Teething is the pits! A tasty tip for teething tots.

This is a picture of my son when he was around 6 months old. He was newly experiencing the pain of teeth surfacing through his gums. One of his favorite fruits at the time was mango. I would always throw the pit away (slightly annoyed by how much fruit was left adhered to the pit) when it dawned on me that this would make a great teething apparatus. The pit is large, flat and smooth with plenty of pulp to suck on. I started saving mango pits and keeping them in the freezer, along with frozen pineapple cores and even corn cobs with the kernels removed. For choking reasons, I would not recommend smaller pits or apple cores. But a larger pit like the mango makes for a soothing treat that is big enough for a baby of this size to hold onto and suck. The frozen pit provides some cooling relief while at the same time some nutrition from the mango pulp.

Note: Always supervise children with food and throw away the pit after one use. (You may want to wipe the gums with a warm washcloth when they are done). Babies of this age should always be upright in a high chair while eating. As you can see, babies are messy so topless might be the best dining attire for this set!