1001 questions !!!!

[32maria]

Hi..I have lots of questions and was hoping to get some knowledgable advice here please!!! I have been weaning my baby since 26 weeks, it has gone well and she is now 7 months old exactly. I am trying to do a mix of Annabel karmel and blw. My questions are:

1. Currently she is on breakfast and lunch and a snack in the evenings. Am not sure when to move to including an official dinner ie three meals a day, my instinct tells me not yet as I don't want her to cut down too many milk feeds too quickly, but some of my books recommend three meals a day by seven months.... What do you all think ?
2. Am trying to also include finger food blw but find myself resorting to mashing or pureeing as am too scared to give her big chunks, she seems to want to take big bites of finger foods but am scared of choking. I know this is irrational, any advice on how to make this easier for me!!!.
3. Am spending tonnes of time sterilising the weaning equipment. Some people say you need to sterilise the water cups, spoons and others say none. What does everyone do here?
4. Are they any hints of how to speed up cooking from scratch? Am making home made meals but am finding that this is taking ages, even though I love it i am sure there could be short cuts. I don't want to freeze as my freezer is a bit dodgy, but I was thinking I could give her the same meal for lunch and dinner hence just cook a bigger batch at lunchtime and save for later. Any other hints or tips?

Many thanks in advance, all advice would be appreciated!

Me again...one final question. Can anyone recommend bread brand and cheese with lowest salt content. I bought cheddar but it's so high in salt. Thanks

NHS advice is to move to 3 meals by about 8 to 9 months, so you have a while yet.

Don't know about bread, but cheeses like Emmental are the lowest in salt.

Maybe you could go on a baby first aid course to help you feel calmer about giving finger foods. Choking is very unlikely (and can happen with purée as well) - gagging is quite common, and is actually protective. Their gag reflex is bringing food forward for a second attempt! If you are happy with the difference between choking (silent, scary) and gagging (noisy, normal) then that could help you relax.

Oh and don't bother sterilising plates and spoons etc! Just a dishwash is fine.

When you give finger foods the best shape is a long baton, with enough to stick out of your baby's fist. If you give really ripe fruit like pear, banana, nectarines or well steamed veg like carrots, broccoli, parsnips, etc then they will squish into mush when chewed.

you can steam small portions of veg at a time in the microwave which might be quicker than what you're doing. It would be easier to batch cook though. Or maybe give the same as you're eating (minus salt) so you don't need to do twice Aaron much work.
Second emmental or full fat cream cheese on toast over cheddar for now. I think.most bread is much of a muchness when it comes to salt.
No don't bother steralising over 6 months.
Trust your instincts when it comes to number of meals. Remember "food for fun until 1"
Sorry can't remember other questions.

as not Aaron!

1. A lot of books are older and written on the assumption that weaning started around 4 months so 2-3 months later a full meal schedule would be established.

1. There are videos on BLW (youtube) which explain how the baby uses the gag reflex to learn how to eat safely and avoid choking, of course incidents do occur but this can happen with purees too. Definately wortg watching and noting the differences so you can react appropriately.

1. My DS was bottlefed and I sterilised everything up to a year but DD is breastfed and I stopped sterilising at 6 months when she started crawling as she picks everything up and puts it in her mouth anyway so a bit pointless really. None of her cups, plates or cutlery have ever been sterilised.

1. I make one meal for all of us, obviously I don't cook with salt and I add extra seasoning and spices after the kids' portions are done. its actually led to a healthier diet for all of us as I'm more conscious of what we are eating as a family.

1. I've never worried about salt content of cheese and bread tbh as the rest of her diet is pretty much sodium free and our bodies need a little salt to stay healthy. I've never used low-salt stock or gravy either, again its just more about being aware of portions and finding the right balance.

Good luck and try not to stress :)

Many thanks for all the helpful tips so far! Really very useful and reassuring! As you can tell this is my first baby lol.
Will go pack away the steriliser wahay!