Weaning !

Hi @Jenny2020 I'm in the same boat :/

I need to move on from puree but feel so scared and aways worried!

We aren't far on our weaning yet but we do porridge for breakfast sometimes, sometimes we have yoghurt. Then for lunch he has some steamed veg. He's too independent for much spoon feeding, he just takes the spoon off me and tried to do it himself which is a huge mess. Dinner is easy because we're cooking for ourselves anyway. If we happen to be making more for lunch than a sandwich like an omelette or something he can have some of that. He's also quite a fan of bread because he can suck it until it's a big moosh.

Lunch can pretty much be what you would have for dinner. They can also have a “dessert” with their lunch. Doesn’t matter what you give when as long as it’s a balanced diet.
There are lots of great menu planners for warning available online

Hi @mylittlesandwich

Just wanted to know how do you give the bread? I'm so worried lo will choke

How old are they? Remember finger food should be given from 6 months, toast is easier than bread for the previous poster and you should be starting to move toward 3 meals a day after 9 months.

I did baby led weaning with mine but was still quite cautious. I found a steamer invaluable as I would steam some chicken/fish and some vegetables and they would often have that for lunch or dinner depending on whether what we were having was what I considered appropriate. As they got older I got more adventurous in what I offered.

I tear off a bit and hand it to him. He hasn't choked so far, a bit of gagging if he breaks off a bit that's too big but he just spits it out if he can't manage it. I hadn't intended to do BLW at all as I was scared of him choking but he's so determined to do it himself I didn't have much of a choice.

There's loads of good resources online about what choking and gagging look like and how to help them if they do choke.

Sorry! Hadn't considered a younger baby, I think the smooth purées are fine up until 6 months and then the thicker ones are better?

Being confident that you know what to do if your baby chokes makes weaning a lot less stressful, especially when you give them finger foods. Obviously a first aid course is probably out of the question at the moment but St. John's ambulance have some very helpful videos online. Learning the difference between gagging and choking is helpful too - gagging is a completely normal stage of learning to swallow, they might go red, cough and splitter and make noise; if they are choking, they will be going blue and be unable to make any noise and that's when you need to know your first aid.

Getting to know the difference between gagging and choking is so important. I became increasingly confident with ds1 (although DH and my DM where much less confident). We started at just before 6 months when ds was confident sitting up. If you are already doing purées just offer something really soft in a chip shape piece as a added extra. I found butternut squash was excellent as a first food and then carrots and broccoli. I used to stew apples and pears so they were soft and squishy too as a change from a banana

It completely depends how old they are?

For a lumpier veg try roughly mashing potato, suede, parsnips etc rather than to smooth.

If you're worried about finger foods being a chocking hazard start with banana (it naturally segments in 3rds) it's mushy enough that they can chew it.

Scrambled eggs on toast is a winner here for lunch, we also give ds cheese or jam sandwiches.

Hi op! My ds will be 6 months this week so we'll start weaning at the weekend I think. We're going to watch first aid videos first!

We're planning to follow the Ella's kitchen plan of vegetable puree/mash for the first 2 weeks and see how it goes from there. I'm too much of a wuss for blw I think!! I found the book really useful for ideas and reassurance 🙂

We've got a few pouches in and I've been setting aside bits of our meals (potatoes, brocoli etc plus some pasta) blending them and put them in the freezer so we have a few options ready. We'll try stuff like toast, scrambled eggs and those melty stick things after a couple of weeks I think. For breakfast I think I'll just give him ready break, as it's a guilty pleasure of mine (I won't add golden syrup to his just yet though 😂)

Question... If I need to use milk to blend stuff, am I OK to use the little cartons of formula? I breastfeed, but the idea of feeding ds and expressing to mix in his food seems like a massive faff?! I do know mums that do this but they're far more patient than me!

@Fivebyfive2 You can use cow milk in food from 6 months. Just not as a drink til after 1yo

FWIW, I didn't mash a single thing for DS. Started at 6 months (christmas dinner!) and just gave well cooked stick shaped things. He hated porridge etc anyway for a long time so just had what we had. Ate a bit (nappies!). Played a lot. Got the hang of it eventually. Brilliant eater now at just shy of 3yo

Don't over complicate things. Cooked vegetables are perfect consistency at 6 months. We used to often have thick soup and the baby could dip bread in. If you really want to mush things up a fork is adequate .

It is often better to have a soft piece of veg / fruit that they can feed themselves rather than stuff with lumps in it. If you know something is solid before putting it in your mouth it is less of a surprise than being used to a smooth texture and suddenly having to deal with a random lump.

Yes you are, and obvs avoid choking hazards such as whole grapes, whole cherry toms and don't add salt when you are cooking.. I found penne with bolognese easier than spaghetti and just serve a little portion on her tray for her to work on. You can stuff a spoon in from time to time if you like but ion that case as she is not in control I would break the pasta up a bit.little sandwiches are easy for lunch or any egg based meal. The other thing to bear in mind is to persevere with things that she initially considers poison. Carrots and parsnips eg are sweet so palatable to a baby but it takes time to learn to like green veg. There is a lot to be said for introducing as many flavours as possible over the next six months before she learns the power of 'No'. The other bit of obvious advice( sorry) is that she will learn from you and be interested in what you are eating and doing. If you model enjoying your dinner then she will take cues. I know it is difficult if you eat later at night but you can eat the same as her for breakfast and lunch and some meals all together and perhaps just sit with her and have a little something while she eats her evening meal.