• Infant Welcome Letter
• Curriculum
• Nutrition Program for Infants
• Forms and Paperwork

Nutrition Program for Infants

It is very important that infants receive the nutrients they need each day. We are happy to provide a place for mothers to come and breast feed their child if they are able to do so during the day. We will also accept breast milk in the bottles and can keep it in the freezer for up to 7 days. It must be labeled with the infants name and the date it was received.  If you choose to use infant formula for your baby, we provide Similac Advance Ready to Feed. This is the only infant formula we provide.  If you choose to use anything else, you will need to bring the bottles in already prepared with the formula ready to use. We are not allowed to add water to powder. If you use our formula, please bring in enough bottles with nipples for each feeding. The bottles need to be clean and ready to use with your infants name and the current date on the bottle.  We will pour the formula in the bottle when it is time to feed your infant.

When it is time to introduce infant cereal to your baby, please let us know and we will be glad to add that to their diet. We provide iron-fortified rice cereal and iron-fortified oatmeal cereal. The next step in the food trail is the jar food. We also provide this. We will follow your lead. We want the family to be the first to introduce each new food in case there are any allergies. Most guidelines recommend you give each new food for 3 days before you move on to another new food. Please let the staff know when you have added a new food so that the feeding schedule can be updated with the new food.  We will document what your child eats each day on their daily "report card" so that you know how they are doing and what they are consuming. Eventually your child is going to be ready for some finger-foods. There are many different things you can try.  Talk to the staff members and your pediatrician for guidance on when to try this and what to try. The staff takes great care in making sure that your infant is only given food that you have approved and they are developmentally ready for. The food will be "smashed" or cut into tiny pieces to aid your child in chewing or gumming. This is a very exciting time for your child and can sometimes be very messy.

Once it is time to transition from infant formula to milk, the staff is happy to assist you with this transition. We will also help with transitioning from the bottle to a sippy cup. This is actually usually done before the transition to milk. We provide whole milk, 1% milk, and soy milk in our Center. I am sure that we will have what your infant needs. We are happy to provide all food items for substitutions if your child has a food allergy or follows a special diet (such as a vegetarian diet). We will simply ask you for the proper documentation for our files.

We provide menus each month with a listing of the food items that are provided from our kitchen for each meal. We provide breakfast, lunch, and an afternoon snack. We have a chef in our kitchen that has her AAS in culinary science. Our food is fantastic.

If you have any questions about nutrition and what we offer your infant, please ask either the lead teachers or the Center Director. We are happy to answer your questions.