Zoe has been eating solid food for three months now. It has been a fun and exciting time for us. I, just like every new mum, was looking forward to cooking all this nutritious food for my baby. I planned to give her the best start in life by creating all sorts of meals with fruits, vegetables and meat. And we have exceeded my expectations on this front.
I am going to say that I have made some seriously yummy food. Zoe was 6 months when we started this journey and the beginning was pretty boring and bland. Boiling or steaming food, blend/puree and feed. End of. I have since become a lot more adventurous with the help of Annabel Karmel’s book “Baby and Toddler Meal Planner“. There are some super yummy and healthy recipes for babies and there are foods and cooking methods I had no idea I could use and give to Zoe. I have adapted some recipes when I am out of certain food and because of food intolerances but the recipes give you room to add and change ideas. (I am not going to go into a whole review of this book, if you have questions you can ask).
Zoe’s favourite food is sweet potatoe and she really enjoys salmon and squash. Her least favourite food is avocado but I do keep trying to give her some. If your desperate for your baby to have the benefits of avocado just add a banana with it and it will be gobbled up.
Zoe enjoys anything that is on the floor or thats within her reach. I have found, on only one occasion, a nice juicy bug in her mouth, which I managed to scoop out. I will be honest, I was screaming, but not from the fact she was eating a bug but more the fact that I had to TOUCH a bug. I closed my eyes and could only hope it was dead. No harm was done, we both survived.
There is a slight resemblence to episodes of Hell’s Kitchen in my house. It gets crazy in there with a chopping mummy, hot food in the pan and dog and baby crawling around on the floor both waiting impatiently for either food or attention. There is the gentle hum of words like “no”, “oooo, hot”, “in your basket Nelson” and “Zoe, be careful”. About every 2 minutes I have to bend over and place Zoe or Nelson somewhere else to give me some space. But those 2 are so fast that within a minute they are down by my feet like little leeches. If food were to drop on the floor, you are going to have to be faster than Usain Bolt to get your hand down there before a mouth gets it.
I would say this has been the hardest step for me as a new mother. There is a lot of thought that goes into preparing the meals. You have no choice to feed your baby or not. Pre-baby I never put much thought into what I cooked. I ate what I had and if I didn’t have any food there was always the choice of ordering or going out to a restaurant or just having a sandwhich. With a baby you can’t just do that, at least not at 9 months old. If you are out all day you have to remember to pack food and water and you have to make sure your pantry is fully stocked for the inevitable cooking madness. My freezer is exploding with expressed milk and frozen cooked meals for Zoe. Eventually though, that will run out. So this home cooking factory is never closed.
There have been times when I have thought that buying baby food from the shops would save me a lot of time and energy. I have so wanted to give up and go down that route but I am so adamant that Zoe get the health benefits from home cooked fresh meals that I have yet to buy her anything pre made in a factory. I won’t say she will never have those little bottles of so called carrots and potatoes, but as for now, we are managing. And when things do get tough she sits on the kitchen counter and we sing songs and chit chat whilst cooking.
So, it is not easy, and the bigger she gets the more food she needs. This brings on a whole new set of challenges. Is she eating enough? And really, there is only one way to know and that is if she is cyring uncontrollably. I have had to adapt what I thought was enough and turned out wasn’t and all I can say is that I am still learning and will continue to learn about her needs for many years to come. She is gaining weight and reaching milestones and this is a good signal she is doing just fine. And if in doubt, toast a slice of bread and spread some banana on and this yummy snack goes down a treat.
Feeding tips:
- Naked feeding. This is essential if you are not in the mood for a mountain load of laundry everyday. Use a big muslin cloth as a bib, this comes in handy when you are out. Really protects the clothes.
- Meal prep: preparing ahead of schedule really makes life easier. Freeze either in 1 portion pots and take out when needed or freeze in 3 portion pots and eat within 2 to 3 days. Don’t just pack it all in a big tub because it won’t get eaten and thats just a waste of time and money.
- Water at hand. sometimes this helps with thicker texture and new foods so baby can sip in between.
- Time it. Nothing worse than feeding a baby when your trying to rush out the door. Baby will be slower and the mess will be worse, there is always mess.
- Feed yourself first. It’s excrutiatingly painful to feed a child when your hungry and your bound to nibble at their food, which only leads to guilt and a hungry baby later on.
Gabi's Maternity Leave 