how do i get my baby to start eating with her fingers/hands?

Question

my 8-month-old daughter is used to being fed and i'm trying to transition her to eating table food with her hands and fingers. however, she is having a difficult time, even though it seems that most babies of her age are putting everything into their mouths. is this something that has to be taught/learned, or will she eventually get it on her own? suggestions?

i've tried putting fruit puffs/cheerios on the tray table in front of her. she usually picks them up, plays with them, pushes them around, and then drops them. i've also tried guiding her hand, holding a cheerio, toward her mouth, but she doesn't really get it yet.

Answer 1

o.k. first....
stop comparing your baby to others. some things your baby will put others to shame about and vice versa, so don't drive yourself bonkers by comparing.

second,
once your little bird starts using her pincher grasp on things, like fingers to thumb, then she is ready for some little bites of food.
good starters:
cheerios
gerber veggie and fruit puffs
small peices of canned fruits

she'll get it. just put her in her highchair and put some cheerios in front of her. then, take one and put it in your mouth and say "MMMMM". she'll get it.

it's something that is kind of taught, but mostly natural.

take care:)

Answer 2

Sit her at the table in her high chair. Put bite size pieces of soft food in front of her....Cheerios (you don't need to break them up.)
Strawberries, bananas. Or have ribs for dinner. Eat most of the meat off and give her the bones She might be skipping the finger food stage. Give her small fork, either a baby fork or a salad for and stick it in pieces of banana. If she's got some teeth, small pieces of cooked chicken or tender beef, potatoes and carrots are also good. Let her eat with you and what you eat.

Answer 3

Try easy to pick up foods like the Gerber puffs. They come in a little canister (near the baby food) and contain small puffed pieces of fruit or veggie flavored rice. They melt in your baby's mouth, and are really easy to pick up. Does she have a difficult time moving her whole arms, or is it more of a problem with her pincer grasp? To help her gain pinching strength, let her play with homemade playdough. Rolling, pushing and manipulating the playdough will help develop her hand muscles. Just keep offering finger foods for her to practice with.

Answer 4

Sit down and share a small bowl of cheerios together. Pick up one and hand it to her and pick up one for yourself and show her how to bring it to her mouth and eat it. Make it a game of "do what mommy does" and make it fun and she'll catch on.

You can also talk to your pediatrician at her next appointment if you're concerned that she's not grasping the concept or the coordination. He might have some helpful suggestions as well.

Answer 5

Give her finger foods to play with, like cheerios or fruit puffs (in the baby section) or something small. She'll enjoy playing around and when she discovers that the food she puts in her mouth triggers her taste buds, she'll figure it out. Her independence will show through when you basically force her to, not meanly but she will want to do things herself soon enough. Enjoy her letting you feed her. My 13 month old right now wants to feed himself everything and gets mad when I don't give him the bowl and spoon.

Answer 6

Babies pick up different things at different times and some are faster than others. But if you do everything for a baby, they will let you.

Sit your daughter in her high chair while you are cooking and give her things to feed herself. Any canned veggie or fruit. Small cookies, dried cereal. Anything like that. She will learn soon enough how to get it to her mouth.

Answer 7

She will probably figure it out on her own. Espeically if you give her something she likes. Try breaking cheerios into 1/3 rds. Put one or 2 pieces in her mouth and the other on her tray.

Chances are she will start grabbing them soon.

Answer 8

Just keep giving her the Cheerios and Star Puffs. Eventually she will get the hang of it. :) It takes most average babies a while to master the "pincher grasp".

Answer 9

Always give finger foods early as possible, just put breadsticks, and interesting looking pieces of food on her tray ( I take it you feed her in a high chair) or just in places she can reach, allowing her to investigate textures and touching food is the first step to feeding herself. She'll soon start putting the foods in her mouth to taste them, its a natural thing for babies to investigate by taste, so her instincts will take over. If she eats with the family then just put the food in front of her while you eat, she will watch you and get the idea. don't feed her before and feed her after you've eaten, she'll soon get impatient and want to try it for herself.

Answer 10

It isn't taught. If you are worried, just let her watch you pick up cheerios and eat them. Pick them up with your hands and feed her and then let her try. She will learn eventually. I never met an adult who was still being fed by mommy. She will learn. Just relax every baby develops at her own pace.