Weaning - my mum thinks I'm messing it up

[mylittlesandwich]

So we're doing a mix of BLW and traditional because he can't feed himself things like yoghurt. Today he's had a bit of toast and some banana. Then steak and sweet potato for dinner with a bit of yoghurt after.

DS is 6 months. I was telling my mum on the phone that he'd just finished his dinner and that he'd really liked steak and she seemed really concerned that it wasn't good for him. I can't find anything online that backs that up, DM is a great nana and has never tried to do things the "old way" but she seemed to think red meat would be bad for him?

I have a 5 month old and I can't imagine him being able to eat steak in a few weeks but hey if your baby is eating and is fine I guess it's okay? I guess if you're giving it to him without salt and spices it should be okay but Indont think meat is recommended until around 1.

You're doing great! The only foods you need to avoid are honey (until 12 months) and whole nuts (due to choking). Unless of course your baby has allergies, anything goes!

I've pretty much given dcs what dh and I have for dinner (less salt) since they were 6 months old. If he's happily eating what you're giving I wouldn't worry.

Ds is almost 11 months, pretty sure he was only a few weeks into weaning when we had a beef stir fry and managed to eat the beef strips, he wasn't a fan of the noodles though 🤦‍♀️

Mine all loved to chew on medium steak from the start of weaning!

The NHS website says

"meat without bones, such as chicken and lamb"

Didn't specifically say beef but I assumed? And yes it was cut off before we cooked ours so not seasoned at all and cooked thoroughly.

@pinkstar01 I think you should re-read some
Guidance before dishing out advice.

Meat is absolutely fine from 6 months.

Both of mine would very happily chew on steak at 6 months, they're now healthy 10 and 11 year olds who eat very well ( despite going through fussy phases at times). We always gave them whatever we were having when they were babies. Sounds like you're doing great.

Thank you, you've all put my mind at rest. I was so worried I'd done something wrong. To start with we just gave him some veg or something like that but in the last week or so as I've got more confident we've just been giving him the same as us. He took down quite a bit of steak and sweet potato so it must have been a hit.

I've been doing a combination of BLW and traditional as well. DS is now 10 months. He had a piece of steak at 6 months and sucked on it. When I told the ladies at the NHS weigh clinic there were big smiles from them and the comment "ooh that'll give him lots of iron, exactly what he needs". My mum was shocked as it's not what "you did in my day" saying that, so was DSis, she said my niece didn't have finger food until about 15 months as that was the advice then (she's 8). DS has always had exactly what we eat and has great hand/mouth coordination. It's also way more fun for us all than only purées!

I read Gill Rapley's book, Baby Led Weaning which gave me some great advice. I'd recommend it.

Tell your mum to read the nhs guidance.. and to shut the fuck up!

Whatever your mum did with you wouldn't be "correct" by today's guidance because it's always changing.

She probably is confusing herself by getting emotional and feeling attacked by you doing things slightly differently than she did.

Have you ever had a conversation with her about her having had her turn being the mum, and that her role is to support you not criticize etc.?

Otherwise it will build up slowly and before you know it she will be criticising every single thing you do and sucking all the joy out of being a mum...

@DreamingofItaly I actually ordered that book yesterday, due to be delivered tomorrow.

@LivingThatLockdownLife she's normally not like that at all, she often comments that things were advised a certain way when we were small because they didn't know any better so of course they would change. She thinks isofix for example is a marvellous invention and wishes I had a baby sleeping bag because I hated being swaddled. I think it was just our before she realised and obviously she loves him to bits. She kept saying that she's sure I'm right but he's just so little. It just made me doubt myself so I came on for some reassurance.

This sounds great to me! I fed my ds1 puree mush until he was about 1 1/2. Ds2 would not touch it so i did blw. Both are healthy good eaters. I read a good by 'why solids matter'

I started my DS on blw as he was already trying to grab my food. I let him self-feed things like yoghurt with a spoon too and mum hates all of it. She thinks I’m taking his innocence away and ruining his childhood by not feeding him - and she’s normally really sensible. I think you should just point to the new guidance, let her have a read of it too. Red meat isn’t advised everyday (due to the health implications) but it can form part of a healthy diet!

My eldest is 22 and I've still got the copy of "Birth to 5" that I was given by the HV in 1998. The recommended weaning age had relatively recently changed from "at 4 months" to "between 4 and 6 months" and finger foods were recommended from 7 months. My sister's children were all born in the 80's and I remember her doing much the same, though purees were introduced earlier, around 3-4 months if I recall rightly. So finger foods alongside pureed/mashed food is nothing new. Essentially you are doing traditional weaning OP, but somewhat compressed in time compared to what was done in the past. I think people sometimes feel that babies are being given finger foods too early now, because there tends not to have been the lead in of weeks or months of purees beforehand, but actually the age at which finger foods are being introduced is really not that different to what it was decades ago.
In the past, mothers were told that a baby needed to learn how to chew by being given purees and then mashed food before moving on to real solid food. We now know that's not the case, but it is understandable that lots of people who were taught that way of weaning get anxious when they see a baby who they don't think has had enough "practice" being given finger foods. I'm sure your Mum's concern is well meant OP, but don't worry, you aren't doing anything wrong. The best way for a baby to learn to chew is to be given foods that need chewing. As a PP said, unless allergies are a worry the only things you need to avoid at this age are honey and things that are an obvious choking hazard such as whole nuts.
I went to a lecture by Gill Rapley when I was pregnant with my youngest, so some time in 2004/5. The way she explained her theories was so simple and clear that I became an instant convert. I haven't read her books as they came out too late for me, but if she writes as well as she speaks I am sure you will find the book you have ordered very helpful.