I have just started weaning Zevry properly. He has been eating a bit of banana and some porridge for awhile now, but as he is just about 6 months, we have begun to introduce some more solids. Basically, I give him a little of whatever we are having that night – so if we’re eating a salad with cucumbers and red peppers, he gets some big batons of cucumbers and red peppers. He also gets pureed fruit and/or vegetables. Apparently, the key is to cut big enough pieces so he can gag on them but not choke. You actually want the baby to gag a little so they learn how far back they can hold things in their mouths before they have to swallow. He is eating a full dinner each day, and then I give him a little bit of something in the afternoon, too. He hasn’t cut back on his milk at all, and he often needs a long drink after dinner to wash it all down. He is getting a little better with his various cups, too, and I am really thinking we can skip bottles altogether.
Zevry is crazy about food. He eats with such gusto, always saying “mmmmmmmm” with each bite. So far the only thing he hasn’t enjoyed is pomegranate. At first I thought this was because it was too tart for him, but then he ate 3 grapefruit wedges and several slices of orange. Hmmm. He loves citrus. Can’t get enough of it. He downed 3 orange segments in about 5 minutes tonight. He sucks the juice out of them since he can’t quite swallow something that big. His second favorite is green stuff – lettuce, cucumbers, zucchini. And he had special baby pancakes today (no sugar, no butter, no wheat flour… etc).
And finally, he has really mastered signing “more.” Check out the video here. The funny part is that he signs more after every single bite! More!!! More!!! More!!! He seems so proud that he knows how to talk to me. I also think he is trying to say the word more because as he signs, he often says “Mmmm-ah” and then starts yelling. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to want to talk and not be able to do so. But now that he has mastered more, I am going to add about 3 more signs. We’ll do “all done” for sure, and maybe hug, sleep, bath, Mommy, or Daddy. Any suggestions?