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I am reading some posts and this one made me think. Obviously without me being a mom I don't know much about children's nutrition and am trying my best to gain more knowledge and am happy I will be following a food program. I was just wondering what you feed those children under the age of regular meals and what age that seems to be? I know formula until age one and start with rice cereal about 4-6 months after parents have then go to baby food...but how old is too old? How much does a child eat? I'm familiar with 3-7 month olds are we currently have them, but then our age jumps to 2 years old so I'm lost, LOL. Please share any links or advice. I'm also trying to figure out a projected food cost since I will have to provide it while on the food program. I have a 6 week old and 13 month old lined up to enroll in daycare as of right now. (They will be those ages when I can open and get licensed and join the food program.)
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From my experience - the ages that children are introduced foods, taken off formula, and the quantities of what individual children eat VARY greatly - from child-to-child, and also varies significantly on what the parents want and the pediatrician suggests. Yes - pediatricians offer WIDELY differing advice on feedings.
I'm currently not on a food program - but in the past when I was, I didn't enroll infants until they were strictly on table foods and could eat what everyone else did. the parents provided all of the food/formula for their infant. At that time, my food program monitor was okay with that - I'm sure someone else here who is currently on the fp can answer whether or not that still applies.
But I do still have PARENTS provide all formula, cereal, baby/transitional foods even their own cheerios, crackers, etc. UNTIL the child is on all table food. That way, I have no expense for feeding kids until they are off infant foods and eat what the other kids do. -
Depends on the kid.
My son ate everything in sight. I had a daycare kid same age who would eat two bites of infant food and only 4 oz of formula at a time and could care less about anything else.
I currently have a 14 month old in care who still eats infant foods. I only serve them to her when we are having a vegetable she can not eat (like uncooked carrots). Other kids I have had will completely refuse baby food at the first taste of table food.
Same goes with rice/otameal/barley cereal. Some kids love it and will eat it long past 12 months and other kids refuse it at 9 months.
I have no plan for how much kids eat/how to budget. I am on the food program and they more than pay for the food I provide including the formula.Comment
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I run my program like this:
Those in the 'under 1' category require 18-24oz of formula/breastmilk daily. Under 8mos only gets bottles from me...parents can do the 1 or 2 meals of solids that an infant needs between 6-8 months (every major medical organization recommends waiting until a minimum of 6 months before starting solids...4mo is outdated information). At 8 months is when I introduce lunch.
By 10 months I have them on 2 bottles, 1 snack and 1 lunch.
At 12 months the milk requirements change to 16oz of whole milk per day. At that point is when I put the child on 2 snacks, 1 lunch and 1 sippy of milk (right after nap, about 45 min before afternoon snack). They get 4oz of milk with lunch and 4-8oz after nap.
Right now I have a 12mo and a 10mo infants...they both eat finger foods but I spoon in things like yogurt/applesauce/soups.Comment
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It's just a progression here. I make all the baby food so as the baby is able to take more variety and thicker food I just adapt it as I make it.
We eat a lot of stews so I just puree that to the texture they can manage if they can't eat it chunky.
I don't start spoon feeding baby food until the first day of the eigth month. The parents start the baby food at home so by the time they start spoon feeding here they are usually at stage two in thickness and can manage the spoon well. The usually have a good portfolio of foods they have already tried so that helps with decreasing worries about reactions and allergies. I just feed whatever they have already had.
I have to use processed baby cereal until they are twelve months old.
Once they are twelve months old I switch them to my home made whole grain hot cereal. 
I would highly suggest making your own home made baby food. Way cheaper and the babies LOVE it. You can use the baby food as a way to incrementally expose them to different foods that they may otherwise reject if given "straight". That's a huge bennie.Last edited by nannyde; 07-23-2011, 07:58 AM.Comment
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I do the same as NannyDe....I make my own baby foods. It's way cheaper and you can personalize it.Comment
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I love making baby food because I can become familiar with fruits and vegetables I am not used to (like different types of squash and beets).Comment
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I like the policy on spoon feeding beginning at 8 months at daycare. One of our infants started spoon feeding just at 6 months and it was very messy and difficult. Last week we started our other 7 month on spoon feeding once a day as well. I guess at a home daycare with only one child that age it wouldn't be too bad to meet the parents at a reasonable age request though like 6 months. Is there an age where baby food, straight from the jar, shouldn't be given to a child?Comment
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Great info! Thank you, ladies.
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With my OWN children I started rice cereal and 1 stage 1 jar of fruit or veggies a day at 4 months old plus formula every 3 to 4 hours, then at 6 months to 8 months it was rice cereal and 1 stage 2 jars of food a day plus formula every 4 hours, then age 8 to 10 months it was rice cereal and 2 stage 2 jars a day and formula every 4 hours, I started table food with mine at 10 months and gerber snacks. For daycare I did what the parents wanted of they wanted to start at 4 months ok if they wanted to start at 6 months ok but I never recommended them starting after 6 months old and I didnt fed babies table food till 12 months old.Comment
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Thanks for all the responses. It really helps. Does anyone know the best ways to find coupons or best places to get better deals on infant cereals and foods? I just saw that Target put their baby food Stage 2 2-packs on sale for .99 instead of the $1.27 so that would be a good deal.Comment
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I think I've posted about this before. But a lot of new mom's, who breastfeed until the recommended 6 months, will skip purees all together. It's called baby led weaning. There are a few books/articles about it. But it basically discusses how a lot of parents mistake babies gagging as choking when starting "table food". Also how the whole term "baby food" was manufactured by the baby food making companies.
The moms who practice/research this kind of feeding are usually the stay at home ones haha. But it's still a good thing to know about
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This was me! But not really on purpose - my dd basically just hated purees. She did much better if I just took a fork and 'mashed' what we were eating. At the beginning I tried to keep our meal food separate to introduce new foods slowly, but eventually she just ate what we eat. I have yet to find anything she doesn't like! Sometimes it takes two bites for her if it is a different texture but she loves everything - sourkraut, pickled herring, mustard, cukes, beans, guac, hummus, spicy szechan chicken...yup, we are pretty lucky!I think I've posted about this before. But a lot of new mom's, who breastfeed until the recommended 6 months, will skip purees all together. It's called baby led weaning. There are a few books/articles about it. But it basically discusses how a lot of parents mistake babies gagging as choking when starting "table food". Also how the whole term "baby food" was manufactured by the baby food making companies.
The moms who practice/research this kind of feeding are usually the stay at home ones haha. But it's still a good thing to know about
I am a firm believer in the fact that kids decide they 'don't like' things due to no exposure to them...the kids that only eat chicken nuggets aren't going to like raw veggies. It may be due to the flavor or texture, but exposing them to lots of different options is extremely important. And I have never met a kid that could choke on sourkraut!Comment
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That's what I did! I advocate it to everyone I know! And I worked full time, my DD was with my MIL while I was at work and she was ok with doing it that way (after getting through her 4 kids she agreed it was more natural and made sense). After my DD turned 1 she started going to a home daycare and they were so impressed that she would eat anything and everything they gave her. Well except those Gerber Graduates mealsI think I've posted about this before. But a lot of new mom's, who breastfeed until the recommended 6 months, will skip purees all together. It's called baby led weaning. There are a few books/articles about it. But it basically discusses how a lot of parents mistake babies gagging as choking when starting "table food". Also how the whole term "baby food" was manufactured by the baby food making companies.
The moms who practice/research this kind of feeding are usually the stay at home ones haha. But it's still a good thing to know about
She only wanted *real* food that the other kids were eating, since that is what she is used to (of course we use very minimal salt and sugar in our cooking so she doesn't get too much).
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