First Time Solids

I have read you are supposed to place the spoon up against her lips, but not put it in her mouth, since they are used to a sucking motion to get food. See if that helps.

Try the Super Baby Food book. It's fantastic and gives you great ideas for foods. Let her finger food for a while. Using the spoon takes fine motor skills and they take a while to develop. Have the spoon there but let her use her hands if she wants to.

I agree you dont mention hwo old she is. But i do know having 4 kids you have to make it fun and just undress her. (leave diaper on...put her in high chair and let her have a go at it like with the mashed tatos n stuff..
I recommend you dont put it on a different plate unless you want it to be thrown on the floor. Just put it on her tray that sits infront of her. Sometimes kids needs there foods to have ketchup or ranch flavors. example would be liek if she don like eggs you can get them to eat it by a little bit of ketchup and so on.. She will be messy at first. Thats what is great about having kitchen sinks next to them after they are done eating or playing in it. She will taste it from time to time. By her doing this you will find what is her fav.
Good luck

Hi Julie. How old is your daughter? I would say just try to be patient right now. I think it's weird for them to have us stick this cold hard thing in their mouth when they are not use to it. I can remember my little guys pushing the spoon out of their mouth with their tongue or just turning away but I just keep trying each day and eventually they got the hang of it. She will too. Good Luck!

the tip is finger foods....that way she can pick food up and enjoy it as she wants to. anything cut up and on a plate/bowl if you wish. she will love it!

We tried vegi's first so that she wouldn't think that sweet was all there was. But to keep her interested just keep holding her hand with your while you feed and don't give in to the bottle. If she knows that you will not give in she will try harder to eat what you put in front of her.

There's a "baby food bottle" at babies r us, check it out! But keep trying the spoon too because it's important that they learn that skill. Good luck!

start with finger foods. Chopped up fruits and veggies are best. Canned carrots and peas work great but have the bath ready! Also at have her sit on your lap and eat what you are eating. One bite for you, one bite for her. That way she is mimicking you.
Of course my middle then would ONLY eat what her dad was eating literaly! If it didn't come off his plate she wouldn't eat it until she was nearly 3 :)

I will second Alena G's comment.

You didn't mention how old your baby is. She might not be ready.
There's an excellent resource kellymom.com:
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/solids-when.html
The little ones have a tongue-thrust reflex that pushes out anything put into their mouths. it's an instinct that wanes near 6 months age. Until that time she'll pretty much "spit out" anything. You might want, as others suggested, just let her use her hands. Much of eating at first is introduction of the foods, not necessairly nutritional support. So making the food (cereal?) thin enough but thick enough for her to play with may assist her in getting the food successfully into her mouth.
A few moms have suggested to use feeding bottles. Congrats to them if it worked. However I've read many items saying this is an easy way for the babies to over feed without learning how to really eat solids. So I would be cautious of going that route.
Good luck! My daughter turns 5 months on Sat and while she's not eating solids yet she enjoys sitting in her high-chair, playing with her spoon and bowl. She's starting to learn to drink water from a cup. Exciting times.
A.

How old is she? I wouldn't sweat the spoon/fork thing for a while. I have two girls (almost 3 and 5) and they both prefer fingers to utensils though we encourage their use over fingers. But fine motor skills take a while. Don't force it too soon or it will be a battle forever - no fun there! I find that the less I nag, the better they do. I try to be more positive and encouraging than negative and nagging, but some days are better than others . . . good luck!

Hi J.~ Any particular reason you want her to eat solids? How old is she? Usually babies will let you know when they are ready to et solid food. Both my boys did. My first went from breast to bottle to solids at almost 1. He didnt have an interest in solids til then. My youngest started grabbing my spoon and wanted to eat solids much earlier, 6-9 months. Let your baby tell you when she is ready. You dont have to buy special foods, just mash up whatever you are eating and mix with a little warm water. :)Just be sure to start slow, in case of allergies.

Depends on what age your daughter is, but if she is under 18 months, I suggest not giving her a spoon. Let her use her hands and take joy in the mess it'll make. She will enjoy herself and he able to concentrate on one skill at a time (eating new foods). Give her pasta, pieces of bread, etc. For runny foods like applesauce, mix in rice cereal to thicken it up and use Gerbers Lil Dipper. It is a baby spoon that will completely eliminate the frustration (on her part). Babies don't get the hang of using spoons on their own until almost their second birthday.
If your question is that she can't get the hang of eating off a spoon you are feeding her with, then try a flatter spoon and be sure it is soft (not metal). My favorite is the silicone spatula spoons sold from One Step Ahead.

You didn't mention how old your daughter is, but my best advice is to not push the solids and let her come around at her own pace. Every baby has a different timeframe. I started trying to give my son solids at around 51/2 months. He was either totally uninterested, or he would take it but gag on it. I got very worried and frustrated, convinced that he needed to be eating. But my doctor assured me that he was fine (the main concern being iron levels) and that he would come around when he was ready. So I just forgot about solids for awhile--just kept offering them about once per week. Finally, when he was about 8 months old, he just started eating. He didn't start eating regularly til 9 months. Now, at 11 months, he is eating like a champ.

Babies under one year get the bulk of their nutrition from milk, whether breast or bottle. Up until that point, solids are more of a supplement. If she is happy and gaining weight on milk, don't worry, (unless she needs more than 32 oz. per day to keep her satisfied). If you still feel like she really needs solids, try making her food very thin and as she gets better at it, gradually make the consistency thicker.

I had trouble with my first child when it came time for solids. I introduced them and it went well at first, but then she got frustrated. Eventually she refused altogether. We had to stop feeding her solids for two weeks and start over. We had no trouble after the short break.

My daughter had a hard time figuring out food as well. In fact such a hard time that she ended up just clamping her mouth shut any time the spoon came toward her. I bought her finger foods like crackers that pretty much disolve in her mouth and that made a huge difference. The other thing with her was that she wanted the food I was eating so I started offering that to her instead of baby foods. I just make sure she gets fruits and veggies and a little of whatever else we have.

You might consider backing off for a few days and then try again later. Also, if she is really hungry, she is just going to expect the bottle. It takes babies a while to figure out that they can get full from solid food. For now, it's just fun for them.

Try giving her solids at a time when she is only moderately hungry -- maybe 1 1/2 hours or 2 hours after a bottle. You can then top her off with a bottle at normal meal time.

The bottom line with introducing foods is that they need to be developmentally ready and it has to be enjoyable. If she gets frustrated, stop and/or move on to bottle. She'll gobble up her solids when she's ready.

Just keep trying! She'll have more food ON her than IN her for a while, but that's ok!
When my boys were starting solids, I would put the spoon more to the side of their mouths so I wasn't competing so much with their little tongues that wanted to suck the spoon and I didn't have as big of a mess! That worked pretty well and I only had to do that for a few days or so until they started getting the hang of the spoon.
Before you know it, she'll be eating from that spoon like crazy and you'll wonder why you ever worried about it!! Good luck! Enjoy her during this time and take LOTS of pictures! The messy ones are the funniest!

The frustration is totally normal. Our 2 1/2 year olds still use their hands for most food and we try to cook things they can eat with their hands. Depending on her age, the soft, rubber coated spoons (great if there are no or new teeth) didn't hold enough so we went to the small, plastic kids' spoons. Another thing to try is the mesh feeder - it's like a mesh basket with a handle and they can eat fruit and cooked veggies through it (kind of suck on it) - they have these at Target. Otherwise, let them use their hands until they take to the spoon, just keep encouraging it and always have one available to them. I found that if I ate with a spoon (even though I really wanted a fork), the kids thought it was cook and began using it more.

how old is your daughter? she might be too young to introduce food if she is younger then 6 months. second, it takes a couple of weeks of practice before they lose their tongue thrust and figure out the spoon/swallow thing! good luck! the messy food stage is so much fun!

For starters J.,how old is your little girl? In general they don't grasp the understanding of how to use their tongues to transfer the food from the spoon to their little mouths. It's just a process and it takes a while for them to develop the muscle control. Just keep giving her food and she will get it. Patience is key! Another thing I learned with my four kids, start with the vegetables then introduce fruit. If you do it the other way, they get used to the sweetness of fruits and the vegetables taste very bland. I hope this helps.

~V.

Don't worry about it. My kids would prefer the opportunity to do it themselves. Try letting her pick up soft cooked veggies (and the beloved Cheerios). I think the most important thing about starting solids is developing the pincer grasp anyway. I am sure she can gum it up.

I would try feeding bottles. My boys went to eating w/ thier hands first then the spoon. You might try letting her get her hands dirty then offering her the spoon. You know banana's then baby food banana's that way the taste is the same. Just an idea.
shell

Have you tried cereal, or did you go straight to foods first? We are just starting our son (5 months) on cereal, he hated it the first time he tried it and just couldn't get the hang of it. I try to make it as thin as possible, but so it will still stay on the spoon. I also make sure he is very hungry before I try to feed it to him, to the point where he gets just as excited as he does when he sees his bottle.

To get her to eat it, try making sure she oppens her mouth real wide, and get the spoon completely in her mouth...don't take it out right away, make sure she is sucking the food off as if she had the bottle. And try to alternate within the feeding...give her some cereal, then some bottle and back and forth (if she will)...I hope this helps a little. Good luck to you :o)

If it is food she can eat with her hands, cut it into little pieces and let her do "finger foods" for awhile. They also have spoons that do not have a straight handle, but one that is very curved, that make aiming for the mouth MUCH easier for those short little arms. :) Check the sippy cup isle at Target for such spoons. (Or Walmart I'm sure)

I was a first time Mom at 28 too. My daughter was breast-fed and then went to solid foods. I didn't buy any baby food, 100% juice was watered down, cereal was the 100% whole oat rings, etc.. When it was time for more solid foods, I started by using a mini food processor and mashing whatever we were eating minus seasonings. As she grew bigger I gradually made the food bits bigger until I just used a fork and knife to cut-up the food. As for your daughter using the spoon, everything that's new is frustrating for her and for the two of you watching her struggle. She'll get the hang of it eventually, When she does, you'll all wonder what the fuss was about! In the meantime, give her the spoon, when she gets frustrated she'll put it down and use her hands, that's OK, milk comes after the meal. There'll always be something new to learn. This first experience in learning is setting up how she'll deal with life, everything new is frustrating but we have to keep trying. You're both going to be great parents, trust your instincts and know that it's always better after a night of sleep (even if its only a couple of hours). Our daughter will be 23 this year. E.

give her the bottle. practice makes perfect and frustration and pressure only make the practice painful. Your daughter is not going to go to preschool with a bottle. Things will click, so just be positive and give her time. I have two left handed kid (husband and I are both right handed). Watching them learn was strange, but they got it!

Im a single, stay at home mom of 3 kids ages 4 and under, and im 22. Its hard getting them to eat off a spoon at first...but then I learned that if you put the spoon in quick and rub it on the top gums as you are taking it out, this seems to work for me. But you do have to be quick. This helps to get the food far enough into the mouth and easier to swallow if its far enough back. I hope this helps you. Good luck!

Hey J., You didn't say how old she was, but I found with my 2 that I had to get rid of the bottle first, got them on sippy cups, they get a lot hungrier, the formula is very filling! Then, I would just work it, finger food and spoon food, when she gets hungry, her resistence will minimize! Good luck, don't worry all kids rebel against change, & that doesn't stop when we get older either!!LOL R. P.S. I guess I should say that I did still use the bottle at night, and if she is real young still, just don't rush it.