Melon

I picked up a honeydew melon for Hubby recently and it seemed like a fun thing for Buttercup to try.

At first I gave Buttercup a couple of thin "smiley face" slices with the rind on, thinking it would be easier for her to hold without falling apart. The shape was great for her to hold with two hands, but the rind proved too difficult to get past. Hubby cut off the rind and let Buttercup have another go at it. This worked much better because no matter where she chomped down, she had access to the fruit. Although I don't think she managed to get much fruit off, there must have been something satisfying about chewing on it because she kept at it for a long time. At one point Butterup tried to put the entire thing in her mouth, giving her the appearance of the cheshire cat, so that was amusing.

Maybe I'm biased (because I don't happen to like melons), but I think many other fruits are worthier of baby led solids, both from a nutritional standpoint and from an easy-for-baby-to-eat standpoint. Maybe we will have to reevaluate this one after Buttercup gets a few teeth.

PROS: not messy

CONS: hard to chew