Oatmeal and bananas

Last week, on the advice of our pediatrician, we started Callum on solid foods. He won't be eating much for now--just oatmeal and one or two types of not-too-sweet produce--and only once a day until he's six months old. This is more about introducing him to food and getting him excited about it than about feeding him enough to provide real nutrients--that's what formula is for at this point.

My parents were in town to witness the first feeding, which was nice for everyone, particularly Callum since he got extra cameras flashing in his face during the big event. There are plenty of photos on Flickr, but here are a couple videos that are a pretty good overview of how it went. Please excuse my ridiculous baby voice, thank you.

First he didn't know what was going on:



Then he caught on and actually opened his mouth:



So, I'd say it went pretty well, with no issues with the tongue thrust reflex and over a tablespoon of oatmeal consumed. The next day went even better: he ate the whole bowl (not that it was full), and learned very quickly to open his mouth when the spoon came near, so that was nice.

We gave it a couple days and then introduced mashed banana, again following the suggestion of the pediatrician. And... well, he ate it. Grudgingly. A few bites. And then he started crying and turning his head away. I'd fed him oatmeal first, so I thought maybe he was just full. We tried again the next day and I did manage to feed him the whole quarter-banana that I'd mashed up for him, but not without much fussing and a distinct lack of enthusiasm.

Here he is after his first bite of banana. He does not look too impressed.

The day after that, I tried feeding him the banana before the oatmeal, when I knew he was hungry, in hopes that it had just been a coincidence. Again, he took a few bites without any apparent enthusiasm, and then kept his mouth firmly closed and turned his head away from the spoon. After that, he didn't even want his oatmeal, which on previous days he had happily devoured. He didn't spit the bananas out, so I thought that was encouraging, but maybe he just didn't know how?

Anyway. Apparently I have one of the only babies in the world who doesn't like bananas? I might try just plain oatmeal for a couple days, and then give the bananas another shot later in the week. Maybe he just needs some time to get used to them? After all, it's definitely the strongest flavor he's ever encountered.

Oatmeal is a huge hit, though. So that's good. And next we get to try one more type of produce. I'm thinking maybe sweet potatoes, but I'm not totally sure. Our only restrictions are no citrus and no berries. For those of you with kids, what have been popular food items with your babies?