Solid Foods, Times TWO

I have not been very motivated to start the twins on solids. With Chloe and Mitch, I got excited about it, then when we started I realized how much work it is to not only have to nurse them, but also sit down and spoon feed them 1-3 times a day. Plus, it is a HUGE mess and I hate messes. It is super cute though, but now with four kids and not much spare time, I keep going back to how time consuming it is and all the work it will be, so my lack of motivation for starting the twins stems for this. And, they are much smaller than Chloe and Mitch were at this age (or any age so far) and I decided they didn't really need the food yet.

Well, recently they have started showing interest, especially Leah. She is usually on my lap or Ben's during dinner because she gets fussy right before bed and needs some extra attention. I noticed a few days ago that she watches my every move and follows the fork to my mouth and will open her mouth when I put a utensil up to her mouth. And in the last few weeks, both babies have been nursing like crazy, wanting to eat all the time and for long periods and then not seeming totally satisfied afterwards. Supplementing with formula isn't really an option- Leah will not take a bottle anymore (I want to cry about that) and Lexi will take a bottle, but doesn't love formula unless she's super hungry and I don't have the time or extra milk to pump more for her. Hmm......

Yesterday morning Chloe suggested that we feed the babies cereal after dinner and she was so excited about doing it that I couldn't let her down and figured the work was worth a shot to see if a few bites of messy cereal would help with their insatiable hunger.

Leah was first and I guessed she would do the best, but right as I was about to feed her the first bite, she burst into tears for no apparent reason (a typical Leah trait). Through her tears, she knew just what to do with the food- she chewed and swallowed like a pro. I have video of this sudden crying, but I have been trying to upload it for hours and it's not working. I'll post videos later, hopefully.

To finish with her, I had to take her out of the high chair and hold her on my lap.

She did very well and seemed to enjoy the food. Look at this bite- she looks like a pro!

She was even very clean!

Lexi was next (I think she may be second for everything in life, poor baby- that's what you get when you're amazingly patient) and she was very laid back about it, but did not know what to do with the food once it was in her mouth.

This may be a good thing, as Mitch put a goldfish cracker in her mouth a few weeks ago when my back was turned and when I discovered it, the cracker was still in her mouth in full form and she was not even moving her mouth.

As soon as the cereal went in the mouth, it came right back out. She'll need more practice.

Chloe and Mitchell could not wait for their turns to help feed the babies.

One good thing is that when the babies do catch on and can eat well, Chloe will be more than happy to feed them for me. She is such a good helper.

Good thing we have 2 babies so the older kids don't have to fight about getting to feed them!

Lexi and Leah after their first experience with solids.

I love this picture- they found each other and held hands, looked into each other's eyes and Lexi seems to be saying, "What is the big deal with solid foods??" She was not impressed. Leah liked the food, but it was an emotional experience for her (most things are, the poor thing). Ben and I both were shocked- we never thought one of our kids would ever cry about eating!!