until 6. I started around 4 months with my daughter and she was fine. I'm torn. My boy is SO big and such an eater...

Renee - posted on 09/07/2011

Jayden is a few days short of 4 months and is constantly hungry! I seriously can't keep up with him. He is breastfed exclusively through the day, but has a bottle of pumped milk and a few oz of formula at bedtime..it was the only way to get him to settle and go to sleep in his crib...it worked so we kept to it. He takes 8oz and some times cries for more, so I figure he is definitely ready for something else. We tried the oat cereal cuz he has pooping issues and didn't wanna give him rice and further constipate him. He LOVED it! His tongue thrust is gone, and he knew what to do with the new texture in his mouth. The only problem, he got really mad cuz it was coming too slow! lol I think he wanted a constant flow like when he drinks. We've been giving it to him in the evening every few days to get him used to it, but i think over the next week we will make it a nightly part of his routine. I plan to introduce some green veggies maybe in a few weeks when he is well established with the cereal and hopefully any tummy troubles have resolved themselves.

Jen - posted on 09/06/2011

We tried Zachary with some homemade brown rice cereal last weekend and it wasn't successful. He still has the thrust reflex. I'm not in a hurry so when he shows more signs of wanting food, we'll feed him. When my daughter was 4 months old she was downing 6 oz. bottles (when she had formula) and starting on cereal and veggies. Our Dr. suggests green veggies first, then sweeter veggies, then fruits. I don't think my daughter really cared what she got as long as it was food. She's almost 4 and eats pretty much everything.

Jennifer - posted on 09/06/2011

haha sticking with a few jar foods, but mostly homemade veggie and fruit purees :)

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/06/2011

Lol no steak yet right ;D

Jennifer - posted on 09/06/2011

At Ry's doctor's appt today, she gave us the full go ahead to try anything we'd like (within reason, of course!)

Alexandra - posted on 09/06/2011

we plan on starting the rice cereal at 4 months, like we did with our other two babies.

Karen - posted on 09/06/2011

RJ is 3mo, 3wks and I tried a little rice cereal in his bottle about 2 weeks ago. I felt as though I couldnt keep up with him. He was eating Constantly and never seemed satisfied, even after a 5oz bottle one night, which is the most he has ever taken at one time! He still seemed hungry but wouldn't take anymore. So I tried the cereal, and it gave him a tummy ache. I used half of what it recomended for the first bottle and he got really fussy and gassy afterwards. I tried again the next day with the same results. For now he is back to just bm without cereal. His pedi said he may not take cereal til 6mo cuz of his reflux, and bm is pretty satisfying, He did slow down from him constant eating. It must have just been a growth spurt. He gained 2 full pounds in 1.5months!

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/06/2011

I wouldn't worry, it's not fair having twins cuz you're not supposed to compare babies, even siblings, even twins! Every single baby develops at their own pace. It's just harder I'd expect not to compare twins!

Ianina - posted on 09/06/2011

yeah...Isa is the talker, she talks and laugh and scream but doesn't care about anything else...why? go figure. I'm going to try and talk with their pedi again and if she says "not to worry" I'll ask for a second opinion

Laura Zoey - posted on 09/05/2011

Aw poor Isa, lol she's such a sweetie isn't she!
Probably 6 months, she already dives for all my food and tries to eat everything! She can sit unsupported for about a minute but she definitely still has tongue thrust reflex. She can't pick things up with her pointer and thumb yet but she's seeming advanced more then Eric was so I bet she will be ready somewhere around 6 months. Not 10 months like her big bro :) silly boy just wanted the boobies.
It will be nice to see if solids help her reflux but for now she's still thriving!

Ianina - posted on 09/05/2011

I think around 6 months or when the ped told me to.
Sofia can seat just fine and has good control on her hands...Isa on the other hand can't do any of those...lol