Finger foods for babies

I was talking to a mum a few weeks ago with the same age baby as Jack (nearly 9 months) and we were talking about feeding, solids, finger foods and all of that stuff us mums talk about.  Her baby was into his mashed solids but she hadn't started him on any finger foods and was wondering what I gave Jack. Jack has gone from being a baby who wouldn't eat a thing to what my step dad calls a 'boa constrictor'- he would eat all day now and especially loves finger food- that was how we actually got him to eat in the beginning as he preferred that to purees. So I thought I'd share the finger foods we feed Jack so if your baby is at this stage so you can get some ideas or maybe just find a new one you haven't tried.  I was a bit nervous starting him on finger foods earlier than the girls in case of choking but in the beginning that was all he was eating so we didn't have much choice (he eats mashed food now as well though). And a friend lent me a book about Baby Led Weaning which gave me lots of ideas and reasurrance on starting them early on finger foods.  Also, Jack doesn't have any teeth yet  but can eat all of these foods without any worries (pays to keep an eye on them though of course!)

Fruits and Vege's
* Banana's- I used to give them to him in slices but now I just give him the whole banana and watch him eat it a la Mr Boa Constrictor
* Canned peaches- great for 'desert''

* Steamed broccoli- he will chew on this for ages

* Cooked peas- tricky for him to pick up but good practice and he does eat them!

* Strawberries sliced in half
* Kiwifruit sliced longways
*Watermelon cut into small triangles
*Blueberries

Meat
* Sausages with the skin off and cut into really thin slices
* Lamb strips

* Shredded chicken from a roast or from the deli (this was the first meat we gave him and he really loves it.)
*Meatballs- we just break up our ones rather than making mini ones- he loves these too
*Shaved ham and luncheon

Dairy
* Yoghurt- I haven't tried the baby yoghurts with Jack - we just give him the same yoghurt as us
* Cheese slices- these were great with all 3 kids

* Grated cheese

Bread
* Rusks- he loves these dipped in hummus too

 

* Toast cut into fingers (or the crusts off his sisters' toast) and sandwiches sliced in fingers- spread with jam or marmite, just started giving peanut butter too. Hummus is a great spread too - thanks for the tip Nic :)
*Cruskits with cream cheese spread, hummus or marmite
* Rice crackers- these are the only crackers I give Jack as they sort of disintegrate as he chews on them rather than break off in his mouth

* Fruit sticks- they make a real sticky mess though!

* and my fav at the mo....Ginger nut biscuits- these are my go-to if I'm in town and he starts getting grumpy- the mess goes absolutely everywhere but one gingernut can keep him happy for at least half an hour!!

I also mix Farex into his pureed fruits and vege's to increase his iron intake- well I think that's what it's doing anyway ;)

And here's a link to the Watties finger foods charts which are really great- scroll down to Stage 3 Printables for Finger Foods 9 months +
http://www.forbaby.co.nz/All-Printables

Would love to hear of any more finger food ideas!

Megan