Baby Food: Feeding from the Table

April discovered that she can glean from her high chair
if she gets there while I'm busy cleaning up the other
dishes.

April has now really developed great "chewing" skills!  Of course, she doesn't have any chewing teeth, so I guess she's actually developed great "gumming" skills.  Anyway, because she now knows how to mash food between her gums, I can feed her foods with more texture.  And because she's been through all the food types, I can now feed her the same foods we are eating!

There are a few simple guidelines that must be followed when feeding baby from the table:

• Small bites are a must!  Without teeth, babies only mash food while chewing, not tear it into little pieces like we do.  Don't feed her anything larger than she can/should swallow.
• Be sure everything is soft enough for their gums to mash.  Try mashing it between your fingers.
• Continue to watch for allergic reactions.  It is recommended that babies do not consume eggs, peanut products, cow milk, or eggs until they are at least one year old.*  Never feed babies honey during the first year as the spores it contains can make them very ill (see Infants and Honey).

In the past couple of weeks, I have been able to feed April without having to prepare separate meals for her.  She has had black beans and corn, taco meat, white bean and barley soup, taco soup, fried rice, and pancakes and sausage.

She also discovered a treasure trove of
Cheerios under the high chair.

*Regarding the issue of food allergies, there is research on both sides of the argument as to whether or not feeding babies foods too early causes food allergies.  If you have questions or concerns, always talk to your pediatrician.