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Eating infornt of baby



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lucky14




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 8:58 am
So in the pregnancy section someone had made a post saying due to GD they have to eat certain foods and asking if people thought it was OK to eat these more expensive foods in front of her children even though she wont be able to buy them for the kids also.
Which made me think about something I've been questioning recently anyway.

Is it OK to eat in front of my baby if I'm not giving him anything?
Recently(ish) my baby has started solids. When I eat in front of him he looks at me like like "I want some SO badly" he looks at it with these huge open eyes and does that mouth chewing movement thing and he just stares at me while I eat. I'm starting to feel guilty about eating in front of him. It's not practical to eat my meals with him since he's so new to eating that I have to feed him and wouldn't be able to eat at the same time.

Do you other people in this situation only eat when the baby is sleeping? Or maybe snack on something while driving and he can't see/know what you're doing?
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pesek zman




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 9:03 am
I never encountered this. If my baby indicated that she badly wanted something I was eating, I gave her some. Unless it's raw honey or a choking hazard, what's the issue? Babies can lick or such or gnaw at most foods. I didn't do baby led weaning but it's very popular and people swear by it
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tf




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 9:19 am
Of course, they have all the feelings of an adult, but can't yet express them. This is the time to introduce taste. Give a chicken bone to suck on, rind of bread, anything that doesn't have a strong taste and isn't a choking hazard.
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dee's mommy




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 9:23 am
I don't see what the problem is. It's rarely practical to eat at the same time as your baby, and you can't always wait till he is sleeping.

Of course he will look at your food. He is interested. But don't let that stop you from eating when you need to. Eating is not a crime just because you are a mother.
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lucky14




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 9:31 am
I guess I'll try. Would you guys put your kids in their highchair then? mine's a really messy eater (as most I'm sure). The couple times I have given him in the past he just wanted more and more though. Do I not have to worry about him overeating? Do I give him as much as he wants or just a little? (I'm a first time mom if you can't tell- and no I am NOT starving my kid lol though by my questions it may sound like I'm really strict, I'm not, just half clueless about what to be doing)
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sweetpotato




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 9:31 am
Not only is it OK to eat in front of your baby, it's important! This is how he learns about eating, meal time, is exposed to different foods (colors, smells, etc.) and starts to develop his own interest in trying foods. Babies learn so much by observation and imitation. You should definitely include him in your mealtimes if it's practical, even if he's not yet ready or able to eat all (or any) of the foods you are eating. Give him toys to play with or chew on while you eat until he's old enough to start being able to join in fully.

Edited to add, and I don't mean this in a mocking way at all, but this is sort of like saying "is it OK to walk in front of my baby when he can't walk yet, but wants to so badly." Babies learn all these skills by watching those around them perform them. So when you include your baby in your own meal, even if he's not eating anything yet, you're teaching him.
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lucky14




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 9:40 am
sweetpotato wrote:
Not only is it OK to eat in front of your baby, it's important! This is how he learns about eating, meal time, is exposed to different foods (colors, smells, etc.) and starts to develop his own interest in trying foods. Babies learn so much by observation and imitation. You should definitely include him in your mealtimes if it's practical, even if he's not yet ready or able to eat all (or any) of the foods you are eating. Give him toys to play with or chew on while you eat until he's old enough to start being able to join in fully.

Edited to add, and I don't mean this in a mocking way at all, but this is sort of like saying "is it OK to walk in front of my baby when he can't walk yet, but wants to so badly." Babies learn all these skills by watching those around them perform them. So when you include your baby in your own meal, even if he's not eating anything yet, you're teaching him.


so true. lol I like what you said about the walking thing, though I'm not sure if it's the exaaaact same thing. But from what you wrote it makes me really that I really should let him sample the stuff I'm eating (if it's "baby OK") so he gets used to all different flavors and textures and stuff.
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sweetpotato




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 12:32 pm
lucky14 wrote:
so true. lol I like what you said about the walking thing, though I'm not sure if it's the exaaaact same thing. But from what you wrote it makes me really that I really should let him sample the stuff I'm eating (if it's "baby OK") so he gets used to all different flavors and textures and stuff.


I always let my kids sample what I eat, starting at a young age (~6 months). Babies under 1 still have a very sensitive gag reflex, so while you need to obviously be careful about giving soft food, small pieces, small quantities, supervising, etc., if something is a texture they can't yet handle, they will usually gag and spit it out right away (rather than aspirate or choke).

You can try putting tiny, soft pieces right on the highchair tray and see if your baby grabs for it and tries to put it in his mouth.
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Miri7




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 12:55 pm
lucky14 wrote:
so true. lol I like what you said about the walking thing, though I'm not sure if it's the exaaaact same thing. But from what you wrote it makes me really that I really should let him sample the stuff I'm eating (if it's "baby OK") so he gets used to all different flavors and textures and stuff.


Yes - give him ("baby ok") bits of what you are eating. This is how you raise a good eater! He will love exploring the new textures flavor and smells!
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FranticFrummie




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 1:09 pm
DD never ate "baby food". She always got a mashed up portion of whatever I was eating. I put her high chair next to the table, and we used it as bonding time. Monkey see, monkey do! It made her a really good eater. Sure, it was messy, but IMHO totally worth it.

As a toddler, she decided that whatever was on my plate was better than the exact same thing that was on her plate, so she would try to snatch my food all the time. Then came the day that I treated myself to takeout sushi, and she grabbed a big handful of that pretty green stuff - wasabi! She stuffed the whole thing in her mouth before I could stop her, and her reaction was like shock Surprised Crying .

I washed out her mouth and gave her a big glass of milk to stop the burning, but after that, she never, EVER stole food off my plate again. LOL Kids have to learn my trying things out for themselves (within reason, of course).

*Before you think that I'm an evil mommy, DD loves it when I tell this story. It cracks her up. She has no memory of it happening, so is clearly not traumatized.*
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amother
Blush


 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 3:30 pm
sweetpotato wrote:
Not only is it OK to eat in front of your baby, it's important! This is how he learns about eating, meal time, is exposed to different foods (colors, smells, etc.) and starts to develop his own interest in trying foods. Babies learn so much by observation and imitation. You should definitely include him in your mealtimes if it's practical, even if he's not yet ready or able to eat all (or any) of the foods you are eating. Give him toys to play with or chew on while you eat until he's old enough to start being able to join in fully.

Edited to add, and I don't mean this in a mocking way at all, but this is sort of like saying "is it OK to walk in front of my baby when he can't walk yet, but wants to so badly." Babies learn all these skills by watching those around them perform them. So when you include your baby in your own meal, even if he's not eating anything yet, you're teaching him.



Great post!
Here's an excellent book on this subject:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod.....X0DER
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myname1




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 7:55 pm
If he's on your lap at the time and the food is not baby-friendly, you can also give him a rice cake or something similar to suck/chew on if you think he'd like it. Or let him sit in the high chair with Cheerios or something to pick at. With mine (7 months), I have found that she also wants to eat when she sees me eating, but is not particular about it being the same.
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sky




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Aug 31 2016, 8:11 pm
pesek zman wrote:
I never encountered this. If my baby indicated that she badly wanted something I was eating, I gave her some. Unless it's raw honey or a choking hazard, what's the issue? Babies can lick or such or gnaw at most foods. I didn't do baby led weaning but it's very popular and people swear by it


My baby is 6 months old, still thrusts her tongue and is just starting to eat a drop - like maybe 1/2 jar baby food a day. I would not give any food I'm eating. I'm not starting protein yet, or large foods, or anything that has to be chewed - its a choking hazard at this point .
But she grabs at all my foods, and as I lift my spoon to my mouth she opens hers. I do eat while holding her, otherwise I'd never eat.
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lucky14




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 01 2016, 12:05 am
sky wrote:
My baby is 6 months old, still thrusts her tongue and is just starting to eat a drop - like maybe 1/2 jar baby food a day. I would not give any food I'm eating. I'm not starting protein yet, or large foods, or anything that has to be chewed - its a choking hazard at this point .
But she grabs at all my foods, and as I lift my spoon to my mouth she opens hers. I do eat while holding her, otherwise I'd never eat.


yeah at that point I didn't feel bad because your baby isn't ready to eat all the stuff you're eating, but now my baby is 8 months old and eating more so that's why I'm questioning if I should only give him food at his meal times or if it's ok to give him stuff while I'm eating too. he eats so many times during the day (meals and nursing) I feel like if I give him food even more than that the kid is going to be overeating. I guess I shouldn't worry about that?
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Ruchel




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 01 2016, 9:13 am
No, they don't have all the feelings of an adult.
But yes, he can taste.
I can't believe what I'm reading here that some would avoid eating what the baby can't have.
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lucky14




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 01 2016, 2:20 pm
Ruchel wrote:

I can't believe what I'm reading here that some would avoid eating what the baby can't have.


I'm not really sure if anyone is actually saying that, though that was kind of similar to my original question- being that "can" I eat in front of my baby and not give him something to eat also, or is it really not nice and I should I always let him have some if he's watching me eat.
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Iymnok




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 01 2016, 2:22 pm
I give her if it's safe for her. She usually spits it out anyway.
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