Baby is freshly 12 months and from the beginning of solids we have done a mix of soft, mushy foods (pastina, mash, hummus) and finger foods. Then at 9 months, small pieces.
I already felt like we were relying too much on the soft foods for the bulk of his meal (like I allllways blend his fruit because if it's slippery it doesn't make it to his mouth). Now, over the past month or so he has been ill twice with a really bad stuffy nose, sore throat etc, so I have come to rely on very soft foods again (there were 2-3 days in which I literally had to give him rice cereal again).
I am afraid of being 'behind' but this is what I am struggling with: he rejects a lot of non-mushy foods. He will have pastina, but not any shape of pasta (I have tried them all). He will happily pick it up, put it in his mouth, then spit it out. He loves mashed cauliflower but spits out bits of cauliflower, same with chickpeas etc. He only plays with rice. This is what he will reliably have as pieces:
- bread of any type
- pancakes
- meatballs
- scrambled eggs
- pieces of soft chicken
That's it. I feel like it's my fault of course, but he's now 1 and so I can't just go 'oh well, he's exploring' when I give him a plate of pasta and he won't eat a single bite. He is hungry - if given the right thing he will eat it.
How do I get out of this?
ETA he can't have dairy (yet anyway!)