To not cook for just weaned baby?

[Heavyrainforecast]

DD is 7 months. She’s very slowly getting the hang of eating but isn’t eating anything really significant in the way of solids.

Monday, Tuesday and Friday (and weekends) I have her brother too so I make a child friendly meal and she can just have some of that. But on Wednesday and Thursday he is at nursery and eats there. AIBU not to make her a special meal and just give her a bit of toast or crumpet?

lola honestly we’ve gone through this a hundred times. People have made some suggestions for ‘easy’ things that aren’t toast and crumpet and I really do appreciate them. I have said several times now she’s had egg (great) and been tried with sweet potato but no go. It’s hard though as whatever I type people don’t read and just keep coming back to tell me off for only giving her toast and crumpet.

I have WMM and it’s good for toddlers but I really don’t rate it for babies at a very early stage of weaning.

Just steam some veg with a colander and a pot

So on your meal replacement diet you're not eating anything at all? Or is it like one of those meal prep diets from a company where they deliver you set meals?

@Heavyrainforecast I have actually read the full thread, including where you said yoghurt wasn't a good option at this stage. I didn't tell you off either, I offered sincere advice. I used WMM from 6 months and we ate the recipes as a family, lots of people do but it's just another suggestion you're shooting down. I think you're being very defensive and dismissive, and you might want to address that with yourself.

If you just want a straight AIBU with no input - then yes you are BU for not eating and then complaining about your 7 month old dropping her food on the floor. You're not modelling how to eat the food to her, how is she supposed to learn?

It’s a meal replacement plan - like Slim Fast only it isn’t slim fast. (It’s actually what used to be the Cambridge diet - shakes and soups and so on.) Definitely not for children!

It’s completely normal and ok for most of the meal/food to end up on the floor at 7 months. She’s practicing the motor skills to get food in her mouth, chew and swallow. That takes some time to master. Her digestive system is also getting used to solids. So I wouldn’t stress, it’s meant to end up on the floor. I know it’s frustrating because it feels like you’re putting work in to end up wasted but it’s not wasted, it’s a process. Steamed veg if necessary, fruit, pasta cooked without oil (less slippery), boiled or scrambled hard egg.
cucumber is good - soft to squash on gums but easy to grasp

have you had a look at Solid Starts, OP?

What’s WMM??

Lola - I know. And lots of people do have babies with brilliant appetites who take to food immediately: mine took longer. You don’t need me to tell you there’s a big range in what’s normal (I don’t mean that snappily or brusquely, I’m multi tasking.) So it’s not a suggestion I’m shooting down, I use WMM all the time. We had the lemon and herb chicken the other day. But the things in there making ‘specially’ for her would cost a fortune - orange glazed cod, butter chicken, lamb kebabs to name a few. I use it when I’ve got both children. I’m not shooting anything down but I am bowing out now because I have said so so so many times what she’s been offered today and I still keep getting ‘oh you just want to feed her a crumpet.’

You don't have to cook multiple times a day every day. My kids just had leftover fishcakes for lunch. IMO crumpets 2 days a week isn't ideal, but if you're happy with that, it's fine. I'm not quite why you're so averse to leftovers, it's the easiest solution.

What Mummy Makes. Recipe book; some of them are nice but personally I’d say for toddlers and older babies rather than first taste sort of weaning stage.

at 7 months, dd mostly ate vegetables and fruit. You can steam a couple of small pieces of vegetable in the microwave with an ice cube very quickly. Let cool. Meal is ready.

Goodness, all this talk of toast and crumpets is making me hungry.. I know what I’ll be having for dinner tonight 😝

I hope you got some of what you needed from this thread. Your little one will be fine, fast forward a few months, I’ve no doubt she’ll be a great little eater.

Would you be able to consider replacing the milkshakes and soups with food which can be shared with the children?

I'm wondering whether a long-term plan involving slow weight-loss via a balanced diet would be the better solution for you - you are probably more likely to remain at a healthy weight afterwards.

Long term, absolutely. In the short term, it’s important to me to get to a weight I’m happy with

The shakes are specially designed to ensure the person gets a full nutrient and controlled meal.

It doesnt work as well if you start swapping out meals.

I was thinking more along the lines of making food from scratch for each meal, rather than mix and match.

Do you think that you would be able to reduce your weight with support while preparing food yourself?

Our GP's surgery has a dietitian who advises on weight loss; would something like that be available near you?

I don't think that the milkshake route to weight loss is the best option, to be honest.

She didnt ask for weight loss advice,

Yeah, that isn't a healthy or sustainable method for weight loss.
You really should be eating something everyday, it's so important your baby gets to actually see you eat as part of their weaning and learning.

If you were cooking for yourself you wouldn't have the issue of it being pointless to cook for her as she could just share your lunch with you, which would be great as she can literally watch how you eat the different food types and textures.
Monkey see, monkey do!

When you say she won't let you feed her, do you mean she doesn't let you feed her with a spoon?

OP, honestly don't overthink it. Both mine managed to wean without me ever freezing a thing. Not bashing anyone who does that - it's a pretty standard method that works for a lot of people, but it didn't for me.
A bit of wholegrain toast twice a week is fine - of course it has nutritional value; it's not air! She doesn't have to be having superfoods all the time; most of her nutrition comes from milk. As she gets older and her appetite increases, you can scramble a bit of egg with the toast, or mash up some avocado to spread on.
When mine were that age, if they couldn't eat what we were having (and several people seem to have missed the part where you're on meal replacements!) they had something like: toast fingers with cream cheese, a few pieces of avocado, a bit of steamed frozen veg (usually brocolli), a couple slices of microwaved apple, some microwaved sweet potato... literally any food that wasn't salty/sugary and wasn't a choking hazard. She really doesn't need proper balanced meals for many months yet.
The best advice I had about weaning was to try and cover all your nutritional bases over about a 2 week period. As long as she's not having toast every day for a fortnight you're golden ✨️

I fed them whatever I was eating - get a stick blender to puree if needed.

I haven't RTWT but this is what I make for lunch for my LO when I'm not cooking for their older brother as well:

• Scrambled egg with some veg through it (sweetcorn/chopped tomato/mushroom/asparagus/peas).
• Omelette
• Mini sandwiches with cheese/chicken slices/tuna and cucumber.
• Weaning pancakes (banana/oat/eggs). You can also make savoury pancakes with veg and cheese.
• Savoury scones or muffins.
• Leftovers.

I usually serve with grated carrot, chopped pepper/cucumber or cold sweetcorn. I don't usually cook a 'proper' meal when it's just the baby and I. My easy 'go to' lunches of choice are smoked salmon on toast/blue cheese on crackers so too salty for a baby😂.

I'm not sure its fair to tell the OP to choose a different weight loss method so that her kid doesn't have crumpets and toast on Wednesdays and Fridays or whatever two days out of her week it is

So why are you asking if you don't want opinions?

And tbh I've always found the 'give them what you're having' method of weaning a bit optimistic anyway. We do it for some things - chilli, shepherd's pie etc. - but quite often what we're eating isn't suitable for very young children - very spicy curries, raw fish, salt-baked meat, strong cheeses, a pickle sandwich. We could adapt the recipe and essentially cook two things, but it's sometimes easier just to stick some peanut butter on toast or put some egg in the microwave.

I'd think about the healthy eating messages your going to be sending to both your children