How much baby food to stockpile?

[cpnsgirl03]

My local store have the 1st and 2nd jarred baby food on sale, I'd like to start stocking up for some of those, but the 1st food and 2nd are the same price.

One of my friend told me I can just use the 2nd food jarred but only gave the baby half portion and then save the other half in the fridge for the next meal...I'm wondering if it's okay to do this...

Is the consistency of the 1st and 2nd food the same? I know the 3rd food are chunkier but how about the 1st and the 2nd ones?

I read the ingredients label and for certain foods like carrot, banana, etc..and the ingredients are the same between the 1st and 2nd food...

I'd like any opinions on these please... :)

Thank you very much for all your help :)
sisca

[Khaelasmommy08]

Yes, it's true...the 1st/2nd foods' consitencty is about the same...and you are right the 3rd foods are chunkier. I know that after you open them...they can stay in the fridge for up to 3 days - I also think that they have it posted on the jar...I know the 3 foods do. If you are going to save it for the next meal - just make sure you divide it in a bowl first...I would not feed it directly from the jar.

[mamawhit322]

Yes... please do not feed straight from the jar. When I was a baby my family poured it into the bowl and there was a big piece of glass mixed in the baby food that did NOT come from that jar. My mom mailed Gerber and all they did was send her coupons. If they'd fed me from the jar, who knows what might have happened?

[SyLph211]

I did not use the 1st foods with either of my two kids. They are basically the same other than the amount per container. You can pour a bit into a bowl and refrigerate the remainder for up to 3 days. If you feed from the jar you will need to throw any remainder away as bacteria can form and cause the food to go bad. I feed from the jar now with my 10 month old but make sure to stir it well before I give it to her. She eats the whole jar anyway.

The 3rd foods are a bit chunkier and I don't even waste my money on those and by the time the baby can eat them, they can eat chunkier foods that you eat anyway.

would mostly stockpile veggies and fruits in the 2nd foods.

[loladooder99]

The texture between the first foods and second foods is not a big difference at all. If anything I thought the first foods was too watery and my son ate the second foods better. I would just skip the first foods they are more water. The third food do have chunks in them some bigger then other depending on the brand. But when it comes to things like sweet potatoes,peaches,fruit desserts there are no chunkies and you can actually feed those to your baby before 8 months. The cereal and dinner although have chunks of oats or veggies. Making your own applesauce or other baby food can be cheaper though. I personally am to lazy to make all my own baby food so i just stil with fruit. You prepare it then freeze in ice cubes then thaw in the fridge the night before to say put in rice cereal.

[talk2ham.1]

Skip the stage 1 foods. They taste and smell like dogfood. Stage 2 is about the same consistency. Just a bigger jar. And it tastes soooooo much better!

[anaj06]

The only use I had for stage 1 jars was sending the right portion to daycare so I could control amounts of feeding....otherwise I used stage 2 jars.

Also, the coupons on stage 1 jars are a bit better...usually same amount off less jars so sometimes the price per ounce is the same after coupons...you just have to do the math!

[cpnsgirl03]

Thank you so much for all your help, I'm sorry I couldn't post sooner, was not feeling well the past couple of day...

Another question though :) How many 2nd stage jars should I stock up? I'm sorry for being so ignorant but I'm clueless as this will be my first one :)

Does baby eat solid food 3 meals a day like an adult in addition to the milk?

Thanks for any help :)
sisca

[loladooder99]

My son ate the stage two baby food for a long time up to about 11 months he didn't like the chunks in the stage two until about 12 months. He would eat his two jars of baby food and drink his bottle three times a day. It just depends on the babies apptite. Even if you have too bunch he/she will still eat it up to or even later then 13 months. I still mix in pureed baby food with my sons cereal. Like bananas,etc. Right now he has about 9 oz milk and about a 1 cup or more of cereal, then lunch he has a beechnut mini meal 6 oz and 9 oz milk, then dinner more cereal and milk or another meal with a tub of fruit. I wouldn't really stock up on too much fruit in stage 2 because stage 3 is the same. So If the baby is eating three times a day from 6 months-12 months thats about 500 jars of baby food lol. Just make an educated guess. If its a super great deal then go for it.

[tmsmalley]

Before you stock up too far, take a good look at the expiration dates on the jars. You don't want to mess around with those with baby food (although other product expiration dates may be somewhat flexible).

Remember too if you have left over (unopened, unexpired) baby food jars, you can donate to a food bank or shelter or just mix them into other things (meat loaf for example). They're mostly just mushed veggies anyway. Fruits can go over ice cream or in puddings or cookies or cakes.

Tess