Introducing Solids - Hints and Tips

As new mums, we are always searching for information to help us make the right decisions for our beautiful children. The best people we often learn from are other mums. Makes sense right?

So…… as two mums, we thought we’d share some of the information we have learnt over the last 18 months of watching our babies grow into wonderful confident toddlers, on introducing solids to your precious baby.

The inside story
Felecia and I both started our solid routines at different time. Felecia started Zach at 5 months; I was extra cautious and waited til 6 months. The Department of Health recommends starting a baby on solids from 24 weeks and no earlier than 20 weeks.

Felecia says Zach was ‘just ready’ to try something new – all the signs that he was ready were there (see below). She also spoke to her local GP who agreed with her. For me, Charlotte was just happy on the breast and not looking for that ‘something else’.

Signs that confirmed our children were ready for solids were:
· Both were extremely interested in what we were eating. Charlotte would put fingers in her mouth and copy.
· Both were opening their mouths when food was offered on a spoon.
· Both could sit on their own and had good head and neck control.

In hindsight, it’s not rocket science, but it felt stressful and difficult to us as we had never done it before.

Exciting Times!
To say we were excited to introduce the new food is an understatement! Because I was the lucky one who got to feed Charlotte her very first meal by breast (and every meal since!), my husband Mark fed Charlotte her first solid meal.

We started with rice cereal. I prepared it, Mark got the bib; camera was ready – and it was pretty uneventful to be honest! Charlotte took one taste, opened her mouth a little wider for the second spoonful and then refused any more!

To be honest, the eating process to begin with was very messy and slow. I guess at the end of the day, babies are learning a new skill and they need to get practice! Our tips for making it stress free and easy are below.

· Start with a single food, & keep trying that for about 4 days before you introduce the next food.
· Right from the start, eating with grown-ups will show your baby good mealtime habits.
· Expecting some mess and playing with food can help you stay relaxed.
· Purchase a plastic mat to place under the baby’s high chair – that way if baby puree does get thrown, your carpets are protected.
· Have plastic knives and forks handy that are made especially for babies. There are some novelty ones on the market that look cool and make sounds (eg http://shops.ecorner.com/epages/kisskisshughug.sf/secqPugg2ZQHw6/?ObjectPath=/Shops/kisskisshughug/Categories/Feeding/SS), but plain old plastic spoon sets will do the trick every time!

Food ideas –prepare, prepare, prepare!
We found that plain old easy to cook up foods worked best for our children and there was no need to cook a variety of offerings to try to tempt her. All it needs to be is smooth and pureed.
When you start on your first veggie or fruit, you’ll probably want to make a big batch so you’ve got meals for a few days (or weeks depending on how much you cook)!

Qubies have got a great product where you simply pour the puree into a container; add the lid and it makes instant cubes for you. Saves filling up ice cube containers – as if you don’t have enough to do right! For more info, click here http://shops.ecorner.com/epages/kisskisshughug.sf/secqPugg2ZQHw6/?ObjectPath=/Shops/kisskisshughug/Categories/Feeding/QB

Best foods to introduce from 6-8 months

· Rice cereal (it's bland, which is good for your baby's first taste of food). You can mix these with water or breast milk or formula.
· Vegetables: potato, pumpkin, carrot.
· Fruit: mashed banana, mashed avocado, cooked and mashed apple or pear.
· When you’re out and about, Raffertys Garden is a supermarket pre-packed puree which is made of 100% vegetables. It comes in a squeezable tube that is re-sealable so reduces wastage if baby is not hungry. It’s also easy to pack!

A good friend of ours has a fantastic blog that provides entertaining and delicious recipes for babies. Check it out at http://www.feedingflynn.blogspot.com/

Exciting news!! Wehave just launched their third product – a breastfeeding pillow that doubles as a handbag or baby bag.

Gorgeous fabrics, a well thought out design and amazing functionality are just a few key features of our breastfeeding pillow.

Basically, we wanted to design a breastfeeding pillow that is comfortable for breastfeeding, looks great and can be used after mum’s days of breastfeeding are over.

With the average new parent spending $5,125* on their new bundle, we hope that our breastfeeding pillow will be welcomed by many families due to its ability to be used long after breastfeeding is finished.

While mum is breastfeeding, she can easily carry our breastfeeding pillow in public with her, by tying the straps and hanging over the bars of her pram or simply slinging over her shoulder (see images). Made from light weight fabric and filled with polystyrene beans, this pillow/bag is designed to be light to carry.

Attention to detail means the breastfeeding pillow easily converts to a handbag simply by removing the inner cushion. It also comes with an inner pocket for mum to store her essentials like lipstick, mobile phone and credit cards and is large enough to act as a baby bag too.

Our breastfeeding pillow come handbag come baby bag has two co-ordinating fabrics per pillow and can be mixed and matched depending on what mum is wearing. Featuring gorgeous fabrics, which is fast becoming KissKiss HugHug’s signature, any new mum – or woman - would be proud to wear this bag as an accessory to their outfit.

- Portable with an adjustable arm strap to sling over the shoulder when on the move
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- 3 colour combinations

* Source: showmummythemoney.com.au