BLW support thread anyone?

[MrsNPattz]

Just wondered if anyone wanted to join me on our BLW adventure, I could do with it (see my earlier thread)! We went to my uncles today, luckily my cousin did BLW with her two little ones so they were very accommodating and he tried carrot, sprout, broccoli, turkey and potato! It was very successful and it was lovely having my cousin to talk to! Unfortunately she doesn't live near us, but is at the end of the phone! What did your babies eat today?

[MrsNPattz]

I struggle a bit with ideas too, I'm trying more and more just to give him what we are having, maybe adapted slightly!

[slightlysoupstained]

Quak I would, if you've got any squash left, she'll recognise it and hopefully might put in mouth this time?

Mind you, DS threw almost everything on the floor today so might not be the best person to take advice from

[Quak]

Have got plenty of squash left - they're bloody huge. I was wondering how much variety do you introduce and when? In the beginning does she need to see the same things again and again or should I perhaps give her something new every day but repeat the 'menu' weekly? So she has variety but sees the same stuff. Or do babies not remember little things that happened a week ago....?
Argghh

[Pinebarrens]

we are on wweek two with DS. we started at 26 weeks.

he's taken to it really well, tonight he had long stem broccoli, baby sweetcorn and some of mine & DDs veggie chilli on crusty bread.

this is my second BLW baby but i can't remember DD being this messy!

I am much more relaxed this time.

Was just looking at the BLW website for some recipes today - it's great!

[Pinebarrens]

Quak we just go for it i usually do some steamed fruit or veg for the baby but also give him a little of what we're having. im careful of salt in meals anyway as i also have a 3 year old.

i will keep an eye out when i give eggs for the first time as DD was allergic to eggs initially (she's ok now).

i remember my HV being 'horrified' when i pulled out some strawberries for my 7mo DD to eat. According to her, you're supposed to wait until after 9 months to introduce berries - who knew!

i just keep an eye out for any reactions but otherwise i don't really hold anything back.

[Andcake]

We've been blw for about a month. With luttle bits of spoon feeding for things weve had which need It. mostly he isnt into being spoon fed. Some days go better than others. Breakfast today was a fail but yesterday he loved it. For breakfast he usually has toast and some fruit and maybe I'll feed a bit of yogurt or porridge if that's what I'm having. Porridge is mostly a stubborn no but toast and banana he loves.
We're only doing 2 meals at the moment basically because I'm having a nightmare getting him to nap and if I offer food when he's grouchy it just gets thrown on the for. But tea about 3 tends to be a little of what we had the night before and a mixture of a bit of cheese, rice cakes, bread sticks, cucumber, avocado, humous, celery etc. also a bit of sweet - loves mango and dried apricots.
I get really nervous about how much he actually eats and that well never get there compared to purée babies who now seem to be on here meals a day.

[Nicknamefail]

Ooh, I would like to play please. Starting next week as we are going away tomorrow and think it will be easier to start at home. Dd has had a suck on some melon and a cherry tomatoes though. She made an awful face at the tomatoes, and interestingly, I don't like uncooked tomatoe. She'll probably love it next time though. Dd is 6 months on Sunday btw.

[Nicknamefail]

Spoke to FIL and told him I was going to give her real food, and he said "yes, real food. But mushed up. ". He was quite worried when I told not mushed, but supportive. (I am lucky and have perfect PIL. )

[LeBoob]

Oh I hope someone can help me here, I have a 8 1/2 month dd, who adores broccoli but only eats a decent amount at tea time, she just doesn't entertain breakfast or lunch. She picks a little but just doesn't eat anything. She is exclusively breastfed, so I'm not worried about her going hungry, except I've gone back to work 2 days a week this week, and I left her for the first time on Monday, she ate & drank very little!

She won't take anything from a spoon, no purée, no yogurt ( which is frustrating because she enjoyed petite filous until my hv said I shouldn't be giving them to her). I've tried making veggie nuggets which are bloody lovely but she won't eat them.

Like I said she will eat broccoli till it came out of her ears at tea time, should I try serving it up 3 meals a day and then fade it out?

Any advice would be great

[FadBook]

Leboob - remember milk is her main source of nourishment until 12 months.

When you left her for the day, did she have any milk at all?
What types of food are you offering at breakfast and lunch?

If she was hungry, she will attempt to eat what is front of her (that is the beauty about BLW), trusting her instincts.

I'd be reluctant to serve up the same food every time, she'll soon get sick of it and then refuse that.

Ensure she is offered food during the day, perhaps who ever is caring for her have a 'snack' plate of various things such as banana, grapes, pear, orange segments, boiled egg, rice crackers, cheese, triangle cheese etc then she can graze during the day, rather than have set meal times. My dd was a grazer at that age, always ate at dinner time, but during the day, there weren't many set dinners that we had, I just offered what I was eating at the time (I'm a grazer )

As for hydration, if you are leaving expressed milk or formula, that's fine ensure carer offers it to her (again DD would refuse my milk from a bottle/cup, she just wouldn't take it so went without at that age and had a mammouth feed on my return to picking her up). Also have a sippy cup of water lying around all day, so she can access it (or the carer can offer it) and think of foods that are water based so pear, peach, cucumber etc are good, at least you know she'll get something.

Hope this helps.

[Forgetfulmog]

Dd has now decided she doesn't want me to spoon fed her, but would rather grab handfuls of the food & (quite literally) "apply to face" Hilarious to watch, but oh the mess

[AJBthesecond]

Can I come in. Currently fending off eager relatives who are desperate to get baby rice down ds' neck and doing my best to resist.
He is 24 weeks so will be starting soon but I'm kind of sad, the end of the ebf stage which has been the hardest but most amazing thing ever.

Exciting times. they grow up so fast sob

[MrsNPattz]

AJB I know what you mean about being sad about the ebf stage being over, I'm exactly the same. They grow so quickly.

Little man may have a dairy intolerance/allergy - he gets a plotchy red rash around his mouth. I spoke to a hv today who said to give him dairy things individually and if it causes the rash to hold off giving it again for a month!

[MyPlugInBaby]

Oooh can I join in please?!

DS was 6months on Tuesday but we have been BLW for about 2 weeks (I was very confident he was ready). This boy eats like there is no tomorrow.

I am mourning the EBF poos though

[HabitualLurker]

I'd like to join too!

We started offering a few bits and pieces at around 24 weeks (boy was sitting unassisted from 22 weeks and had been furious shoving everything in his mouth for ages). Wanted to try BLW and thought I'd be relaxed about it, but was alarmed by the gagging and switched to rough purees. I know in my head that gagging is fine, and really didn't think I'd be worked up about it, but I was!

Purees were accepted for about a week, but now he refuses to try to swallow anything offered on a spoon and just spits it out immediately. Soooo... at week 27 it was back to BLW weaning after all!

The only thing is that he's still gagging loads. Is that quite typical? He's now 28 weeks. I'm I just being a stress-head about this? I only offer food a couple of times a day, and haven't done every day (when we've been away for Easter for example) so I suppose he's not actually had all that much practice yet. The only thing he'll reliably have without gagging is a stick of cucumber - sucks/gnaws it to death very happily. We've also tried brocolli, bread, toast, avocado. And chunky porridge (pre-loaded onto a spoon - most of it gets tipped out as he tries to negotiate the spoon to his mouth anyway) and well cooked red lentils.

I'm not really sure what I should be expecting - hardly any food is going in (which I'm fine with, I know it's all still very new), and when it does it often comes straight back up again when he retches. What else can people recommend that we try?

[DrMcDreamysWife]

I am blw also about 5 weeks in. Dd is 7mo and she LOVES it. Which is a relief as she is terrified of the spoon!! She shovels food in and will try everything! I was very nervous at first and my mum gave me a lecture about choking and did I realise that the hospital was quite far and would I know how to get food out her throat and other such unhelpful worry ;).

However it's going really well she does gag occasionally but then spots out large chunks! Real successes are eggy bread, porridge fingers, cucumber sticks ( that I can dip in hummous/yogurt/purées) toast fingers. She LOVEs courgette fingers and broccoli heads. Plums are a big hit she takes a quarter sucks off all the flesh and spits the skin out! She has also tried spag Bol and risotto.

I have used the blw cookbook quite a lot for ideas and the carrot muffins are great. Dh loves them!

Have loved reading others ideas, more support the better! Most of my
Friends are puree food feeding

[MrsNPattz]

Hi guys! I think the gagging will get better the more he knows what to do with food! Although I'm no expert, but little man doesn't gag so much now probably have spoken too soon

He tried an omelette tonight but I think he was too tired as he wouldn't attempt much and then was just crying!

Is it ok to offer ham or is that too processed?

[Quak]

After 2 days of just not even trying to eat carrot and squash, we had some success today with brocolli and a rice cake. She pulls the strangest faces, I might as well be giving her a lemon! Annoyingly the dog won't eat brocolli so I had to clean the mess up myself - hrrmph!
DrMcD - I have just ordered the blw book. What other books have you used. I am a troglodyte in the kitchen so will run out of ideas very soon.

Another thing. We are vegetarian, but didn't necessarily want to restrict dd yet. What do other's do??

[Pinebarrens]

hi Quak we are vegetarian too but DCs are not.

I did BLW with DDI over 3 years ago & cooked chicken & fish which she still loves. I'll do the same with DS in fact he's already had chicken curry.

i struggle cooking red meat so my mum batch cooks bolognese sauce for DD.

[Passmethecrisps]

Oh hi! Can I join? It will be likely another month at least for my entirely food averse dinky child. I will probably straddle BLW and some spoon shiz.

[slightlysoupstained]

We're vegetarian too. We discussed this the other day - don't think we'd be distraught if DS managed to eat something we don't, but neither of us want to prepare or feed him meat. We're not vegan, so B12 etc isn't an issue so long as we're feeding a varied diet. Am giving vitamin drops anyway for the D3 as apparently breastfed babies need them? Most seems to dribble straight out again though!

That "eww new taste what on earth is this!" is hilarious, isn't it? I was a bit crushed at first until I realised that eventually it goes away when he decides he recognises something.

ForgetfulMog re: mess, gave DS spaghetti for the first time the other day. Best. New. Toy. Ever. Glad I hadn't put sauce on it, as there were strands everywhere... Not sure he actually ate more than a few tiny nibbles, but he had great fun.

[Nicknamefail]

DrMcDWife, what are porridge fingers?

[DrMcDreamysWife]

Porridge fingers are very strange things ;). I got recipe from blw recipe book. You mix 3 table spoons of normal adult porridge oats with 3 tablespoons of milk of your choice. Mash down with back of spoon into a flat bottomed bowl and put in microwave on high for 2 minutes. Let it cool a bit, then slice into fingers. Let cool more then give to child to eat! Voila!

They are a sort of congealed semi solid finger that my dd is managing fine. You do need a few goes at getting the consistency right. They can be done in the oven too. And actually I've made them night before and kept in fridge for morning and she liked them cold from fridge.

Its on the blw forum website too.

[DrMcDreamysWife]

www.babyledweaning.com/recipes/breakfast/hub2dees-porridge-pancakes/

Link to more info on porridge fingers/pancakes from blw website

[Nicknamefail]

Thank you DrMcW, they look good. We are going away today so will try them when we get back. Dd reaches the fabled 6mo tomorrow, so I may give her the odd stick of something if I feel like it and am in an establishment that can cope with food being thrown onto the floor but will start properly next week.