Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Weaning

Find weaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Weaning forum. Use our child development calendar for more information.

Original poster

6 mth old today and first day of BLW-anyone want to start BLW journey with me ?

306 replies

fakeblondie · 31/12/2010 00:18

I`ve never done this before even tho dc 4 !
DD1 18yrs
DD2 15 yrs
DS1 7 years
DD3 1/2 !

Totally breastfed to date and very content.
Allowed her to help herself to my plate tonight where i ensured she could reach soft green beans if she wanted to.
She loved it-made a mess-squashed it and mushed and and ALMOST sucked it !
Well thats my experience so far !
Am about a quarter way thro eading the BLW book and very confident that she`s totally fine just breastfeeding for quite a while yet as omly have to look at her to see that nature is working wonders x
Bit scared about the whole lumps bit tho but willing to give it a good go x

OP posts:
Original poster
fakeblondie · 09/01/2011 01:01

Hi girls-well we`ve been at it about 10 days now.
DD is 28 wweeks old on tues i think !

So far weve sucked a green bean and gummed a parsnip. Ive offerred her steamed pear and apple and pasta and broccoli and toast-the only thing she actually put to her mouth was the toast which i spread with steamed butternut squash and sweet potato-was making soup anyway and it just made a lovely spread !

She loves picking up the food-passing it from one hand to another and dropping it.
Not much interest in getting it to her mouth at all really - is that normal inearly days ?
Also how do you serve fruit - apple is a huge chunk safer than a small bit ?
Must admit i`m really scared about choking?

OP posts:
squareorange · 09/01/2011 05:33

Just a quick one, bleary eyed as it's the middle of the night.

Re apple, I thought it was one of the things to avoid at first cos of potential choking risk? I know I've seen it mentioned on this thread that people have tried it, but I'm going to avoid it for a while [scared]

squareorange · 09/01/2011 05:37

blondie what's your dd like with toys, is she putting those in her mouth?

CantSleepWontSleep · 09/01/2011 09:11

Apple is the one thing that I tend to leave for a while, as it's aa very chokeable texture.
You could soften it a bit by steaming lightly first though, if you were so inclined.

applejelly · 09/01/2011 16:13

alfonzo - gave DS cucumber sticks with skin on which he loved & he even managed to chew some of the skin off - I found the results, unaltered, in his nappy the next day!

Gave DS loaded spoons of Rachel's baby yog this morning which he smeared all over his face like a face-mask! His skin was a bit blotchy afterwards, whether from my vigorous wiping, the acidity of the fruit or his pre-existing eczema (currently well controlled) I'm not sure. Has anyone else noticed similar from direct contact with foods?

alfonzo · 09/01/2011 18:04

Yes will prob not start spoon feeding now I've started BLW.
Applejelly - cucumber is good with it's texture and hardness isn't it! It's good to see the results in the nappy even though it's a bit yuk. Who'd have known we would end up doing nappy inspections!! Haven't tried a loaded spoon yet, may give it a go when I've got some full fat yoghurt in (only got light versions in the fridge.

HelenLG · 09/01/2011 18:49

I'm obsessed with DS's poo, it's sad.

Even if DH changes him, I'll wonder over and take a look, if I'm busy and can't then I intrigate him later "What colour was it? Was there a lot? Was it thick? Could you see any chunks?"

Quite off we're having dinner at the time, I think he finds it quite disturbing.

squareorange · 09/01/2011 19:16

Well, we started today, plonked some cucumber on dd's high chair tray, she grabbed and straight in her mouth! She had a good gum and managed to get some pulp on her chin but I don't think she actually swallowed any! It didn't take long before it was on the floor though. Tried some banana too but that was just far too slippery to pick up so think that will have to wait to be mashed onto toast / rice cakes.

We were going to try some sweet potato tonight but ran out of time, so maybe will give that a go tomorrow.

Bought some spoons today too, ready for pre loading with yoghurts. I know it's supposed to be 'just for fun' for now, but I'll be going back to work in a few months time and feeling a bit pressured that she needs to be eating vaguely properly by then.

Also have got a doidy cup (not tried yet) as she's never had (wouldnt take) a bottle and can't see the point of trying to get her to take one now. Anyone else tried one of these?

squareorange · 09/01/2011 19:19

It sounds like it's just a matter of time before I'll be another poo obsessed mum! Grin

CantSleepWontSleep · 09/01/2011 22:20

Square - We tried dd with a doidy cup without success, and ds1 with one with some success. We haven't tried it with ds2 yet.

Re banana being slippy - try cutting a big chunk with the skin still on, and then cutting in half down the length, so that you have a chunk still surrounded by some skin for them to grip.

Re yogurt causing a rash. Since you mention that he has eczema too, I'd hazard a guess that it's a form of milk intolerance. Up to you to decide whether the eczema is bad enough to warrant avoiding dairy (could mean you giving up dairy if you are bf, or switching to a hypoallergenic formula if ff).

applejelly · 10/01/2011 09:28

CantSleep - we've been to dermatology and they don't think there's a cow's milk protein allergy element to his eczema. I suppose I'm wondering more if it's common for babies' skin to react slightly to having food, esp acidic stuff, smeared over it for the first time? Obviously his skin is a bit more reactive than many but would be interesting to hear if anyone else has noticed the same.

Square - DS also has never accepted a bottle so we tried him on a TT soft spout cup (the purple spout looks obscenely like a ginormous nipple Grin) which he quite likes. He still gets it the wrong way up sometimes so it's less messy than the free-flowing spout version. I will be donning my sou'wester the day we try a doidy cup Wink

squareorange · 10/01/2011 13:49

Just gave dd some more cucumber - she managed to break a bit of the soft stuff off and had it in her mouth, but it didn't take me long to panic and take it out. Oh dear. It looked too big for her to swallow Blush but I know I should have let her get on with it?

So far she is only playing with an empty doidy cup. It makes a very satisfying clatter when it's dropped on the floor. Hmmm.

HelenLG · 10/01/2011 14:08

Chicken, lettuce and tomatoes... not interested today.

MyLifeIsChaotic · 10/01/2011 14:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

alfonzo · 10/01/2011 14:55

Squareorange - it's really hard to sit back and not interfere isn't it? But I have just managed to stop myself when I've thought dd is getting into a pickle, and she sorts it out herself either just by letting a big lump fall out, or gagging it out if it's further back. She's starting to learn already which bits she can manage and which she needs to spit out and start again with. Also learning some passing from left to right hand and vice versa, and that she needs to reposition the food item if there's no more poking out of her fist.
So far she only really likes fruit, makes me wonder if she's going to have a very limited fruit diet when she's older! Has anyone else noticed a resemblance to little monkeys/primates that you've seen eating on tv/at the zoo, when they suck and chomp on fruit in their hands? so sweet.

Original poster
fakeblondie · 10/01/2011 15:01

Roast beef an array of lovely veg and some potato last evening-all picked up, sqished and dropped.
Everything else goes in her mouth why not any food fgs !

OP posts:
squareorange · 10/01/2011 17:44

Just tried some banana, with the skin on partially to make it a bit grippier (good tip, thanks CantSleep). I think the banana was a bit fat for dd's chubby little fists but she managed to pick it up and get it straight into her mouth and chomped a bit off. Cue heart in my mouth immediately, but managed to just smile and watch her and make nom-nom-nom noises, and after a bit it fell out of her mouth, to my relief. Then she did it again! After that it was all too slippy to hold.

Probably wont try anything tomorrow as we're out, but will be watching all your progress here with interest! Smile

etta81 · 10/01/2011 18:01

Annabel karmel all the way for me. Worked with my first and have just started weaning my 5.5 month old. Do seem to spend a lot of time making veg purees though!! My daughter never had anything out of a jar, at least if you make it yourself you know exactly what they're eating and you don't have to worry about any food allergies (once you've discovered if they've got any!), and its a lot cheaper!
I recommend her book 'The complete baby and toddler meal planner', it sets out timetables and recipes for meals at every stage. I don't think i could have done it without it. Plus go to Aldi to buy your veg, its always on offer and its less than half the price of the supermarket!!

God, just realised that I'm starting to sound like my mum - not good!!!!

HelenLG · 10/01/2011 19:46

Broccoli and green beans are a winner, see profile pics for what has now been known as the broccolocalypse (courtesy of DH)

MyLifeIsChaotic · 10/01/2011 19:48

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

alfonzo · 10/01/2011 20:00

I popped to the supermarket today to pick up some fresh fruit and veg and found some baby corn/mangetout/green bean packs made up as well as other veg combinations. Quite handy as a little ready made fresh veg pack to last a few days. I steamed them in the microwave for about 1 min in a little water and they were ready to go. I bit the end off the mangetout - as quite hard - and dd sucked the little peas out which she quite enjoyed! Also ended up getting mini bits of corn off the baby sweetcorn. But still hasn't devoured anything with as much gusto as a pear though - pretty much ate a whole one today, dh was impressed as hadn't seen much of the BLW so far.

CantSleepWontSleep · 11/01/2011 09:33

Not being funny etta, but why come on this thread for people who are doing blw just to recommend something that is the complete opposite of the path we have chosen to take?

Will check out your pic in a moment helen. I took some of ds eating his chicken casserole and rice last night, so may get round to loading one up later if I can work out how to do it without my poorly iMac.

etta81 · 11/01/2011 10:57

Sometimes cantsleepwontsleep its not practical to feed your baby the same as what your eating i.e there's no way I'd give my 6 month old fish and chips or if I've made a curry.Plus due to work sometimes we don't eat until 8pm and can't expect a baby to wait that long so its handy to be able to make up some healthy meals to keep in the freezer. It was just meant as some advise for such occasions as the book has some good self feeding recipes which can be made for the whole family as well as the traditional weaning purees.

Not being funny! but learn to take some advise in the context it was meant without getting on your high horse!!!!

LooL00 · 11/01/2011 13:54

I've been lurking as I'm not doing blw, but i do give dc3(6m) a lot of finger foods to try and can't resist giving banana advice.
If you get a short piece of banana(ripe) you can squeeze and wiggle it so it comes apart in three bits which are not slippery bcause you have not cut it.Try it and you'll see what i mean I hope!

HelenLG · 11/01/2011 15:01

Had mango and melon today...DS loved the mango to chew but the juice makes him shudder (hehe).

Ate out in Costa with DH, but had to go and buy fruit from Boots as Costa only seem to sell sandwiches or cakes.

I think the lady next to us must have thought I was neglectful cos DS started gagging on some melon, and she said 'Ohh, he's choking'.

I just made sure he was sat forward a little and gave him a little pat, and reply 'No he's fine, you're fine, aren't you?'

He looks terrible when he gags, opens his mouth right up, has watery eyes and make horrible gucking noises.

Then recovers and shoves more fruit in his mouth, totally unphased.