Seeking Advice for 10 Month Old

Yep, it's time for finger foods. I gave up on babyfood at 9 months. Don't worry about giving him a plate or a spoon yet. Just put the food chopped up on his tray.
Sweet potato fries, avocado, steamed veggies-green beans, carrots, squash, broccoli, asparagus. I use canned when in a pinch-beans (all kinds), peas, carrots, etc.
fresh fruit-plums, peaches, bananas, are all great
toast, tortillas, rolls, lunch meat, most meats you eat he can try like shredded chicken, hamburger meat, german sausage, fish, eggs-supposedly no whites until 1 year,
I buy frozen meatballs that I can microwave when in a pinch and gerber pasta pickups as well (cut in half).
noodles, rice, pancakes, yogurt, oatmeal (quaker 1 minute works well and sticks together so he can pick it up himself)
shredded cheese, fruit cups, cheerios, gold fish, I waited until 1 year for raisins and my daughter loves the yogurt covered ones, cut in half.
If you make a roast, they love the carrots and potatoes in that
spaghetti squash especially with a little cheese on it,
I slice up egg plant thin, dredge it in egg then italian bread crumbs and bake it for 20 minutes on each side, my daughter loves this.
And like somebody else said...my dogs are great at cleaning up!
Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful

Let him eat the table food. Some of my favorite foods at that age were rice cakes and diced, soft cooked vegetables and fruit. My boys loved to feed themselves. I made my own babyfood and my boys are the best eaters.

change him to table foods. My girls were both 9 months old when they gave up baby food all together. they did the same thing would refuss the food until i got them the gerber meat sticks, i peeled them and cut them up and they loved them. they also ate the gerber peas and all the diced food.

I totally agree with the other moms. My 11 month old lost interest in baby food at around 9 months. She would always stare and watch us eat. We introduced table food early since she is our 2nd child. Canned vegetables, especially peas and carrots were her favorites. The canned pears, mandarin oranges and peaches are easy as well. I would try Mac-n-Cheese if you feel confident she does not have any dairy allergies.

Changes in appetite are also normal as children develop. I would not be concerned unless there is weight loss.

I have a 9 month old and he is to the point where he mostly just wants to feed himself. Although, occasionally, he only wants me to feed him from a spoon--they are fickle little things:)

Anyhow, I love the web-site www.wholesomebabyfood.com. I check it every few weeks or so for recipe ideas, and ideas of things to feed him, how much he should be eating, etc.

Good luck, let me know if you have any more questions.

We struggled w/the same problems; my son is now 3yo and just now interested in eating again. First, I started him on Juice Plus Gummies. I was leary of substituting anything for food b/c I just wanted him to eat normal foods and like them. I learned the hard way I can't force him to eat. I did, starved him for 4 meals and when he did eat he threw it up on me! I should have had some Godly wisdom! Just slow down and take it easy. My pediatrician asked me how many dirty diapers he was having and when I responded 3-4 a day she laughed and said just wait it out. That is what we have done and it has worked.

Food the first year is an experiment. Try to keep this in mind. They should be getting the bulk of their nutrition from you or formula and NOT solids. So if he doesn't like jarred food, all the better for both of you. ;)

Start giving him finger foods and let him feed himself. He's going to make a mess so try and not freak out. Getting a dog really helps at this stage. Include him in on dinner by giving him bits of (age appropriate) what you're eating. Pasta, baked potato, some veggies and fruits are good. Anything that's not over processed is going to be more healthy. Check out the book Super Baby Foods. It gives a listing of which foods to give them and when and how to prepare them. I found it to be really helpful.

YOu have so much good advice. I will only add that frozen bagged veggies are a lifesaver. They are inexpensive, quick to microwave, and easy to prepare in small portions.

Is he teething? Sometimes that affects a childs eating habits. Just make sure there is always healthy foods offered b/c you just never know when and how much they will actually eat. I hate to tell you this, but it continues into the toddler years. I have a 22 month old that may finish her plate sometimes and other times she eats two bites! I know when my daughter was starting finger foods she liked bananas quite a bit. Something she could hold herself and easily chew. I cut it into small pieces though b/c I was so nervous that she would choke. Also, melba toast is always good for teething and is a healthy snack. Cheerios are good. Also, you could give him mashed potatoes; he could eat that himself. Peas are good and are finger foods. Just think of anything that is soft to chew... green beans. I would always test the food by putting it in my mouth to see if I could chew it with my lips. That always told me if my daughter would be able to chew the food with her gums. Anyway, good luck!

he is very ready for table food. cut up soft foods like pears, avacados, bananas, strawberrys, kiwi, ripe mango, thinly sliced mild cheese, cheerios. anything that can be gummed and swallowed easily. i also found some fun rice rusks at walmart in the baby section. mine only ate pureed foods for a couple of weeks and he hated it, so i began to cut up foods for him. he's been feeding himself since 8 mos, he'll be one this week. see if yours is interested in picking things up w/ his little fingers. it's so fun to watch!

At around the same time, my son refused jarred or any type of commercially prepared baby foods. He wanted to feed himself. So I made him a variety of foods cut into small pieces and made sure everything was soft. I found the book First Foods by Annabel Karmel & published by DK. It had great pictures and good suggestions for foods, some I never would have thought of. He was so much happier and honestly, I think healthier for it.

HTH