Food for Bridger

We've talked about how Nate and I are trying to eat better, but what about Bridger? The first 4ish months of life are so easy in the food department. All he needs is me. We occasionally gave him formula, but 99% of the time it was just breastmilk.

When we were in Florida for Christmas, my mom practically made me start giving Bridger real food. He was 4.5 months old, so it wasn't a bizarre idea. I just wasn't ready for it. Which is weird I know. But it's a mom thing. I LOVE our nursing time and I wasn't ready for that to start slipping away! (And it won't, I'm not planning on weaning til about a year). Again, I'm just weird.

Of course Bridger loved getting solids. While in Florida, he had rice cereal, pureed apples as well as pureed bananas. He loved it all. Each new thing takes him a few bites to get used to and then he's all over it.

Since we've been home the past month, I have tried to make my own baby food. We have continued with rice cereal, usually mixing in applesauce. But I ate giving him such bland food. How boring! So I steamed and pureed a bunch of carrots the other day. As well as some butternut squash (that I roasted first). I froze most of it in ice cube trays and then placed them in a plastic bag, so I can pull them out of the freezer as needed. Suuuuper easy.

I read this article about baby-led feeding and felt like I should give him the reins. Wrong. He's not quite there yet. I placed some mashed up avocado on his tray hoping he would stick some of it in his mouth. Haha! It just turned into sensory play :) So I have taken the spoon back! The last couple of days he has loved mashed up avocado (I just do this with a spoon or a fork) and a fresh (mashed) banana.

Now that I am over my weirdness, I love giving him new things to try! It's so fun to see him reach out and get so excited to eat. And he still is getting most of his nutrients from nursing and I'm happy we don't have to give that up for a while :)

Do you have any tips or ideas for good baby food? I'm so glad I can make most of it myself! It would be so expensive otherwise.

**Here is a great resource for making your own baby food.