Oliver's First Play Foods

      I was not planning on starting Oliver on solid food until closer to one year of age, however the little stinker has been reaching for and initiating interest in food since a week before he turned 6 months. So I gave in and started to offer play foods on our baby led weaning adventure.
In case you have no idea what baby led weaning is, here is a link to the basics http://www.babyledweaning.com/some-tips-to-get-you-started/.

     Just for the record he is still pretty much exclusively breast fed (no bottle ever) and I offer him a few solid foods once or twice a day to play with. Some does end up in his mouth but not enough to consider it a meal.

     In case you are the type that believes what people tell you and do not do your own research... this is straight from the WHO's (World Health Organization) website under infant nutrition: "Adequate nutrition during infancy is essential for lifelong health and well-being  Infants should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life to achieve optimal growth, development and health. Thereafter, to meet their evolving nutritional requirements, infants should receive nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods, while continuing to breastfeed for up to two years or more." 

If you haven't noticed there is no mention of formula or of starting cereals at 4 months of age like most pediatricians like to push. Also FYI the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) also states to exclusively breast feed for the first 6 months... In case your pediatrician tells you otherwise.

Ok so what foods did I start Oliver on? Probably not the ones you are familiar with giving babies... at least that is the response from most people. We definitely did not give him any rice cereal (or other baby cereals). WHY? Well because:

"White rice is a refined carbohydrate, a group of highly processed, nutritionally devoid foods that have been linked to increased rates of heart disease, insulin resistance, eye damage and cancer in adults, and are worthless nutritionally for infants as well.

Feeding infants cereal has been associated with an increased risk of type 1 diabetes and may prime your baby's appetite for a lifetime of processed carbs in the form of white bread, cookies and cakes.

A diet based on these types of refined carbs is responsible for many bulging stomachs and fat rolls in thighs and chins, and even worse, high insulin levels that lead to diabetes and suppress two other important hormones -- glucagons and growth hormones -- that are responsible for burning fat and sugar and promoting muscle development, respectively.

Insulin from excess carbohydrates promotes fat, and then wards off your body's ability to lose that fat. Excess weight and obesity not only lead to heart disease but also a wide variety of other diseases later in life.


You can easily cross any form of grain-based infant cereal off of this list. When flour is refined to make cereal, the most nutritious part of the grain is removed, so the flour essentially becomes a form of sugar.

When you feed your baby a bowl of infant cereal, picture yourself dipping directly into your sugar bowl and feeding baby a spoon or two, because that's essentially what it amounts to.

" (http://www.mercola.com/)


Instead we offer whole, organic, nutrient dense food optimal for brain development and growth.

1. Egg Yolks - According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, egg yolk should be your baby's first solid food, starting as early as 4 months, whether your baby is breastfed or formula-fed. Egg yolks from free-range hens will contain the special long-chain fatty acids so critical for the optimal development of your child's brain and nervous system.

Looking Cute eating Egg Yolks! :)

I make over medium fried organic eggs for myself with goat butter. I peel open up the yolks and offer them to Oliver and he loves it! Egg whites may cause allergies so no egg whites until he turns one year.

2. Avocado - They are often called one of nature's perfect foods because they are said to contain everything a person needs to survive. A wonderful "good fat" food for baby's brain and physical development, try an avocado as baby's first food instead of refined cereals.

"Sodium- and cholesterol- free, avocados contain valuable nutrients including 8% of the recommended Daily Value (DV) for folate; 4% DV for fiber and potassium, 4% DV for vitamin E; and 2% DV for iron. A serving of avocado also contains 81 micrograms of the carotenoid lutein and 19 micrograms of beta-carotene. Per serving, avocados have 3.5 grams of unsaturated fats, which are known to be important for normal growth and development of the central nervous system and brain."

Oliver mashing avocado! 

 I usually just scrape a little with a spoon and offer or give him pieces to mash up himself which is fun and messy!

3. Grass Fed Calf/Beef Liver - Very little on occasion for iron and other benefits... but not too much since it has a lot of vitamin A that could cause problems in high quantities.

I grate it frozen into a pan and warm it until brown and offer it to Oliver.

4. Raw Organic Fruits - we have offered apples, bananas, melons, kiwi, mamey, pineapple, and plums up to now. Some just big chunks to suck on and others scrapped with a spoon. I offer him frozen slices of apples for teething and will sometimes give him a core to suck on as well.

Mamey Mouth! :)

Sugar Plum Baby!

Core Workout!

5. Veggies - We have offer Raw Organic Greens (chard, kale, spinach) and Carrot or Celery sticks to chew on for teething. We also have offered steamed sweat potato, potato, chard, and squash (all organic).

At Whole Foods munching on kale!

6. We have also recently offered organic plain Greek yogurt and some plain frozen yogurt. I have given him some licks of Organic molasses as well. He has also been given a few piece of Ezekiel Bread with goat butter (not interested in eating it just sucking on it and then giving it to our dog). 

     Overall Our Experience has been extremely fun and messy. We love it. It is fun to watch him play with different textures. His reactions to the different tastes are priceless! Our dog Zippo couldn't be more supportive since he gets the food that makes it to the floor.  We are currently taking this as an experience and not as a diet change just yet. His diet still consists of 99% breastmilk and I want to keep it like that for as long as I can...