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Weaning

BLW 8 month old....need ideas for (help!) long journey...

15 replies

Elibean · 04/08/2007 19:57

dd2 is just 8 months, and is 100% BLW - her decision, really: she had trouble swallowing purees (floppy larynx) and loathes spoons (possible reaction to lots of intrusive stuff when v ill early on) so jars etc are out.

She's doing ok, and though not much goes in, she does seem to enjoy discovering new foods and will chew happily on toast, fusilli, steamed apple/pear, banana etc. She can't cope with swallowing anything that isn't very soft, and will only eat what she can pick up and hold in her own hand. Bless her . I know thats fine in BLW terms, but eating out with her is almost impossible as she's too small for a highchair (we have an Early Years booster, which is just about ok with cushion in) and very, very, very messy.

Am a BLW novice (dd1 did a mix of purees and finger foods from early on with great ease) contemplating two day journey in car, boat, more car, hotel etc next week and trying not to panic: what on earth can I feed her in the buggy/boat/hotel? And how do you keep a BLW baby moderately clean (ie no flies feeding off her on hot sweaty journey) without a tap and running water?! I'm probably being dim, help...

I have found she'll take a few mouthfulls of Ella's Kitchen purees straight from the nozzle, but any other tips from travelling BLWs would be sooo welcome...

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Habbibu · 04/08/2007 20:06

breadsticks, dried fruit, m&s sushi (actually, m&s pasta salads good too) - look on aitch's blog for food out and about - loads of good ideas there. would write more and better but baby has just fallen asleep on usual typing arm...

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Elibean · 04/08/2007 20:11

ooooh thanks, H, will look on aitch's blog. Pasta salads brilliant idea. Dried fruit I think she would choke on (too sticky) but saw somewhere that half-dried apricots are good. not that I know where to get any, but will look out

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Tapster · 04/08/2007 21:56

Pitta bread with anything for my nearly 9 month old - got a 3 day hotel stay coming up (not booked by ourselves but her grandparents) and dreading it. Will take pitta bread and cream cheese/houmous. Also have a spoon reject on my hands. No way could I even contemplate jars - she would probably laugh at me. Yes BLW is messy but I've got used to it - other people have a problem, feeding her outside at this time of year is great, the birds eat the remnants and people seem to not notice the mess.

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Aitch · 04/08/2007 22:19

have a look at the pita bread fingers (or something, i can't remember the name just search for pita). i find them Fantastic for out and about, especially with the grated carrot.
what would happen if you gave her pieces of clementine to suck on, with you biting off the end first, iykwim? DD used to suck them and throw away the skin. frozen segments also good but perhaps not for travel. as for cleaning... is that not what baby wipes are for?

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Elibean · 04/08/2007 22:57

Thanks! Will look for pitta fingers idea, though so far she's not been able to do more than suck pitta - it doesn't seem to fall apart, and she's still toothless. Am very intrigued by clementine idea, will try that - suspect BabyBean will be quite good at spitting skin

Oh, and yes, will stock up on wipes - and a billion changes of clothes!

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Aitch · 04/08/2007 23:05

there may be a case for buying one of those kiddie painting overalls...

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Habbibu · 05/08/2007 09:25

Ok, back, and with 2 free arms. My latest thing for Nome is scones - have been baking many lately, as we've just moved house and had many visitors. N has been sampling them joyfully, and it's occurred to me that they are pretty fab travel food - you could make cheese and herb scones, and spread them with butter or philly, say, sandwich them back together, and you've got a cheese sandwich equivalent which is more easily gummed than bread. I think there's a recipe for oat, apple and cheese scones on Aitch's blog. Dried fruit - yes, I meant the soft and juicy type. We buy dates and apricots from Julian Graves - is that a national chain? Holland and Barrett also sell soft dried fruit sticks called Humzingers, which are handy for travel - N wasn't overfond until lately, but she loved fruit leather much earlier - also from Holland and Barrett, and called fruit snack. Kept her busy for ages to begin with - now she can demolish them with scary speed.

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Elibean · 05/08/2007 09:59

Thanks, H, the scones idea is v good - imagine they would keep fresh in a tupperware thingy for a day or two (no fridge for 48 hours, just a coolbox which is likely to last 12 hours at most). And I could spread them or not, depending on facilities at any given time.

Time to bake as well as pack, now that is the next challenge

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Elibean · 05/08/2007 10:05

Aitch, this morning's breakfast (which involved wheetabix with apple puree and milk, a spoon for dd to play with, toast, banana) went down very well. Hardly any on the floor, thats a first. Cue Elibean feeling less overwhelmed and strangely proud...

...remove dd from chair, covered head to toe in banana and wheetabix, wash her hands under tap, discover she and I are now both covered in something much smellier than wheetabix, carry her upstairs for complete wash and change and she throws up. Then laughs.

Not only will I be looking for overalls for her, I shall be buying some for myself

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Aitch · 05/08/2007 10:28

sounds like a luminous jacket and a hose might have been the thing. good news on the breakfast front.

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ruddynorah · 05/08/2007 11:09

ikea do a really nice and cheap overall bib, long arms plus long length and has a pouch at the front to catch food.

you can get soft dried apricots from tesco, brand is crazy jacks. you have to look for partially rehydrated ones you see, otherwise yes they are rather chewy. the crazy jack ones are also good becaus ethey're organic and aren't treated with sulphur dioxide, hence they are more brown than yellow. tesco also sell humzingers.

other good things to try.. dried apple, this is soft. m&s do an 'orchard mix' which is apricot, apple, prune and some others. dd loves the apple bits, keep meaning to look for packs of dried apple on its own.

also mini cheeses. try pick and mix cheese bit in supermarket. babybel do different varieties as well as their normal one in red wax.

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Aitch · 05/08/2007 13:02

tbh with all the apples falling from trees at the moment it's easy to make your own. i found a recipe on the internet last year and made some. very easy, apart from the faff of coring them etc.

must have a ook out for that bib, norah. although we are Quaite Neat these days...

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ruddynorah · 05/08/2007 20:50

should have thought of that. my gran has a garden full of apple trees.

we are very neat too these days. bib is for painting...not so neat.

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Aitch · 05/08/2007 22:27

don't peel them, norah, life is too short.

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Elibean · 06/08/2007 18:39

Tesco crazy jacks...got it...no time to dry anything other than a few last minute clothes now

Thanks again, all. xx

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