Parenting Australia

I still remember it clearly – it was a Thursday and Harvey had a day off work. It seemed like the perfect time to mark such a milestone with our son. We had planned on waiting until he was six months old, however he’d been desperately watching everything that went into our mouths for weeks now, waking up more through the night and copying our chewing motions, so we knew he was ready.

The three of us set off on our special mission to buy Farex, knowing Noah was in for a surprise that day. After he finished his usual lunchtime bottle, Harvey strapped Noah into his bouncer while I mixed up a concoction I hadn’t seen since my childhood.

With the camera ready in the proud dad’s hands, I put a small amount of this white goo onto the spoon and slowly waved it in front of Noah. His mouth opened automatically and I spooned the Farex in, watching his facial expressions move from confusion to delight as he rolled the new taste and  texture around in his mouth. It then dribbled out because he wasn’t sure what to do next. Our baby was eating solids – well not exactly eating, but consuming!

With each successive mouthful, he got more used to chewing and swallowing the gooey substance and was eager for more. He was so disappointed when his allotted tablespoon of Farex had finished, but we could see Noah was thrilled to move to the next level in his development.

The photos of Noah’s momentous day were quickly uploaded to the computer and sent on to proud relatives and friends.

When Ethan started to show the same signs of being ready just after turning three months we knew the drill. We waited until he was four months old and then repeated the process with the same results. Both of our boys couldn’t get enough of solid food once they started.

After a diet of Farex for a few weeks they both graduated on to pureed potato, pumpkin, apple and pear and then to more interesting combinations once they got older. I used to spend Sunday afternoons preparing mixes to freeze into cubes for use during the coming week, adding a new ingredient every few days.

I still love introducing new flavours and textures to the boys. At three Noah is still going through a fussy toddler eating stage, but Ethan, one, is happy to try anything and everything (including coleslaw I was eating yesterday – he wasn’t convinced it was for him). Even if Ethan doesn’t like the food he will always try it. I hope it stays that way.

0 Comments

Name

Email (will not be published)

Personal Web site/Blog URL

Subject

Comment

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Enter the letters you see in the image.

Click to get a new image.