Breast Feeding and Solids

My son is just about 6 months old.  I have been putting off solids for as long as possible to give him the full benefits of breast feeding without any interruptions or conflicting wants, however, the time has come.  The irony is that with my first born, now 2 years, I was eager, anxious and restless about wanting to feed him.  It was an exiting new stage to first time parenthood and I am sure I rushed it.  The one good thing was that even though I was 'rushing it' as much as possible I made my own baby food because that was an exciting part of it all too.  I did wait for the important stages that show your child's maturity has been reached, such as freely holding his head up, sitting in his own, tongue reflexes under control, and showing a desire to partake in food- ie- reaching out to food, opening mouth to food, licking and salivating while watching eating.  So perhaps, after all, I didn't actually rush it but rather, since my boys are so different and the cues and learnings are so different, since my first was a month earlier than my second, it feels rushed whereas it was probably just right for him.  I definitely know how much easier it is to bring baby somewhere and not have to worry about solid food but every stage is important and waiting too long can be just as detrimental as starting too soon.

Breast Feeding While Sick!

One of the hardest things to do will be to breast feed if you are sick.  Pair that with a sick baby at the same time and you have one terrible couple of days.  It is not only exhausting, but it is literally draining.  When I am sick I usually am not eating 3 solid meals and a couple of snacks paired with generous fluid intake.  I am usually struggling with eating several snacks.  That means that baby is taking out more than you are putting it.  It increases exhaustion and can cause you to be tired in ways you didn't even know were possible.  My advice, smoothies!  Drinks are generally easier to get in than full meals so make an iron rich smoothie and enjoy.  A large glass that can follow you around the whole day.  Gets some fluids, fruits and vegetables into you quickly in a fast way, not to mention they are delicious!  Great for a sick toddler too, just be weary of too much dairy because it can aggravate certain cold symptoms.  My favourite recipe:  strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, spinach, a single serve cup of yogurt, water (or ice cubes) and one garlic clove.  Puree and enjoy. (Another perk is that it will keep your bowels going!)

'The Green Smoothie Revolution' book has lots of great smoothie ideas and some food for thought.