Fantastic Baby Food Tips for First-Time Moms

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Recently, a close friend who is a first time mom asked my advice about introducing baby food tips. It reminded me of that scary, overwhelming first year I had with my first child. There was so much to learn and many times I felt inadequate. What’s funny is I had forgotten how overwhelming starting baby food with your child is, now, until my friend reminded me of it through that text.

Introducing baby foods when the time is right can be staggering to say the least. Inevitably, you’ve found yourself in the baby food section of the grocery store, staring at so many options, wondering where the best place to start is. Honestly, every mom has been there.

It can be exciting, too, though. It’s possible your baby is going to start sleeping more and want to breastfeed just a tiny bit less. This gives you some freedom and allows you to get rest and more things done.

Baby Food Tips to Get You Started

There is no one size fits all baby food to start with. My mindset is that the best food to offer baby from the get-go has minimal ingredients. I know this can be very different from what you’ve been told. It certainly was for me. Even to this day, my mom, aunts, and Grandma all swear by the Gerber baby cereal.

Honestly, now I steer clear of all the baby cereals and ignore them completely. Most baby cereals are made with artificial, laboratory-made nutrients. When you compare that to a single fruit or vegetable item, it’s almost a no-brainer. Additionally, offering baby cereals to my babes, gave them quite a bit of constipation, belly aches, and overall fussiness.

I typically start with bananas or avocados. Usually, I buy a weeks worth of fresh produce, take them home, and mash/blend them myself each day. Occasionally, I buy the baby purees of them in the baby food aisle. Notice, though, that I said “or”. My go-to food to start with is avocados. This way I don’t kick off the baby’s taste buds with something too sweet. Therefore, little junior is going to feast on those for a week.

Don’t Be Afraid To Take It Slow

The second week, I’ll add the other food (banana) and sweet pea is going to feast on two foods for a week. We’ll keep going week to week, adding one food at a time, to allow the baby’s stomach to adjust slowly to each new food that’s introduced.

I should bring up how often and when. In the first two or three weeks after I’ve started introducing solids, I usually give them in the evening, right before nursing. Then, both baby and I go to bed. I do this strategically for a reason. I want my baby to eat solids right before I want them to sleep for the longest period of time. This way, the food stays in the baby’s belly a lot longer than breastmilk would. Now baby (and I!) can sleep longer until baby gets hungry again.

I also don’t give baby solids more than once a day. Once I can tell that my baby is hungrier during daytime feedings or wants to be fed a lot more often, I do more feedings. It’s just simply not necessary for the baby’s health, and also can become really tedious and messy way before it needs to be.

Get Creative As Your Baby Grows

Around 6 months of age, I have a few tricks I’ve learned that come in super handy. First off, my pediatrician suggested I allow my son to chew on a solid piece of meat during mealtime. Even if they don’t eat most of it, they’re getting some nutrients. Furthermore, they become used to the taste and texture of meats.

My Second Secret Trick

Secondly, at 6 months old and beyond, we’ve probably all reached the teething stage. It’s quite possibly my most hated, dreaded stage of “babyhood”. Aside from the fussiness, slight fevers, clingy mood, wanting to nurse constantly, and overall not feeling good between baby (and mama), you have sore gums and slobber galore.

Something I’ve found that has really soothed and helped relieve the baby’s mouth is a fresh apple. I peel the whole apple and cut it into pieces. Next, I put baby in a high chair and let him go to town. Sure, apple gets everywhere, and your baby is gonna be a hot sticky mess. But, that sticky baby is also happy, content, and you’re able to get that load of laundry folded with two hands. One of my mom friends does the same thing with a mango. She says her son loves it.

Baby Food Ideas to Utilize:

Once baby is getting more of an appetite, I build up a stock of homemade baby foods. Baby food can get expensive pretty quickly. While I like to have on hand store bought pouches for on the go moments, I like having a build up of foods without a lot of ingredients.

My favorite thing to do is buy a bag of frozen mangos and let them thaw on the countertop. Next, I grab my blender and blend until we are completely smooth. I like to store the mangos and other baby foods I make in these containers from Amazon: (*as an Amazon Affiliate, I can make a small commission on items I recommend at no additional cost to you).

What I like so much about these containers is that they are dishwasher, microwave, and freezer safe, and for a reasonable price! That makes it so handy to store the food for a few weeks, heat up the food if it’s something that tastes better warm, and wash it when baby has finished.

There are other baby foods to try in the first 4-6 months: boil some carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans, and peas and blend them until smooth. Don’t be afraid to start your own baby food making journey! There are so many good, easy recipes on Pinterest, Instagram, and Google that are helpful. Once you get started, you’ll see how simple, easy, and cost-effective it is.