What can i give 7 month baby

[Archiemum36]

Hi

This might seem a silly question but i'm a bit confused as to what i can give my son who's nearly 7 months to eat, at the moment he is eating jar and packet food and won't eat anything with lumps in it. My health visiter isn't the best so don't feel i can ask her. I know he can have veg but can he start having gravy, meats ect. Also what would be the best thing for lunch as he doesn't seem to eat all the toast i give him and throws it on the floor plus i don't think this is enough, i would like to try him on other things rather than just jar/packet food.

Also he was 9lb born so does this make a difference as to the amount he eats compared to a smaller baby. He is still not sleeping through the night so could this be that he's not having enough calories in the day. if so what is the best food to give him.

Please can you give me some suggestions.

Thank you.

[Rhiannon]

My son is 7 months old also. He'll eat almost anything, scrambled eggs is good for lunch. Also I think they can have meat and fish after 6 months if not before but don't think they can have gravy and sauces at the moment because of the salt, but I may be wrong. I tend to cook meals and freeze them for my son, he likes fish,potatoes and peas or broccoli, or chicken potatoes carrots and peas. Will also eat lentils carrots and parsnips and loves cauliflower cheese. I blend them all down and use the Avent pots to put them in the freezer. Know what u mean about health visitors, haven't even met mine yet as she's new! The baby magazines have some good recipes in them and there are some books u can buy but are a bit pricey! hope this helps, sorry if I've rambled on!

[Carolina]

Hi, my son is 10 months old, so i can give you some ideas for meals you can offer your baby. At the age of 7 mths your baby can eat boild vegetables, red and white meat, fruits.

This is some examples:
Breakfast: Weetabix with milk, u can also mash some banana, apple puree, baby cereal with milk

Lunch: Boil some vegetables (carrot, sweet potato, courgete, cauliflower) with fish fillet or chicken breast, and mash it. Give him for desert fruit (peach puree or pear - boil it first to make it soft) My baby also enjoys lentils (good source of protein) with carrots (boil it together) Offer some pasta when he is 8 months old, becouse they cant chew very well yet.
Tea: offer some veggie and fruit also, WATER WITH MEALS TO DRING.

Remember to offer him fruit about 3 times a day, vegetables 2 times and meat once, he still need to have his milk during the day 500 - 800 ml a day. Good luck CAROLINA

[Archiemum36]

Thank you both, i will try the things you have suggested.

[Daniel's mummy]

I was given a great book with lots of recipes in.  It also tells you at what age you can start introducing different foods.  (Let me know if you want the title etc...)

My ds is only 6 months but he too was a heavy baby so we started him on solids from about 4 months.  I make all my own food for him.  His favourite meals are different vegies boiled up with fish/meat and formula.  for example, I make one using 300ml formula, a frozen cod steak, about 8 oz potatoes, a tablespoon of sweetcorn, 12 oz carrots.  Put all together in pan and simmer for about 20mins until potatoes sre soft.  Then blend it all so no lumps.  This makes about 6 meals for him so I just freeze them and use them as needed. He loves it.  Breakfast he has 3/4 weetabix with formula milk.  He also loves fruit. Mashed banana is one of his favourites.  Also steamed apple, pear and nectarine blended together.

The only problem we seem to have is he never wants to stop eating :lol:

[Daniel's mummy]

Reading my last message I realise it looks like he eats 3 or 4 weetabix for breakfast!!!   :shock:  (Though he probaby would if we let him!) Not the case.  I meant 3 quarters of a weetabix!

[Archiemum36]

no i knew what you meant, thank you. he likes weetabix, ready brek for breakfast and i tried him with pot, courgette and coli yesterday for his tea, he didn't love it but he ate it, he also loves steamed apple and bannanas. i must try him with some meat.

Yes please for the title of the book.

Also i have another question, it seems to me that some mothers seem to be giving a bottle in the morning and solids about an hour after should i be doing this, as i try to get as much milk as i can down him first and then solids straight after. Should i be waiting an hour before solids. He doesn't seem to be drinking his milk at the moment so i mix it in his food.

Thank you
Sharon

[Daniel's mummy]

To be honest I have been wondering the same thing about whether I should leave time between each bottle feed and solid feed.  Daniel seems to be happy to eat solids first and then he still takes all his bottle (sometimes still cries for more!).  I had started to ween him off the lunch time bottle and all seemed well but this week lunchtime has become quite difficult so today I tried giving him 3 oz milk first and then feeding solids.  This worked much better.  He then enjoyed his food more.  Maybe he is just too hungry to start with solids!

Also about a week ago Daniel went for a couple of days where he didn't really want much milk.  As you said I just make sure that I add a lot of milk to his meals.  He's back on milk big time now though!  He had his third tooth pop through on Sat though so maybe that was bothering him last week.  He stills seems like he's in quite a bit of pain so I'm wondering whether he has another tooth coming as well.

The name of that book is 'Pregnancy, babycare and nutrition for babies and toddlers'.  It is by Alison Mackonochie and Sara Lewis.  I have found it really useful, especially the 'cooking for babies and toddlers' section.  There are loads of really good, simple recipes - I've not found one yet that Daniel hasn't loved. 

Funny you said your health visitor isn't much help - neither is mine.  She had me in tears a few weeks ago when I said I was going to start him on solids as milk just wasn't satisfying him anymore (he was having about 9oz every 3 or 4 hours and still crying at the end of each bottle for more).   :? She said we have overfed him and he has now got used to feeling overful.  She implied that every time he cries we shove a bottle in his mouth and that's why he seems so hungry all the time.  I was so mad because what she doesn't realise is right since he was born we have been so paranoid about not over feeding him.  And following the 4 hour EASY routine meant that we were rarely feeding him more than every 4 hours.  Tracy suggests that some bigger babies  will need to start solids earlier so that's what we did.  He was only 3.5 months.  He now weighs 21lb and I love every pound of him.  

I don't see the hv quite so often now and I have purposed to take what she says with a pinch of salt. It really is true that you know your own baby best.  Go with your instincts.  Daniel is such a happy healthy baby it's silly to waste days worrying about things that don't really matter.

HTH
Hazel

[Archiemum36]

That's awful with the hv, they really know how to upset people, mine just doesn't give you a straight answer she goes around the long way of things and then doesn't give you what you asked for, i think anyone with enough knowledge could be a hv.

Congratulations on the 3rd tooth, Archie has his two bottom ones but i think one of the top ones are coming through, how big was Daniel when born, Archie was 9lb and just had him weighed and he's 20lb 13oz.

Thanks for the title of the book i shall look for it next time i'm in town.

[Daniel's mummy]

Daniel was 9lb 2oz at birth and 54 cm long.  He was weighed last week (6months) and was 20lb 12 oz.

I found the book on amazon - got it a bit cheaper that way.

[Archiemum36]

Thank you, i'll try and get it, we tried butternut squash and carrot today and loved it.