Bringing a Baby Food Mill on Cruise?

[gotksgirl]

This might sound silly to some, but has anyone brought a baby food mill (the hand crank kind) on a cruise and used it in the dining rooms to make baby food? If so, did it work well? Easy to clean in your cabin sink? We are bringing our baby on a 10 day cruise who will be almost 7 months old, and it would be great for him to try some of the foods. I have not used a mill with my other two children, so I am not sure how well they work.

 

Any advice or input on feeding a baby on a cruise would be great! I mostly nurse right now, but we are slowly adding baby food into his diet.

 

Thanks!

-Kristen

[uppitycats]

This might sound silly to some, but has anyone brought a baby food mill (the hand crank kind) on a cruise and used it in the dining rooms to make baby food? If so, did it work well? Easy to clean in your cabin sink? We are bringing our baby on a 10 day cruise who will be almost 7 months old, and it would be great for him to try some of the foods. I have not used a mill with my other two children, so I am not sure how well they work.

 

Any advice or input on feeding a baby on a cruise would be great! I mostly nurse right now, but we are slowly adding baby food into his diet.

 

Thanks!

-Kristen

 

There are plenty of blenders and food processors in the kitchen (and blenders at the bars). I suspect if you talk with your waiters, they would be glad to "process" whatever you want your baby to try, warm it a bit (if that's necessary), and bring it back to your table. I don't have kids, but really have not seen any parents use such equipment in the dining room. Nor do I think the sinks in cabins would be large enough to clean it properly.

 

At 7 months, could you not just mash the food with a fork? (When I was a kid, back in the dark dark ages, my mother just used a fork. If it couldn't be mashed with a fork, it was "too tough" for the baby.)

[cb at sea]

They will puree food for you...just ask! I'd sure hate to be washing messy food mills in my bathroom sink!

[K&Rs Mom]

At 7 months, could you not just mash the food with a fork? (When I was a kid, back in the dark dark ages, my mother just used a fork. If it couldn't be mashed with a fork, it was "too tough" for the baby.)

 

For the amount you're going to need, this is probably easiest. At 7mo you're only giving soft stuff anyway, and that way you can have the right amount whenever. I made most of my dd's baby foods (with an electric, not hand-cranked), and it's only worth the mess of the mill if you're making several servings at once.

 

I don't know if they'd have any soft-tip baby spoons, though - you might throw a few of those in your diaper bag if you don't want to use metal.

[newbiecruiser09]

There are plenty of blenders and food processors in the kitchen (and blenders at the bars). I suspect if you talk with your waiters, they would be glad to "process" whatever you want your baby to try, warm it a bit (if that's necessary), and bring it back to your table.

 

I don't think I would try this--especially if you are just starting to introduce your little one to solid foods. Call me paranoid but I would NOT want to use an industrial blender/processor for baby food (for fear of possible contamination/allergic reactions etc). I would just plan to mash any food you want for the little one. I would also be hesitant to introduce any new foods away from home (and your pediatrician/medical facilities etc)

[uppitycats]

I don't think I would try this--especially if you are just starting to introduce your little one to solid foods. Call me paranoid but I would NOT want to use an industrial blender/processor for baby food (for fear of possible contamination/allergic reactions etc). I would just plan to mash any food you want for the little one. I would also be hesitant to introduce any new foods away from home (and your pediatrician/medical facilities etc)

 

All very good points. I was wondering just how MUCH baby food the original poster was expecting to make at a time! If she's just wanting her child to "try new things" as she suggests, seems to me whatever she mashes up with a fork or spoon (I've seen people get a clean coffee cup and use a spoon to mash things for an infant) would work well, quickly, and if the baby DID "like" it, more can be produced quickly.

[sbhdmh]

I agree with the previous posters that you may be making extra, unnecessary work for yourself. Just ask them to cook the veggies "extra soft" for the baby. If it's soft enough to mash with a fork you should be ok. By 7 months you may not be that far past basic fruits, sweet potato and cereals anyway. We always did great with soups, too. Just be sure to ask about ingredients if you haven't introduced things like milk or eggs yet. You could also bring along one of those meshed holders for the baby to suck on fruits, etc. (They look like little fishing nets with covers that snap closed to keep the fruit inside.) If baby is teething you could keep it in the cabin refrigerator and have instant relief along with an additional feeding option. Just an idea...

[TeachNYC]

When we cruised this past summer with our then 10 month old, we brought a food grinder with us. At dinner, we ordered the steamed vegetables, chicken breast, and baked potato for him. We ground the veggies, forked mashed the potato, and tore pieces of the chicken breast for him. It worked fine! We also took containers so we could save some for the next days lunch (I was worried about finding steamed vegetables at the buffet, or chicken without any sauce).

 

After the second night, the hostess (I think that was her title) came over and asked us if we wanted the kitchen to prepare it for us. She took down our order, and it was ready for us every night when we arrived! I don't know if they do this for everyone on every ship, but it was really great that they catered to our son like that.

 

I would suggest you bring it.

 

Also, I agree that you have to be careful about introducing any new foods during the cruise. Our pediatrician specifically told us not to, and I'm not sure they could handle an infant with a severe allergic reaction in the infirmary.

[hooked-on-travel]

I would suggest you try the food mill at home first. We went on a trip with DD at 8 mos and I wondered if a food mill was a good idea. So I bought one and took it. But she didn't like anything from it. So it was a waste for me.

[mactrio]

Why not just bring some containers of baby food and let your baby eat that. I'd worry about allergies. What if a knife was placed too close to peanut oil or if the spoon touched mushrooms etc....what a time to discover an allergy. The containers of baby food are plastic and would store neatly in a small bag or suitcase. If you are still nursing then you really wouldn't need that many per day.