This is about Hailey’s eating habits, but first, TOOT TOOT. Yes, that’s me tooting my own horn.
For our anniversary (thank you for the happy anniversary wishes, too, by the way!), I whipped up David’s favorite dessert, key lime pie, for the first time. It looked pretty, it tasted perfect and was in no way shape or form healthy. Luckily dinner was grilled chicken and veggies, so it all evened out 
On to Hailey!
In the past month, as the temperatures have risen (it’s supposed to hit 90 degrees today!), I’ve started giving her water.
I bought two cup options, a sippy and a straw (the straw is soft and flexible), for her to try.
She definitely prefers the straw. She sips water quite well, unless I let her play with it for too long and she just keeps sucking and drooling until it’s all down her front. She loves it though! I offer her water a couple times a day, or more often if we’re out in the heat.
We’re doing two meals a day. We’re in the middle of a schedule shifting right now, so it varies when we have those meals, but usually it’s late morning, about an hour after her nap, and late afternoon, also about an hour after her nap.
Lately she’s been eating a lot of veggies: broccoli, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes and green beans. She eats grapes, blueberries, apples and small bites or oranges, as well as black beans, lentils and brown rice. She’s also beginning to enjoy cheese and avocado more. Bananas tend to stop her up, so I always give her peas if she’s eating bananas.
Since Hailey is still toothless, I make sure the foods we give her are soft enough that they can be gummed. Sometimes I’ll tear off little pieces for her to move around her mouth and swallow whole. I can’t remember the last time she’s gagged, so baby led weaning is working out well for us.
One thing I hadn’t given her is meat. I’m not really sure why I’ve waited, but after hearing that Madeline and Lisa have been giving their girls meat for a while, I decided to give it a go.
I headed to The Meat Center in Mooresville. Here, I know I can find local beef from Mills Family Farm. I’ve met and spoken with Dr. Bradley Mills and trust and respect the way the raise their cattle.
I cooked some up and put it on Hailey’s tray with peas.
She ate a few peas then decided to explore the beef.
A few pieces made it to her mouth and she chewed on it with a blank face. She ate a few more pieces, seemingly liking it ok, but not going wild. So for fun, I dipped a piece in a tiny amount of ketchup…
And got that reaction! Clearly she likes sweet things and clearly she still doesn’t have any teeth. Love that gummy smile.
I’m a worry-wart and didn’t want her to get hooked on ketchup, so I let her eat a few more pieces plain and some peas, which she enjoyed just fine.
For now, I prefer her to eat most of her meats at home because I’m a bit cautious about hormones in meat. This brings up a questions someone asked me,
Does Hailey only eat organic?
At home, yes, the food I feed her is mostly organic. The squeeze pouches of puree I buy to have in her diaper bag are also organic. However, if we’re out, I know it isn’t organic and I’m OK with that. For me, it’s unrealistic to have her eat organic all the time.
In addition to food, I am nursing 4-5 times a day. 4 times a day is becoming more common, but I never limit it and if she wants to eat more often, I’m fine with it.
That’s a lot of words for one post, so I’ll wrap things up. Feel free to leave me any questions in the comments section or email me (Brittany@ahealthysliceoflife.com)
What is your favorite food?
Mine is goat cheese. Hailey loved it, too. She’s totally my child.
blackhuff says
She is progressing very well regarding her eating habits. She’s eating a great variety (thanks to her mom.) I’m surprised that she eats lentils. This is something that my kids did not eat until they were much older.
I’m glad she is enjoying drinking water.
Jessie @ Graze With Me says
Just curious, how do you serve the lentils? I’ve been doing Cheerios recently & Lyric’s kinda getting the hang of the pincer grasp but it’s not at all fine tuned yet.
We rotisseried an organic chicken last wknd and I’ve been cutting off 2×2 inch slabs for her to eat. She really liked it! Ground beef is next! I think I’ll make meatballs….
She’s adorable! Love the gummy smile.
Brittany says
She can pinch some lentils and they make it into her mouth, but I also sometimes hold them in my pincer grip and let her pull my hand to her mouth. Soon I’m going to work on baking quinoa and lentils into small portions that will be easier for her to grab. I’ll let you know how that goes! Love the idea of cooking a whole chicken!
Kristen @ notsodomesticated says
Love that gummy smile!! 😉 Favorite food is tough. Probably pizza or ice cream! 😉
nicole @ making good choices says
love these posts! find them so informative for my future 🙂
Megan @ the road to skinny says
Love the posts about baby led weaning, and I love getting a heads up about what I’ll be going through in 7-8 months or so 🙂
Looks like you’ve got a wonderful eater on your hands!
Paulina says
I’m feeling like a slacker mama over here! We’ve been doing a combo of BLW and purees that I make myself and I still haven’t gotten into any kind of routine feeding schedule. I think it’s because I work full time, so most of the day, my baby is at daycare where they give her bottles and two purees. On the weekends I’m kinda lost. You’re very lucky to be able to work from home 🙂
Katie @ Pop Culture Cuisine says
I completely agree…we started strong on the BLW, but with both of us working, purees have become an easy grab and go item. We still give her foods when she seems interested, but I would hardly call what we are doing set meal times by any means yet.
Brittany says
I don’t think slacker and mom can even go in the same sentence. Moms are rock stars. I only started a routine because I felt everyone else had set eating times- ha! It just happened that it’s been working out pretty well. But if it doesn’t, no stress. Puree pouch it! 😉
Erica says
This is so helpful! I’ve got a 5 wk old and don’t have to think about this for awhile but i’m glad to have a resource for the future!
Sabrina says
I’m so impressed with her eating. Raffi will gobble up the puree pouches (by sucking them in) but isn’t really a fan of much else yet. He likes leek and asparagus soup and raspberries most, and more recently eggs! I need to keep trying and trying.
Brittany says
Do you give him whole eggs or just yolks? I haven’t ventured into whole eggs, but plan to soon.
Sabrina says
We have zero allergies so our pediatrician said we don’t need to be careful of any foods for allergy reasons. We give him whole eggs. The only things I am hesitant to give him are acidic foods (because of his digestive system).
In other news, since eating more solids in the last week R hasn’t pooped in 2.5 days! Poor thing. I am giving him lots of prunes right now 🙁
Brittany says
That’s kind of how I feel about eggs. No allergies, so I don’t know why I’ve been holding off. I’ll probably give her whole eggs soon.
PS- PEAS are our lifesaver. Bananas made H constipated for 2-3 days, but peas made everything catch back up to normal…. quickly. Ew. Haha! I’m sure prunes will do the same 🙂
Katy says
Hey there. I recently found you on twitter and love reading about your adventures with Hailey! We too also live in NC (raleigh) and my little man is a couple days younger than Hailey. Our son hates being spoon fed and is very independent. I have looked a little into BLW but not bit the bullet. I am ready to get started after reading about so much success with it! I have a couple ???s. 1. How is hailey able to get the small pieces to her mouth. Does she have her fine pincer grasp yet or does she kind of just shovel it in. Our 7 month old doesn’t have the pincer grasp. 2. I was wondering if you could post your “approximate Schedule” with nursing and solids. We too, are nursing about 5 times a day and I know my son eats better when he’s not just nursed.
Loving all your posts :). BTW– our 7 mo old is toothless as well
Brittany says
Hi! So glad you found me 🙂 As to your questions…
1- both! Haha, although she does have a pretty good pincer grip, she also grabs stuff with her whole hand and shovels it in.
2- I’ve gotten a lot of questions on her schedule, so I’m going to map it out in the next week or so… in excruciating detail. You’ve been warned 😉
Liz @ IHeartVegetables says
I’m glad it’s going so well!!! That’s awesome that she eats so many veggies 🙂 I’m sure it’s impractical to eat 100% organic, but its’ great that you’re able to give her organic food most of the time!
Kelli H (Made in Sonoma) says
that picture of her smiling is so freaking cute!
I don’t think I could ever pick a favorite food. there is too many! Maybe ice cream…haha.
Kelly@Runmarun says
So fun to read about your adventures! You have inspired me to be a little more adventurous with Lula and give her pieces of things instead of always pureeing them- she LOVES broccoli too! Also, nice job on the pie and happy anniversary!
Caitlin says
I love this post! It’s fascinating and informative to read about a young foodie in the making. Her face when she tasted the ketchup – priceless!
Stephanie says
Love the info! That’s exactly what I was wondering…my daughter has that same gummy smile and seems to be really interested in eating some of what my husband & I eat so I think we’ll start trying some soft served veggies & fruits.
Thanks for the post!
Jen@FoodFamilyFitness says
She just keeps getting cuter and cuter! She is eating an awesome variety of foods, way to go mama!
Jen says
Hailey is a better eater than I am! 😉 We’re trying solids with W tomorrow. I’m SO excited!
Brittany says
I can’t wait to hear how it goes!! I was (and still am) so excited about solids. It’s just so cool to watch them taste things for the first time.
ErikaMC says
Favorite food at the moment is eggs. I go in stages and right now all I want is eggs for supper, but that just might be because they are easy!
We just started our 8 1/2 month old on food this week. I’m trying to figure out the best schedule for him – when to eat solids, have a bottle and snacks. I know it will take a couple weeks to get into a feeding routine but it’s making me anxious.
Thanks for giving more ideas as to what to try with our son – I like the idea of lentils, beans and meat. We are doing part puree and part blw.
We also introduced a sippy cup and so far it’s gone okay but I think i want to try one with a straw which I also hadn’t thought of. I seem to underestimate what my baby is capable of doing!
christina says
She is just toooo freaking cute. That smile! It’s lovely and sparkling, just like yours.
And the pie? Save me a slice please. I’ll be right up.
Lisa says
Her gummy smile is adorable. It is so interesting for me to read on her eating habits and how the are progressing. Especially, since I nannied for a while, so its all so different how children eat at different ages and what they are taught.
Hallie (@ChasingHallie) says
Wow, she is such a fantastic eater!
We are going to attempt solids again with Molly this weekend (now that she is 6 months). I am so overwhelmed. We are going to do oatmeal a few times first before diving into the baby led approach. Hoping to do a combo.
Water!? I had no idea that was an option to give them water. Ugh, another thing to add to my list to research. It never ends.
Brittany says
Haha, I felt the same way about water when I saw another baby drinking it. I ran out and bought the cups!
Lauren Kaczmarski says
Your little girl is just precious! I just stumbled upon your blog and I love it! I can always use tips for keeping our family healthy. Always fun to find other mommy bloggers in Charlotte. I’m pretty new to the blogging scene, but I always love to make new friends.
Brittany says
Yay, another local mommy! I’m always up for meeting new friends, too, so let me know if you ever want to hang out 🙂
Baking Serendipity says
Happy Anniversary! Your pie looks fantastic! And I love that picture of Hailey with the sippy straw cup 🙂 Too cute!
Sarah says
I really enjoy seeing what Hailey is eating. I let Nolan try what he wants if it’s in the realm of “safe” for baby…but he’s still doing mostly purees. I would love to have him eating real food soon!
Suzanne says
What kind of sippies are you using? We are still trying to find the perfect one for B Jr.
Kirsten says
Congrats on the key lime pie! I haven’t commented in ages, but i wanted to let you know how much I enjoy these posts. I hope to be there soon so I love the inside scoop!
Roz@weightingfor50 says
OMG….that smile. TOOOO cute. Hailey is so adorable. (and call me childish, but I snickered that your post started with toot, toot…OH..you’re tooting your own HORN…oh! I’m so immature…)
Have a great Friday.
Presley @ Run Pretty says
I really need a slice of that! I’ve been craving lemon/lime type things lately. I even told my husband the other day that I wanted a Bud Light Lime. Um, I don’t even like them. haha this baby has my tastes all out of whack.
Erin says
What recipe did you use for your Key Lime Pie? In the picture, your pie looks absolutely perfect – I baked one last month and it was a lumpy disaster!
Nazreen says
Erin,
Started reading your blog recently and loving it. I have a September 18 baby boy as well. 🙂
I am planning to start water n straw cups too and would like to know what brand Baby Hailey is using in the picture.. Guess I would start reading your blog regularly to get more tips to raise my baby.. I really appreciate it.
kim @ vegan mama says
I know this is an older post, but do you remember how much Hailey ate at each sitting at this age (7-7.5 months). Thanks!