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*High chair:
You don't need this until the baby can sit up, around 6 months. I think there are basically two good choices here: for
plastic / full-feature, the Baby Trend, which comes fully loaded (and pre-assembled!) for only $90; for wood, the Svan ($250
with cushion), which is tiny, stylish, and converts into a toddler chair. I think the difference is that the plastic chair's
features help the adult more (keeps child in convenient eating position surrounded by giant tray so he can't throw food over
the side), while the Svan helps the child more (more like his own little chair, made to help him sit upright and join the
family at the table). FYI, the Peg Perego "prima pappa" and Chicco "mamma" chairs are very popular models,
but they are needlessly expensive and reports say that the cushions are hard to clean. For the budget-conscious, I think
a used chair would be easy to find and completely functional.
*Baby Food:
It is relatively easy to make your own baby food, and there is a great book about how to do it ("Super Baby Food,"
see Books page). Basically, you just microwave, mash, and freeze vegetables in ice cube trays. It makes you feel good!
But if and when you can't make your own, there is an organic brand of baby food called Earth's Best that is very easy to find
(I think Babies R Us even carries it now).
When making your own food, you will need a few basic pieces of equipment: a food processor or blender for pureeing, a
strainer and rubber spatula for straining, an ice cube tray and ziploc freezer bags for freezing individual portions. Do
not bother buying one of those hand-crank "food mills" that claims to strain and puree; the one I used merely produced
a coarse grind. If you don't want to buy a food processor, just fork-mash and then force through the strainer.
*Bibs:
The best kind are the rigid plastic kind with the trough at the bottom. At first I avoided these and bought a cute nylon
fabric one . . . but Charlie just bunched it up in his fist and it didn't protect anything. The plastic bibs stay in place,
are easy to wipe off, and catch a greater quantity of spilled food than the flat pockets on cloth/vinyl bibs. Some babies
hate stiff bibs, though, so you will have to experiment. Remember that some foods (especially carrots) will stain.
*Bowls and Spoons:
Get a spoon that is chewable and very narrow at the tip (so it can fit in the baby's mouth). It's also nice to have one
with a short, curved handle, so that when they grab the spoon and wave it around, they don't stab themselves right in the
eye. A color-changing feature (to make sure food's not too hot) might be useful, though I haven't tried it. The food gets
cold so fast anyway. Surprisingly, my favorite spoons are the "take and toss" kind by First Years: 12 for $2.50!
You'll always have a clean one ready, they are the perfect proportion, and they are dishwasher-safe. The edges are smooth,
the plastic is high-quality and colorful, and there is a little texture on the handle so it doesn't slip. You can't beat
these spoons. A bowl is not something you need right away, but obviously you should avoid regular rimmed bowls that the baby
can flip over. Many bowls have suction cups on the bottom, though this limits you to using a plastic high chair surface,
and makes it hard to move the bowl around. I prefer the Baby Bjorn bowl, which is like a no-tip dog bowl with solid sides
(but no suction cup). Baby can pick this one up and turn it over if he really wants to, though
*Sippy Cups:
Your baby might be ready for a sippy cup sooner than you think . . . they might even go straight from breast to cup at
3 or 4 months, and never use bottles! Here's something to know: the "no spill" cups usually have a valve in the
lid that can be annoying, and every cup uses a different kind. Here are a few quick reviews of the cups I have sucked on
personally:
--First Years Take and Toss Cups: My favorite so far, because they have no valve and cost about 50 cents a piece! The
sucking action is intuitive and consistent (and therefore not confusing to the baby). There are no handles or rubber guards
to break off, stain, or take up extra space: these cups stack neatly and fit in cup-holders. The baby can easily grab onto
the sides or the rim. I have heard that putting the lids through the dishwasher makes them start to leak, but they are easy
to hand-wash or even replace at this price.
--Avent Magic: Probably the most annoying valve: a disc with a rubber shield attached. Small parts are hard to keep
track of. If liquid doesn't completely cover the disc, you suck air, and even if it does, you must exert a lot of pressure
to get liquid through. Seemed to leak around the edges of the lid, too.
--Gerber Soft Starter: Valve is more like a heart valve: a tube with a rubber membrane inside. Simple and easy to remove.
It delivers liquid easily, but in somewhat unpredictable little bursts. If you just remove the valve, not much leakage occurs,
so this is a good option. Spout is rubbery for teethers.
--Tommy Tippee Easiflow Cup: Interesting valve built in to the lid, which requires baby to chew rather than suck in order
to release little squirts of liquid. So far, this is the only one Charlie can use because he "accidentally" drinks
as he teethes on the spout. Great, simple design, with replaceable spouts, recessed and hinged spout cover, and a snap-on
lid so you can later use it as a regular handled cup. But this feature also makes the lid a bit hard to get on and off.
--Also recommended (but not yet tested): Playtex Sipster (valve is two parallel tubes), Munchkin Big Kid Straw Cup (some
babies will suck on a straw more readily than tilting a cup to their mouths).
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When and what you should feed your baby first is an issue that has become much more complicated than it needs to be.
Some people say to start with rice cereal; others say fruit, vegetables, or meat must come first. Don't worry so much about
all this. Here are the things I found most useful:
--Babies should stay on breast-milk alone for 6 months if possible. Soon after that, many pediatricians recommend starting
cereals for iron supplementation. Technically, I believe babies can thrive without solid food for one year, though they usually
show interest in it before that.
--Around 6 months, look for signs of interest (like watching you eat, grabbing for your spoon, more frequent nursing,
etc.) If they are not interested, it's okay to go slowly.
--Good starter foods are rice cereal, banana, avocado, and sweet potato. You need to dilute it at first (with breast
milk, formula, or water) so that it is very runny.
--Solid food is basically a toy for the first few weeks or months, as they investigate the texture of it and learn to
make the right tongue movements, etc. And some foods they just won't like right away. Charlie cried almost every time I
gave him food for many weeks! Just don't expect to be shoveling spoonfuls in while the baby says "Mmmmm!" And
don't take it personally if you have to dump your lovingly-prepared meals down the sink day after day.
--There are many inconsistent "rules" about which foods may not be good for baby during the first year. Here are
the primary "problem" foods; don't worry too much about this, especially if there are no food allergies in your
family. Check with your pediatrician about when to introduce various foods.
*Honey (because of botulism, not allergies)
*Nuts (my ped. recommends tree nuts at 1 year, peanuts at 3 years)
*Egg white
*Fish and shellfish
*Wheat
*Cow's milk (Some say that cow's milk is hard on the digestive system before 1 year; others say that, unless there is
a true allergy present, yogurt and cheese are fine after 6 months or so; just don't replace breastmilk/formula with cow's
milk.)
*Soy
*Citrus and berries
*Cocoa
*Leafy and root vegetables (esp. carrots, spinach, broccoli) may be high in nitrates and some pediatricians recommend
using only jarred baby food versions.
*And maybe beans, cabbage, melon, peas, tomatoes, etc. etc. Forget it, the baby can't eat ANYTHING!
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