AND WE'RE BACK! A Catch up and some meal ideas

I've been struggling with a Babe who all of a sudden decided that the fantastic nap routine she FINALLY got on was NO GOOD and that she much rather nap on the go, which has meant that between that and 2 trips to Canada in the last couple of months I haven't had much time to sit down and post anything here. 

Over the past couple of months (from 10-12 months) I can't say that I have noticed any big changes in  MiniMe's approach to eating, her likes and dislikes, or her appetite.  She is still excited by food more often than not and even on the days when she isn't feeling well she will still eat most of what we are offering her.  

At 10.5 months her bottom 2 teeth FINALLY came through and we have noticed that she is trying to rip stuff like bread into smaller bites using them, but without the top guys it is still pretty difficult.  She definitely prefers her food in smaller bite-sized pieces. Every day I will offer her something in a bigger piece but she leaves it until I cut it up smaller (strips of chicken, toast, banana...anything).  The bite sized pieces I offer her are still large enough that she needs to gum them though. 

While we were away visiting family in Canada we ate out a lot and most places were very accommodating making us veggies without salt, sweet potato fries without salt, bringing a side of toast and peanut butter, or an extra scrambled egg.  She helped things, of course, with her big smiles and goo goo eyes.  I often ordered something that we could share and then a side of something else to share because the KIDS menus just weren't appealing. 

We are back home now, trying to get over the 2nd lot of jet lag and resume normal service.  Here are a few things we have had over the past couple of weeks to offer some inspiration. 

Breakfast: Corn Flakes softened in milk, banana and peanut butter and jam bread roll ups

Breakfast: Scrambled Egg with cheese, blueberry porridge bar and yogurt

Brunch: French Toast, scrambled egg, beans and yogurt

Snack: Peanut Butter with mashed banana (slices of banana and a coffee for mum) 

Dinner: Spaghetti Bolognese and broccoli 

I cut the spaghetti strands in thirds so they were easier to schlurp up 

Dinner: Beans, avocado and cheese

Dinner:  Pizza with cheese,ham and mushrooms (I make my own dough so there is no salt) 

Lunch: Minestrone Soup with Alphabet pasta and hummus bread roll ups 

Breakfast with MiniMe

We have hit week 6 of our adventure with solids, and for the most part MiniMe is really enjoying this new experience.  Sure, she still hasn't given broccoli a second glance (even mashed and mixed with sweet potatoes she shunned it) but she is now picking up and devouring chunks of banana and will give almost everything we put down in front her a try.  She makes exaggerated chewing motions, and is getting better at finishing huge mouthfuls before ramming some more in.  Also, in the past 2 days, or so, she is able to open her fist up a bit to get at the ends of whatever is in her hand.

When we started out I was trying to offer her something at every meal. I wasn't that worried if it was touched or played with or if it made its way to her mouth, I just wanted her to get used to the ritual of sitting up at the table, eating and talking, together.  In the beginning she wasn't too interested in breakfast...I don't know if it was because we were trying to eat too close to her waking up and nursing, or if she was still a little dopey from being asleep...but she wasn't even interested in picking things up.  

Over the last three weeks I've tried to be more aware of when we are having breakfast in relation to her last milk feed.  It is difficult.  Some days MiniMe nurses between 6 and 6:30 and then dozes for an hour or so. On these days we have breakfast about 30 mins after waking up and she will happily eat everything I offer her. On other days she will sleep through the 6:30ish feed and wake around 7:30 starving, nurse and then won't touch her breakfast an hour later, by which time I am starving! 

Regardless of her nursing time I still like to offer her a full breakfast on the off chance that she might all of a sudden be starving.  Sadly, I am just not able to read her signs yet.  

Anyway, here are a selection of breakfasts we gave had over the past couple of weeks.  Since we are combination feeding I always offer MiniMe something that I can spoonfeed her and some finger foods so she can also self feed.  The biggest change is her sudden u-turn with banana.  She is happily picking it up and shoving it in her face, so no need to mash it up any longer! 

Porridge made with water and stewed cherries and blueberries.  This was a big hit.  I wasn't confident with giving MiniMe the fruit yet, even cut up,so I mashed it and she had porridge with all the juices. 

Oatibix with banana (mashed for MiniMe) with buttered crumpet and coffee for Mum.  I read somewhere, I can't remember where, that crumpets are a better finger food to offer than toast at this stage because they don't compress the way toast does in the mouth and are easier to gum.  MiniMe loves them and they are also easier for her to hold.  

We slept in very late one day after a particularily horrible night so MiniMe and I had a lovely brunch of tomato and cheese omelette, cottage cheese (to spoonfeed), cucumber and toast.  Sometimes I hold the piece of omelette for her to bite a bit off of, sometimes she happily picks it up herself, every day is different.  

Porridge made with water, mashed banana and milk for MiniMe and brown sugar and cinnamon for Mum, toast and crumpets, and the manditory coffee.  The mashed banana was the only bit of fruit in the house that morning and while MiniMe was happily picking banana up by this point I didn't want it ending up on the floor.  

Blueberry yogurt, banana, and peanut butter on crumpet.  We started out giving MiniMe plain full fat greek yogurt, and she seemed happy with it, but after a few weeks I did a little bit of research and decided that the organic full fat fruit yogurt Dad and I liked didn't have much added sugar (especially for the amount MiniMe was eating) so we have been giving her the same stuff we eat for a few weeks now.  She tried peanut butter on her crumpet that day.  We have no history of allergies and I made sure not to offer any other new foods on the same day...and all was fine...phew.  

Now that MiniMe is eating more and is much more capeable chewing and holding different foods we are finding it much easier sharing what we are eating with her.  

What are some of your favorite breakfast foods?