The Good, The Bad and The Mushy

After 6 months of exclusively nursing, last week marked a big event for baby Matthew. Bring on the solids (although solid is a highly subjective term when talking about first foods)

The Good

• One more exciting 'mini mama' activity for Julia to share in.

• Another step towards 'big mama' getting a few more 'baby free' moments now and again (and then missing him the whole time).

• The entertainment value of watching Matthew's facial expressions as he tries new flavours.

The Bad (or least...the not so good)

• The mess. Especially since Matthew is proving from the get-go that he is going to a self-sufficient little eater.

• More luggage and planning when we leave the house. No more relying on 'mama thermos' being enough to satisfy. After only five days Matthew knows when it's time for his midday meal of solids.

• The 'junk in the trunk' is looking and smelling a whole lot different when it comes time for changing. "Well hello there mushy banana!"

The Mushy

We've started our feeding adventures with some delicious rice porridge and oh so appetizing mushed banana and water. When making last night's dinner though, I started thinking ahead a few weeks and set aside some pureed squash and carrot to be frozen in a small ice cube tray.

With a bit more experience in the cooking for kiddies department, I really want to try providing more home-made baby food this time around. I did this to a limited degree with Julia but bought a fair amount of pre-made when I became overwhelmed by flavour combinations and recommendations for the introduction for different foods.

Of course we are following the 'one new food at a time for three day' rule for new foods to identify food sensitivities and avoiding some of the biggies until baby is older (nuts, berries, egg whites, honey etc.), but beyond that I'm really looking forward to offering food from our kitchen, mushed with love and somewhat in keeping with what the rest of us are enjoying. And with a little luck this whole process may even pique Julia's interest in revisiting some of the veggies and fruits that were her favourites as a baby.

If you have any winning combinations send recommendations our way. Matthew will return a big wet mush-covered kiss for it.