Please could you tell me what you bought for weaning?

[BabyCJuly]

Hi there,

I am preparing for weaning! :D

What did you buy for weaning please? Any particular places you bought the items from?

Thank you! I would like to go by recommendation :). I.e. what spoons/bowls/bibs? I've also seem dummy type things the babies suck out puree etc?

Thanks so much as always!!

To be honest I didn't buy much. I bought a high hair that did both DC. I also bought a hand blender (a basics I've from Sainsbury's that lasted years).

Bowls, spoons, a couple of soppy cups are all good and you could always put a cheap shower curtain down to catch anything that's dropped if you haven't got a dog for that job

Long sleeved bibs saved many a nice outfit but these have come out since I weaned mine and they seem good.

I personally wouldn't buy too much. My second DC arrived and completely refused any purées and spoon feeding. Babies like to keep you on your toes

My only other advice would be to have a look at the MN Weaning Recipes, MN Weaning Talk and this guide from the Caroline Walker Trust which gives suggested first foods.

And don't forget to relax and take plenty of photos

Ooooh, exciting and messy times ahead OP!

The above advice is good and covers pretty much everything you'll need. The only thing I'd add is to think about storage. Do you have a freezer? If so, an ice cube tray will allow you to freeze baby-sized portions of any purées you make. We've got some little pots with screw on lids that were originally bought for storing expressed breast milk. They
work brilliantly for storing portions (once you get to that stage) of family meals.

If you live near an IKEA, they do a long sleeved bib which I'd recommend. Their high chair is also hugely popular!

High chair, big cheap PVC tablecloth for the floor, sippy cup, plastic bowls and plates, long sleeve bibs and pelican bibs, flannels for the clean up operation after meals.

I used the baby lead weaning app which was great for recipes. Also, gave me reassurance in how to approach baby lead weaning.
My dentist and health visitor did advise me against the mesh dummies due to the impact they can have on teeth. Chewing fruit in one of them, is putting sugar in their mouth for a period a lot longer than you normally would. Mind you I have hear of ppl using them with cubes of frozen breast milk, when their baby was teething.

I bought a bowl that suctions to a flat surface, and some soft tipped spoons. I already had a smoothie maker which is perfect for blending meals as my baby isn't a fan of BLW. Bibs are essential, preferably wipe clean ones that cover the babies sleeves as well as their chest. Get a reserve of pouches/jars in for those nights you don't want to cook. Foods that babies like include fromage frais (supermarket own brands have less sugar) and wheatabix.

Bibs, lots. Washable cloth ones, & a couple of wipeable silicone ones with the lip for catching dropped food. All useful. Keep the nice, newer ones for going out. Slightly stained ones for home where it doesn't matter. Bin when you're ashamed to peg them out to dry.

Bowls, plates. All plastic. They get thrown, dropped, washed, a lot.

Little containers for putting tiny portions of cooked vegetables in. We did a mix of puree & finger food. I made most of the purees. Freeze in tiny portions, & tip out into a freezer proof box. Mix & match for a variety of meals. Cheap, easy, worked well. Make sure any ice cube type trays you use are suitable for baby food - must be proper food grade, no BPA etc.

Suction bowl & mat arrangement for the table. ERROR. 8 m/o DD decided she didn't like it stuck to the table, & removed it, by force. Lunch ended up on the ceiling. Suction bowl & mat ended up in the charity shop after one use.

I think the Yeo Valley baby yoghurts don't (didn't) have any added sugar. Nit sure if they've changed though.

We had:

• cups: doidy cup and few basic tommee tippee spout cups
• cutlery: tommee tippee pack of 5 plastic spoons, later the oxotot spoon and fork
• plates: suction plate and bamboo bamboo bowl
• bibs: always 2 bibs - long sleeved with a silicon pelican bib over the top
• high chair: IKEA anti lip

We did baby led weaning so didn’t really need the bowls for ages - food went straight onto high chair tray. Also didn’t need to faff around with ice cube trays or blending equipment.

*antilop high chair

We also got a couple of these type of non spill cups as DD really enjoyed pouring her water on the floor. They were useful as bedside water bottles for a long time after she was weaned.

And definitely agree with the antilop chair. Cheap, sturdy & wipeable.

You really don’t need any special gizmos. A few non breakable bowls and plates (plastic IKEA ones), a beaker, highchair, bibs and food.

We are a few weeks in. Not bought a huge amount but:

High chair
Use glass gu pots most the time for spoon feeding and finger food on table. Have x2 plastic bowls but he just lobs them so far

Oxo weaning spoon, cones in handy to go case. We just have one and wash between meals

Nutribullet - we use to make fruit puréed and sauces and anything like that. We already had one, but it’s been handy and good thing is it’s useful for all non baby stuff after

Definitely a plastic sheet for the floor! We have a very robust one from Jojo Maman Bébé which cost about a tenner but goes through the washing machine on a quick wash just fine.

Cups: the lids on the basic Tommee Tippee ones are an absolute nightmare to get off. IKEA sippy cups are far better. IKEA weaning stuff (plates/bowls) is generally really good quality and cheap. Some people like bamboo or sectional plates so food can be separate.

Long-sleeved bibs (also IKEA in our house, I promise I don’t work for them ) are good. Sainsbury’s do some excellent sleeveless bibs which go over the head like a T-shirt rather than fasten round the neck, so baby can’t get them off.

High chair: people always rave about the IKEA one but it depends on space as the legs do stick out quite wide, in my experience. We have a Fisher Price space saver which I don’t think they make any more but it belts onto a normal dining chair and is a great option if you’re tight on space.

Little pots for freezing and reheating food are so useful. You can also get these in Sainsbury’s. Make sure they can go in the microwave!

I have never used mesh dummies. When moving from purée, I just gave soft stuff, eg raspberries sort of torn open so they are flat, banana separated into fingers, etc. Then they get more confident with chewing and so do you with their eating.

High chair, bibs, plastic bowls which could go in the dishwasher and plastic spoons. I used jars and pouches and spoon fed them until they used the spoon to feed themselves.

We had a plastic backed fabric sheet. We still use it for crafting 10’years later as it goes in the washing machine.
I have a hand masher. I think it was from jo jo Bebe. It’s still in my drawer as I’ve used it for mashing fruit in recipes etc. I’ve never seen one like if again, it doesn’t have holes but a bumpy texture. So it’s slightly easier to clean.

IKEA all the way! Their highchair and long sleeve bibs are great. Tommy tippee sippy cup.

I've found with weaning the more basic the better. Cheap plastic is your friend here.

Another recommendation for the Ikea highchair and some sort of washable mat to go underneath. You can buy silicone mats that suction onto the table which are very useful for finger foods when eating out, they roll up quite small. I love the babybjorn long sleeved bibs - they are a bit expensive compared to supermarket ones but they cover everything, are easy to wash (I wash them with the washing up and let them drip dry), they fit six month olds to toddlers and I know of three and four year olds who use their old ones for painting overalls.

Thank you so much everybody! Lots to go on here! Will get ordering :) xxx

It really depends if you're making purées or just finger foods. I bought things for storing purées and DS hated being fed, he'd much rather do it himself so that was all wasted. I got my highchair second hand and it's good as new. Long sleeved bibs are great, I have a few bibados which I like. They're 50% off at the moment I think too. Sippy cups (he only likes the little basic ones but I keep trying). And a silicone plate that sticks to the table too.

Cannot go wrong with the Antilop high chair from IKEA. Cheap. Sturdy. Incredibly easy to clean.

Tommy Tippee sippy cups are great and cheap. However, DD has figured out how to make hold it just right so it free flows out... Right into her lap. If you feel a bit fancier, a 360 sippy cup is also good, with less chance of them pouring their drink onto their lap.

I just got a plastic bowl and plate set from IKEA. Has withstood many a throw to the floor, so can recommend.

Spoons, I got a pack of Tommy Tippee. Any spoon will do though tbh. When DD is teething, she quite likes a gentle chomp on a regular tea spoon.

I've never gotten on with long sleeved bibs. I'm very lazy. Anything cloth/clothlike gets thrown into the laundry, and eventually gets washed. Which doesn't help when you need a bib a few hours later. I just have silicone bibs which I can wipe down, and either roll up sleeves, or remove the top layer of clothing altogether. When DD was littler, I put a regular cloth bib underneath as well.

I had a tray on the floor underneath the high chair to catch dropped food. Now I just make sure the floor is clean before and after eating.