Feeding My 11Mth Old

I recommend a book called "Feed Me I'm Yours". It's WONDERFUL! It tells how to make bagels, english muffins, & tons of finger foods! I used it with my little ones & my daughters have used it as well. With toddlers it becomes more important on the "presentation" than the food itself. You have to become creative. The grandbabies all love grandmas' whole wheat pancakes, SAME as moms, but I make them into shapes & letters & sometimes use syrup, but sometimes cool whip & fruit or decorate the "faces" with fruit. They may not "like" eggs & toast, but they LOVE Bulls Eye or the toast being cut with cookie cutters into shapes...hearts, bunnies, bells, etc. Grandpa is the one that gets them hooked on Texas toast. Lightly buttered & pan fried (both sides) then cut into a big circle...it cuts the crust off & the babies like it better. Or egg posies - hard boiled egg sliced in rounds & formed into a "flower", using 1 pc of toast cutting center diagonally for the "stem" & using the now 2 pcs of triangles for the "leaves"....teaches them shapes while eating! TONS of ideas in this book, but mostly just gets you thinking outside the box... Just have FUN with them. They grow up WAY too fast! Then you just have grandbabies to feed & enjoy.... Here's a list though for 9 months-1 yr...

Apple, peeled & cut into 8ths
orange sections, peeled & loose membrane removed
peaches, ripe & peeled
egg, boiled, scrambled or poached
cheeses, soft
custards, soft
carrots & other veggies, cooked soft
macaroni pasta
egg noodles
rice
toast
bagel
tender meats, lamb, veal & some beef
spaghetti with meat sauce
fish without bones
tiny meatballs
bananas
applesauce
cooked cereals
cheerios
graham crackers
mashed potato
cottage cheese
yogurt
pudding
vanilla ice cream

1 yr & older:
carrot sticks, large
cauliflower
cherry tomatoes, halved
mushrooms
lettuce, cut up
avacado
asparagus
broccoli tips
green beans
sweet potato, cooked
french fries
peas, uncooked, frozen ones too
celery with all strands removed
pickle spears
small squares of cheese, variety of kinds
deviled eggs
hard boiled eggs
cottage cheese with fruit added
yogurt, may be served semi-frozen
pears, peeled
mandarin oranges, canned
fruit cocktail, canned
fresh berries, strawberries, grapes (halved), cherries, blueberries
watermelon
cantaloupe
crisp bacon
hotdogs
spareribs, well cooked
ham, cut in bite size pcs
luncheon meats
sausage
chicken or turkey, diced
tender roasts
tuna
hamburger, (try in different shapes)
ground turkey (like hamburger)
corn dogs
beef jerky
saltines
triscuits & fun crackers
pretzel rods
oyster crackers
bagel & cream cheese
grilled cheese sandwich
french toast (or french toast sticks)
pancakes (made into fun shapes)
macaroni & cheese
omelettes
finger jello
stuffed celery, with cheese, peanut butter, etc

We do cans of mixed veggies for our 16 month old. She loves all of it! My husband has given all 4 of our kids the same thing...veggies straight out of the can...and my 13 year old won't even eat them warm! It is very easy and nutritious. Also, we buy meat raviolis in the bag, microwave or boil and cut with kitchen shears. She LOVES these. Also meatballs cut with kitchen shears...waffles...pancakes...grilled chese...regular cheese. We love our kitchen shears. We even cut our bananas this way! Our daughter loves to feed herself, too, and being the youngest of four, she loves to be independent!

mandarin oranges out of the can and green beans were things that my Grandson really liked to pick up and eat. Also macaroni and cheese is a good food that they like

I gave my children canned veggies, green beans, mixed vegetables, canned beans, any type that are small enough for them to pick up and eat. I also gave my son small pieces of pasta (but that was after a year old). I also used canned fruit (I buy the huge cans at WalMart, and rinse off the juice when I serve it). The multigrain club crackers are also good for that age. My son really liked the toddler foods, but they can get expensive. If you can get her to eat beans, that is a wonderful source of protein, plus small pieces of boiled chicken are easy for them to grab and eat. My son (then and now, he's almost 2) loved to eat shredded cheese. It can be a bit messy, but he prefers it to any other style. Good luck!

I have an 18 m/old and I went through and continue to go through the same thing. I think it is totally cool to see this independence though!! I have had to buy the bibs of armor though! I buy the cut up vegies/fruits in the baby aisle and the kids frozen meals. I also buy the frozen chicken that you can microwave. I make her a lot of eggs, toast, pancakes, and she loves fig newtons. :)

I'm not sure if this is much help but as for "strips" of food you can try french cut green beans, they are sliced length wise and thin, or shredded carrots.