Big Boys Eat Big Boy Food

When Dominick turned 5 months old we started him on solids. At first we did the rice cereal and lets just say it didn't do well with his poor little tummy. I started giving him veggies and fruits this month. He did really well and it's safe to say he loved them. We first gave him fruit and waited about 2 weeks before giving him fruits, but it all happened within the same month. We did every other night to start out with and soon it became every night. From the very beginning we gave him raw foods to chew on (celery sticks, apple slices, cucumbers, avocados and more); mostly he would just gum them and suck on them.

When he turned 6 months we started giving him more solid food (not pureed). When he was born I was really into the whole baby led weaning, but when it came time I kind of chickened out. He choked on an avocado one night and I decided to stick with pureed for a little while until I gained the confidence again. For a side note, babies start "choking" when the food is too big and/or in the middle of their tongues vs adults who choke when something is stuck in their throat. Anyways, I finally started giving him different foods to try and he really loved all of them.

eating pancakes

Now at 7 months he's eating a modified version of what we eat. If we eat meat, so does he. He's had pork chops, ground beef, chicken and fish (if you do fish, but be careful when giving fish. He has vegetables every night (green beans, corn, carrots (steamed/cooked), peas and others). He has fruits pretty much every night as well (he loves mandarin oranges and peaches, he also loves pears, bananas and apples too). Sometimes for a snack I will give him cheese as well. I cut everything up to be small enough for him to pick up, gum and swallow. I don't season foods differently for him however I do use less salt and we will add it later if we choose.

I asked my mom if I thought he was getting enough to eat. Even at 7 months I worry that he's not getting enough food. He really is. When he's full he is DONE and wants to be out of his chair and he will cry. However, in the beginning I would offer him baby food after he was "done" with his meal. I wanted to make sure he was really full. It usually would end in a battle and him really frustrated....it was kind of like "Momma, I am full and you're trying to make me clean my plate!" He never would and I would always ask myself why I was doing that. He will also turn his head and close his mouth. I now just follow his cues and we go from there. Most of the time he ends up playing with his food or just screaming because he's full and wants out.

Here are a couple of examples of meals he's had recently:
Lazy Lasagna with green beans and bread
Dominick had the meat, noodles, cheese, green beans, bread and oranges

Chops and Cheesy Potatoes
Dominick had pork chops, cheesy potatoes (we used a bag that had peppers mixed in) and fruit

Salmon and Tortellini Pasta (this was a quick and easy lunch one day)
Dominick had salmon and the pasta

Pancakes and eggs
Dominick had both pancakes and eggs

BBQ Pizza and Breadsticks
Dominick had both although not much BBQ because I was afraid it might be too "spicy" for him. He seemed to love it.

Some days I will give him bread, sandwich meat and cheese for lunch (so he kind of eats a sandwich)

At first it seemed like the majority of his food was being given to the dogs, on the floor or in his bib, but he's doing much better with every meal. Now most of the time he takes handfuls and shoves them in his mouth. It's really nice that he's able to actually eat with us and it's nice to have a real conversation during dinner since most nights he's eating and can't carry a conversation.