Cake for 1st birthday?

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stay_tattd4_lyfe

New member
Hello,

My son was born at 30+0 at 3.4lbs, 16.5in. He endured a 52 day NICU stay, avoiding any major complications along the way (woohoo)! He's now 9 1/2 months old (7 months adjusted) and I'm beginning to brainstorm for his 1st birthday party.

I'm feeling conflicted about cake. Since he will only be 9 1/2 months adjusted at the time of his 1st birthday party, debating whether or not he would be ready for or should have cake yet??

We had some difficulties with digestion when introducing solids, so at 7 months he's only been introduced to a handful of foods, and I'm just not sure if it'd be a good idea to introduce cake so soon or if he'd even be able to handle all that sugar with his seemingly sensitive stomach thus far.

I know I know, do what I'm comfortable with, but I want others' opinions/experiences.

Those of you who delivered around the 30 week mark, what did you guys give your baby at their 1st birthday party? Is a 9 month old even ready developmentally to eat cake? Could introducing all that sugar so soon cause food preference problems in the long run? Or do you think I'm just being a FTM worry wart and should let my baby enjoy the gosh darn cake? Lol.

Thanks in advance!
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe Cake was mostly just for making a mess with my twins (one was more interested in the other food we had around). But Solid Starts has some smash cake recipes if you're worried about sugar (https://solidstarts.com/smash-cake-recipes-for-babys-first-birthday/). And, like someone else said, maybe celebrate both his actual and adjusted bdays if you want to hold off on the cake - do something funny like avocado (or another food he tolerates) smashed into like a cake shape for his actual and then a real cake for his adjusted. Hope you have lots of fun with or without cake! 😊
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe We did an applesauce & banana cake, so only natural sugar! Our guy loved it and I thought it tasted good. We also did homemade cream cheese frosting with vanilla and maple syrup to avoid food dyes ☺️
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe We had cake for my 27 weeker's actual birthday but we don't have any digestive issues. If you're worried you can just give them a small amount if you want a real cake. Personally I think there are a lot of rules around introducing food that aren't proven and are just the latest trend. Formula is really sweet, so I don't subscribe to not feeding any sweet foods. Everything in moderation!
 
@gabjensnsn123 I've thought of this too! My baby is exclusively breastfed, and even breast milk is rather sweet, so I don't understand the "no sweet foods as first foods" either, to be honest? Maybe it's the difference in natural sugar vs added sugars they're mainly talking about? But I know my brother let his daughter eat whatever sweets she wanted from a young age, and now that's ALL she wants to eat at 5 years old, so I'm definitely scared of that, and trying to play it safe!

Thank you for your input!
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe Completely understand! My girls are turning one on Tuesday, also born at 30+1. I’m doing the apple beet cake smash recipe from solid starts that someone else shared. The major components are fruit/veggies with a little flour, baking soda and spices. Also doing a whipped cream frosting. I’m guessing the consistency will be much easier to manage than other recipes. Plus it’s healthy(ish!)! Will report back :)
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe So not sure if it was just me but the recipe came out incredibly chewy. Certainly inedible for a 1 year old and not too appealing for an adult either. Solid starts recommended to cook for 30 minutes which ended up being way, way too much. Long story short, went with a box mix last minute and did a homemade whipped cream frosting. I’d recommend looking at other recipes.
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe Mine is a 33 weeker and I made my own cake :) He has an egg allergy so I found an egg-free recipe, halved the sugar, and topped it with whipped cream and peaches. I wouldn't have given him a grocery store cake, those have too much sugar even for me.

My backup plan was to just stack a couple little pancakes together and put whipped cream on top, close enough!
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe Have cake for both their real birthday and their adjusted! If they don’t eat it, they’ll at least make a mess which is fun in its own right. Birthdays don’t depend on milestones, so don’t let that stop you from celebrating.
 
@stay_tattd4_lyfe My 27 weeker is going to turn 1 in April and we’re planning on doing cake! We started solids at 8 months actual-5 months adjusted. She’s done really well with purées and mainly plays with the actual food items. We were planning on using solid starts app to find cakes that aren’t high in sugar but still give her a taste of it with the icing but know she’ll probably mainly just play with it. We’re avoiding sweets until then but want her to celebrate her 1st birthday with something fun and we know she loves messing around with food. I’ve seen people make cakes out of applesauce (& other ingredients of course) that seem more on the healthy route! Happy early birthday to your little one!
 
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