The Sweetser Family: Jonah Tries Solids!

We decided to wait until Jonah was 6 months old to begin him on solids as he didn't seem overly interested in them while watching us eat and he's seemed more than satisfied with breast milk to date. After some debate as to which food to start with, we decided to begin with sweet potatoes, as they were ripe (the avocados were not) and a bit smaller in scale than winter squash (easier to cook up quickly). We thought about trying out solids while we were on Christmas vacation, as we knew various family members would enjoy being a part of the experience, but chose to wait until we were home in case he had some sort of adverse action and also because we weren't sure what might happen diaper-wise (no need to tempt fate and a major blowout while in the car or plane!).

So last Friday afternoon when he seemed to be in a good mood, we decided to give it a go. Things started out well and he seemed to enjoy it, but it soon deteriorated into a major crying and screaming session, precipitated perhaps by a bit of a gag. The poor guy!

We've tried twice more, but he hasn't really taken to the experience. The first challenge is actually getting him to open his mouth so the spoon of food can be inserted! Ben tried feeding him from his finger yesterday, but that didn't really yield better results! And then there's the challenge of getting him to swallow. Grandpa Gregg suggests that the real problem is in offering sweet potatoes and that Jonah's a smart cookie (he asserts that no one in their right mind would want to eat sweet potatoes). We're ripening avocados right now, so we'll see if Jonah takes any better to those. In the meantime, enjoy this little clip and a few photos from his first couple of feedings.