Solids question - SS alert

[Lest12]

I have a SS question with feeding LO.

We were doing great... Trying new foods, eating things, trying to chew.

Suddenly, meal time is very difficult.  He is not so eager to eat solids anymore.  Some things he is just flat out refusing (for example... string beans.  He used to eat them, now he gags when I come near him with the spoon). It's all very odd.  He used to just gobble everything up.

I'm trying to figure out what his deal is... I am lost.  It's not a huge deal, but I don't really understand and I'm not sure exactly how to handle (I'm guessing to offer things and then if he doesn't want them, don't force them).

He does seem more into foods he can feed himself then purees, but TBH I'm not sure he's ready for much more finger foods.  I gave him little pieces of mango yesterday and then he threw up little chunks   Not to be gross... but...

I guess I am just wondering if anyone else's LO is in the same boat and if you're doing anything different to get the babies into it again. 

[charsam]

Okay, grain of salt since my LO is still in the I Love All Food stage. I've been reading that this is just a phase they go through as they learn they have influence. Here's one of the articles that talks about it. Refuses to be Spoon Fed
Edit for learning to add links here

[ashanne88]

Yes! DS has been doing similar things. He used to eat much better. Now he doesn't eat as much unless it's yams, pears or apples. He'll lose interest quickly and start eating his bib or trying to lick the tray or just looking off in other directions. He's started clamping his mouth up more too.

I'm worried DS is not ready for finger foods. The few times I've given them to him he just gags on the big pieces. He doesn't quite understand the chewing part. Whenever I give him a rice cracker he kind of sucks and chews on it. Do I need to give him more finger foods so he figures it out? It freaks me out when he gags on chunks of food.

I hope I didn't hijack your post Lest12!

[Lest12]

Thanks for sharing the article,charsam! Maybe I will strip him down tonight and let him just make a mess with the spoon himself.

ashanne88, hijack away, please! I'm happy it's not just us. I have been trying little finger foods here and there but am also nervous.

[ashanne88]

Great article! Thank you charsam! I think I will try letting him feed himself tonight too. I am so nervous - I know the difference between gagging and actually chocking but it still scares me.

[charsam]

No probs!
My family physician said finger foods are fine, but just make sure that they aren't powdery if that makes sense? He said they can inhale small particles into their lungs. I've never heard of that before and now it has me freaked out. That being said, LO tried to eat a small mushy piece of beet the other day for half an hour and it never made it into her mouth...

[mully626]

We are still in the 'love all the foods' stage but it could also help to make your purees in blends? Like if he isn't liking beans but loves banana, try mixing some beans in with the banana. I had to do that with DD1. She hated peas at first so I starting mixing it with banana then weaned to more peas/less banana until she ate plain peas.

We have been just starting the finger foods. We've tried puffs the last three weekends and this weekend she finally got it without choking. I'm also still a bit nervous about finger foods so I'm going to just stick with the puffs for a couple weeks as practice with pincher grasp and chewing then start trying actual foods.

[LittleStarSweeper]

Thanks for the article!
We are in the same boat... LO does just as Lest12 and ashanne88 have described. Some days, she's a great eater; other days - like today - she seems disinterested at meal times (chewing on her bib, licking the highchair  , etc). Earlier today she actually grabbed the spoon and pulled it toward her mouth. Hmmm.
She loves puffs and mum-mums; she can put them in her mouth on her own and "gums" away at them. So maybe I should try giving her some other finger foods?

[fferreiralynn]

DD has problems with the texture of food. We have been giving her gerber foods until someone gave us a baby bullet for Christmas. We made squash first which she loves but hated when we made it. The texture is different from store bought and she just won't eat it. We've be trying soft solids and she chokes every time. It's scary as shit.

[sweetapplecider]

DS recently did this.. Completely refused all solids he used to love and would only take a bottle happily. Then two teeth came through and he started eating again! I thought that was why he was refusing, but it's really interesting to learn ( and makes sense ) that it could be just a phase as they learn more.

[Lest12]

I would actually be happy if it were a teething problem, because that would solve the mystery of why he has been waking up all night crying the last two nights


Last night, we had sweet potatoes and chicken for dinner - his were both pureed, mine obviously were not. He was being really difficult about eating but was staring at my food. I started just giving him little pieces of both and he was gobbling them right up. So, there is that.

[LittleStarSweeper]

I have been wondering if it's a teething issue, too, actually. Pedi said about a month ago at LO's 6-mo appt that it'll be any day now... but we are still on the lookout for that first tooth to pop through. Maybe this is yet another one of those phases that'll just resolve itself.... and we'll never really know what it was all about!

[ashanne88]

I gave DS some cooked squash slices last night and he went nuts with them. Gumming, squishing and just generally enjoying them. I'm not sure how much he actually consumed but he was happy. He didn't even gag at all, which surprised me. When I tried giving him some pureed food he just shut his mouth and ignored me. I guess we'll be doing limited purees and more finger foods for now.

LittleStarSweeper We're still on the lookout for teeth too. I keep wanting to attribute changes in behavior, fussiness, etc. to teething but he just remains a mouthful of gums.

[nhmama]

If my son has the same food to frequently he'll start to refuse it. So I try to make sure there's a variety. We're doing a combo of BLW and purees. I normally give him something he can hold and manipulate himself as well as something I can feed him with a spoon. He's always more interested in doing it himself but I like that I can give him a bigger variety with the purees. So far that's working great for us. As for the chocking thing, our DR said that he should just cough up whatever gets stuck. The important thing is to not give them anything that's the same size as their throat. The big chocking hazards are things like hotdogs, carrots, bananas. So you just need to be sue to make them smaller or larger. EX, cut a hotdog in half lengthwise. It's also important to remember food is just fun at this age too