BABY FEEDING

Baby Self-Feeding: Tips, Tricks and Finger Foods to try
Encourage your baby’s interest in solid foods with these self-feeding tips, tricks and ideas for finger foods to serve up:

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Has the habit of feeding your baby pureed mashed food worn off ? You're not the only one fed up with spoon-feeding: Your baby probably is, too. Happily, it's time to introduce a new utensil to the feeding : baby's fingers. Let the self-feeding begin!
Self-feeding is a big milestone in baby's development, as it encourages them to explore food through their sense of touch as well as their senses of taste, sight and smell. ( Just when you thought mealtime couldn't get any messier...)

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Here are some simple tips, tricks and ideas to help you and your baby make the transition from spoon to fingers.

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Age to start self -feeding :Most eager beaver babies are able to trade in that spoon and trade up for finger foods by the time they are 7 to 8 months old. Once baby can sit up solidly by themself and has started to practice their grasp — it's time to bring on the finger foods.

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Stages of baby self-feeding:The transition from spoon to fingers won't happen overnight. It's a process — one that can be messy and frustrating on both sides. Even if your baby already puts everything into her mouth, trying to figure out the mechanics of taking food to mouth is challenging.
At first, finger foods will merely supplement your child's diet as they figures out how to self-feed. Most babies start out by holding their food in their fists, not having learned yet to coordinate individual fingers for pickup and transport.

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How to encourage your baby to self-feed: As with other foods, finger foods should be fed only to a baby who is sitting down, not to one who is crawling, cruising or toddling around. Because most of baby's teeth are likely still in the process of coming in, the best finger foods have a consistency that can be gummed before swallowing or that will dissolve easily in the mouth — no chewing should be necessary.

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To start : scatter 4 or 5 pieces onto an unbreakable plate or directly onto baby's feeding tray, and add more as baby eats them. Beginning eaters confronted with too much food, especially all in one spot, may respond either by trying to stuff all of it into their mouths at once or by sending it all to the floor -clearing swipe — a good reason to serve it up slowly.

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Time to end the Meal :Some play is part of the experience, but when self-feeding dissolves into all play and no eating, it's time to end the meal.

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Start with foods : Food that have been well-received in pureed form on a spoon, serving them up in manageable cubes or chunks. Offer pea-sized versions of firmer foods, such as steamed vegetables and very ripe fruits (banana, pear, peach,

mango)

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