Feeding my Little One

With all the stress in the world, I felt like putting out a lighter post -- feeding a baby.

I've been asked often about whether or not my ten month-old daughter will follow a vegan diet.  At some point that will be her own decision.  For now, though, she eats what I eat, which is plant-based.

If there were any concern that a vegetarian diet is not appropriate for a baby, the Academy of Nutirition and Dietetics has a position paper that clearly states that plant-based diets are "appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including... infancy"

I will admit, though, in order to make sure that she does not have allergies to dairy or egg, she has had a taste of dairy yogurt and egg, without any reaction.

There is always a protein and a food rich in iron at each meal.  We also eat in the spirit of baby-led weaning, which basically means I put food on her tray and she eats with her hands.  Spoons tend to be thrown on the floor, but she also seems happier using her hands.

This was a recent lunch:  The top glass contianer is hers, the bottom bowl mine.

The bowl is my salad for lunch.  The glass container is just about the same, but with smaller sized pieces.  There are shaved carrots and cucumbers, Japanese sweet potatoes, avocado, tomato, and cut-up tofu.  

Often meals are messy.  Here, she has guacamole and black beans.  

Here's a breakfast: Cheerios and mango.  Often breakfast is whole wheat bread with nut butter, cashew yogurt with fruit, banana (not too much because it's very constipating), or a smoothie with fruits and veggies (which she is a rare occasion when I will give her a spoon)..

Tofu, broccoli, and orange peppers:

So far, things are going well.  Ava definitely has her favorite foods -- guacamole, tofu, tempha (from Dave's Korean), sweet potatoes, and applesauce.  But she's prety easy at meal time, she'll eat just about anything I give her. And, she's getting enough iron, based on her hemoglobin measurement at her last check-up.