I am very scared about beginning BLW or any type of weaning actually HELP ME pretty please

[Trinityrhino]

gecko is 6 months on the 7th of aug and hes been exclusively breastfed up to now

except for a couple of doses of calpol (at imm. times), some gripe water, a lick of ice-cream and a good suck on a piece of bread.

the ice cream and bread was because she was quicker than me. she is very interested in food and tries to grab off my plate and anything that I am putting to my mouth.

I think she would enjoy starting to try some food in the next couple of weeks but I'm scared about how to start.
I have had a look at Aitchs blog but got a bit confused about how to use it
sorry, I couldn't get to the beggining if you see what I mean

any help greatly appreciated

[Trinityrhino]

wimpy bump

[whomovedmychocolate]

Okay, let's start with the basics - the food you eat, your baby can eat. As long as you don't add salt there are only a few things off the menu (seafood, blue cheese, unpasteurised dairy, raw meat).

Start off easy, add a breakfast piece of toast. Expect 50% of whatever you offer to end up on the floor, in hair (yours or Gecko's) or attached to any household pets.

Once you've done that for a few days, whenever you sit down to eat, pop a bit of it on Gecko's tray. Cut it into easy to hold chunks (if it's meat thin chunks are good). Don't stress out if she appears to gag to start with - she's learned to move the food from the front to the back of her mouth and is learning the next step - swallowing.

Remember to offer water at every meal too (in a sippy cup is good).

Expect lots of mess and don't get stressed. Your baby will not suffer if it takes a while to establish solids!

[GibbonInARibbon]

hello you

I did BLW - honestly just plonked stuff in front of DD and she was well away. The first weeks she didn't really 'eat' but it was mopre about exploring the tastes/textures.

I was amazed how easily it all fell into place

[ruddynorah]

get some ripe fruit, maybe a peach or nectarine, or a soft pear, cut it up and hand it over. keep the pieces big enough for her to grasp onto, and have some yourslef while she has some. you could just share a peach with her. take a bite out yourself then let her pick it up and have a go.

other nice things to try are things like big brocolli florets or cauliflower. they like things that are easy to pick up and shove their face into i find.

no ned to be nervous, just pass food over really!

[GibbonInARibbon]

and yes it is very messy so be prepared!!

[Trinityrhino]

thanks whomoved
I think its the gagging thing that has me worrying
how big (or small) should the pieces bem is it very important to get it right?

is toast ok? you dont have to only give trhem veeery well cooked thing??

[ruddynorah]

btw you don't need to offer much water at all yet as you're still bfing. it's only when they really get going that they need more fluid with their food.

she won't be having 'meals' yet, just bits of things here and there.

[Pruners]

Message withdrawn

[whomovedmychocolate]

Ooh they love crunchy stuff like toast. Personally I put Philadelphia on DDs toast because that's what she likes and cut one piece into six random shaped bits.

You will work out what works for your child fairly soon don't worry

[bookthief]

I think the basic premise is that rather than worrying about being quicker than her next time she grabs for food you just let her. And as you probably don't want her grabbing for wine gums and pepparami you make sure the grabbable stuff is things like steamed veg and softish fruit in baby-fist sized pieces.

Then she gets on with it and eats, or not.

You then up the variety and introduce bread/toast/meat/fish etc etc as time goes by. The "goal" if there is such a thing is that she can eat what you have.

My experience (a failed blwer unfortunately due to my impatience but definitely fingerfood enthusiast) is that not too much will go in but with lots of practice she'll get better at it.

[Trinityrhino]

hi gibbon, hi ruddy

thanks for the tips

I'm trying to be calm

[whomovedmychocolate]

Oh and you do know it'll take at LEAST thirty minutes for every meal don't you? You may be able to wolf down you cereal in five minutes, your daughter will want to explore and play with everything. It's best to put the radio on so you have something to listen to while you are waiting

[Trinityrhino]

thanks everyone

I did think that maybe I could have left the piece of bread with her today but then thought 'ooo, can she manage bread'

[GibbonInARibbon]

as pruners said it need not be scary.

I made a vow to be chilled about it and not stress about how much is eaten etc.

Just pass food over and let gecko explore

[whomovedmychocolate]

I never bothered with soft steamed stuff, she had exactly what we had from day one. She loves beef with yorkshire pudding, green veggies, meat, fish, cheese, bread, cereal, fruit, anything.

Her current favourite is melon though - it's messy and tasty!

[GibbonInARibbon]

have to say - I did steam the life out of veg at first

[bookthief]

major x-post! Re: gagging - your mantra is that it's not the same as choking. She needs to practice managing chunks of food so there'll be some gagging but it doesn't interfere with breathing. I've had a couple of regurgitated lunches when ds misjudged a bit of pear or apple but he's fine with them now and seemed to learn how to deal with it, or the gag reflex isn't so sensitive now.

[ruddynorah]

if it's tooo soft she won't be able to hold it properly without it breaking up. try different textured things here and there and also different sized pieces. you'll see what she can and can't manage.

[marmitemad]

Hey Trinity, thanks for asking the question I was too nervous to post myself (have actually just been perusing aitchs blw blog in the hope of learning how it all works).

My dd is 24 weeks on 11th August and I am quite keen on blw (I'm too lazy to spend hours spoon feeding) but will probably do some puree/rice stuff as well to make sure something is going in.

dd has sucked on some cucumber and cooked green beans so far and last night managed to break off some small pieces (even though she has no teeth yet) which she then proceeded to gag on and I hastily removed the small chunks.
Does this mean she's not ready for food yet or is it just part of the learning process? dh said "she wouldn't be doing that if she was my dd" at which I gave the look and told him it is part of learning how to chew/swallow (hoping I sounded more confident than I felt).

sorry for the hijack but its nice to find others who are just as confused as me

[GibbonInARibbon]

hi marmite - really don't worry about what is going in - before 1 it's just for fun, as long as they are getting their milk they're fine

[Trinityrhino]

hi marmite


tis confusing isn't it

[Aitch]

me too, gibbon. because the blog is a blog it's a bit difficult to see where it starts, trinity, i agree. i'm goinig to have to move it to A Proper Website but it's a frickin' herculean task with about 500 posts and 3000 comments (which are if anything more important than my posts so make sure you read them).
basically if you hit Finger Foods and then Months One you'll see what i gave dd. but i didn't know anything special... there isn't anything special to know, just do what you feel (including not doing it, iykwim? ). read the gagging bit plus comments too. and the FAQ section, cos we've put up some poll-type things there. anyway, good luck, don't worry it'll be fine. you've got another six months before any of this becomes radically important.

[ruddynorah]

blw means you don't worry about what's going in! your present the food, baby eats it, or not. to make sure they're getting something you give milk.

[marmitemad]

Gibbon - maybe I will make up a placard with the before 1 bit and that milk is more important to show the HVs and other mums?

I've already had other mums giving me strange looks when I talk about giving finger foods now.

Trinity - thanks for the wave, maybe we can stay in touch and compare experiences?

[GibbonInARibbon]

Aitch your blog rocks

When you are a profesional BLW guru can I say I knew you and we had a laugh or two on line??????

[stalker]

Seriously though guys - aitch's blog saved my sanity