What weaning 'equipment' do I need?

[AlmondFrangipani]

Just planning for the start of weaning and have seen you can buy all sorts of pots, cube trays, bowls, spoons etc etc. I just wondered what I actually need before I buy the whole of Amazon??!

I read somewhere that if they can pick up a raisin and put it into their mouth, they should have the required chewing skills to eat said raisin. Not sure if that's official advice but it makes sense to me - they have to be pretty dexterous to pick up a little tiny raisin, so don't think it's something your average 6mo could do.

I've given them to children in my care from 12m, but parents have given them earlier. I considered them small enough shapes to be ok, but I remember reading something a little while ago which suggested 3 years old! Obviously in cooking they go a lot softer so that's different but I guess when raw they do tend to be quite hard. I guess it's a use your own judgement jobby, I can't quite imagine chopping up raisins for a 2 year old

Just on the back of the lump/ no lump chat when I asked the Hv what the latest advice was e.g. Should I start on baby rice like I did with DD1 she said that no, advice now is to mash with a fork from the word go and gave me a menu planner which had the first intro to solids as fork mashed banana/ fork mashed potato etc. I have felt a lot more confident at giving lumpy food/ finger food from early on second time 'round (and I wouldn't label myself a diehard baby lead weaner or anything.... ), main thing is that you just need to supervise them to make sure they don't choke.

Raisins from memory I started to give them when DD1 was about 1 and was able to pick them up herself? Not heard the advice to wait until 3?! Lol. I think now she's 3 she's already well past the stage of finding raisins exciting....

I used to sprinkle them around the tray to encourage 'fine motor control' (and that doesn't sound pretentious at all! That advice does make sense Rally, as well as pulling them apart when they stick together in bunches.

An ikea high chair, a hose pipe, a tin if Dulux endurance paint for your kitchen walls, as many cheap plastic table cloths (for floors/tables/chairs) as you can find!!!!!

3 years old to eat raisins? ! Jesus christ!
Our health visitor used raisins at 8 month check to see if DD had pincer grip.

Ikea high chair
long sleeved bibs
summer infant tiny diner mat for eating out.
sippy cups.

that's it really. A few weanng spoons are handy and perhaps some plastic bowls, i like the tommee tippee ones that stick on the magic mat, but they are for a few months down the line.

of course if you want to begin with home made puree there are all sorts of storage pots on the market. I would just go with cheap ones as they are used for a very short time.

I like the little Siestma lock lid pots. They are just regular pots with lids that you can buy virtually anywhere so are usful for anything. An use for puree or snacks and various sizes