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Weaning

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

Original poster

blw 3 weeks early.

34 replies

littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 19:46

Ds is 23 weeks old, he has been sitting up for a couple of weeks, up and down everynight for weeks, and is tring to get food out of our hand and plates.
Me and dh have decided (after speaking to a bf counciler) that it is time to start solids. I would like to do blw, but unsure what he can have.

can he have-
porrage
coconut
bread
rice
pasta

OP posts:
aitch71 · 26/09/2006 20:21

it's probably ludicrous given that there is only three weeks in it but i think that it might be better to avoid bread and pasta until six months, just so that if he has an allergy later on you won't kick yourself.

i'd start off with soft fruit and steamed carrot myself, that sort of thing. and don't expect him to eat loads from the off. rice would be fine but might be tricky to feed himself. and porridge should be okay but you might want to make pancakes with it in the microwave so he can feed himself.

be aware, though, that my dd's sleep got worse rather than better when she started having solids. it really makes sense, i think, if you consider that her digestive system is getting a shock.
and i think coconut is fine... but how would you be serving it? it's best, i think, to stick to things that will smush up easily in their mouths to begin with. good luck, littlepiggie, it's quite an adventure.

Original poster
littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 20:42

gave him some carrot and potato while we had tea, dont think he ate a lot,or any but give it afew weeks.
Coconut to put in a curry, banana, mango and coconut blits up, few spices in it but not spicy.
How do you make pancakes out of porridge? and is it ok to put berries or apple in?
Sleep is about as bad as it can get now, every 3-4 hours for feeds in the night even though every 2 hours in the day.

He has been suching on fruit that i am eating for a couple of weeks as he fights till i let him, so thought its time.

OP posts:
Original poster
littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 20:44

oh and rice to mix in things like curry, them lick of fingers sort of thing.

OP posts:
aitch71 · 26/09/2006 21:19

it is honestly easier in the beginning not to blitz things but just to leave lumps on the highchair tray for them to grab. or let him grab from you while he's sitting on your lap.
your curry sounds lovely, but if i was you i would include some larger, chip-shaped pieces of veg that you can pull out for ds when you all come to eat. that's what i do with soups and stews. remember that when you first start off the baby will gag, so if i was you i'd keep it simple for the first few weeks until he gets the hang of moving food around his mouth.
that's great about the carrot and potato, by the way, and you might be surprised at what you see in his nappy tomorrow.
and you'll find the recipe for porridge pancakes in the recipes section of this . you'll have to scroll down to find it but there might be some other recipes and info whihc will help.

laundrylover · 26/09/2006 21:26

ooh a well timed BLW thread!!
DD2 is 6 months in 3 days time and I started her on solids last week. So far broccoli has been a big hit, as have those organic rice cakes. Tonight she cried until she got the pasta that we were having.
Yesterday made EBM ready brek and tonight yoghurt - just before bath! It was two spoon approach and she looked like she'd been rendered!!!
BTW her sleep is terrible right now - 4 feeds a night and I know she is capable of 12 hours.
Is the porridge pancake method on your blog Aitch? You were my inspiration BTW.

laundrylover · 26/09/2006 21:26

crossed posts Aitch, you read my mind!

Original poster
littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 21:28

we have it as a curry but i was going to use it as a dip or nix in some chunky veg and later rice and meat.
for the curry fry meat, onion garlic turmric, garah masarla (sp), grate coconut, and mix into blitz banana and mango and a bit of stock or water, caak for about 10 min put in pan with meat and add a chopped banana for a couple of min.
Its realy nice, goes well with a spicy one to cool your mouth down.

OP posts:
aitch71 · 26/09/2006 21:55

sounds amazing, especially with the banana. you know you can try your baby with a good baby fist-sized lump of meat? they don't do much else than suck it, so it's not as terrifying as it sounds. and there are nutritionists working on theories that we should start babies on meat rather than cereal, it's a prehistoric thing apparently.
and thanks, laundrylover, that's very kind of you and good news on the broccoli and rice cakes.
hub2dee invented the porridge pancakes, i find them a lifesaver myself as dd wolfs them down. as for the not sleeping, dd did that too, and i was recommended on here to give her food no later than four-thirty or so, which helped a lot.
also, while i remember it, we haven't had much success with dips... too messy for me as i find it impossible to keep the dip on the highchair table and it just flies everywhere.

Original poster
littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 21:56

just made a porridge cake for Harry's breakfast, try a bit af banana, or maybe plums. He has had a suck on both and seems to like them.

OP posts:
Original poster
littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 21:59

Will try next time. didnt give him any meat today as did not think i could.

OP posts:
laundrylover · 26/09/2006 21:59

Yes banana and plums are both a success. Carrot too but we did have a silent choking episode which was rather alarming.
Will try the porridge pancakes but only have ready brek type oats at the mo. Was rather hoping to tempt DD1 with it as she won't touch porridge.

Original poster
littlepiggie · 26/09/2006 22:09

bit of carrot made him gag, a slap on the back fixed it, bless.

OP posts:
aitch71 · 26/09/2006 22:20

yep, you've really got to overcook the carrot, and even then they gag. however, so long as you can handle watching them it's not a terrible thing for them to learn how to work food around their mouths. took DD about a fortnight of occasional gagging and now it hasn't happened in ages. (will almost certainly happen tomorrow now )

aitch71 · 26/09/2006 22:22

will ready brek oats not work? i don't know what they are like, really, but it's worth a try. make one and see if it looks edible, laundrylover...

hub2dee · 27/09/2006 14:07

I'm signing autographs if anyone wants...

Readybrek - been there, done that. Totally useless. Goes into wallpaper paste, doesn't set perfectly. Crap.

Tried Jordan's organice rolled oats. Not quite as useless but deffo not fab. The flakes aren't very absorbent, they are hard and large, they don't make a beautiful pancake.

Have tired M&S porridge - works a treat. And one other brand but I can't remember. I thinkt he trick is to find a blend with some whole oats and some ground....

If your child is old enough, and you don't mind raisins, they transform the pancake into something ultra tasty.

hth.

aitch71 · 27/09/2006 14:55

all hail hub, for he didst invent the pancake of porridge on which i have almost entirely come to rely in nourishing my daughter...

laundrylover · 27/09/2006 14:56

Hmmm, yes my ready brek attempt is not looking good but has used up some leftover EBM so she can have a play with it later.
Will phone DP and get him to pop into M & S. That means I have to eat the ready brek but must admit to liking it better than porridge!!

hub2dee · 27/09/2006 15:13

you prefer the globby, blended, sickening paste to real porridge ?????? LOL

Behave, aitch. Hey - what's the longest you'd leave a hub pancake in the baby bag when out and about ? I'm wondering about their out-of-fridge life for daytrips etc.

laundrylover · 27/09/2006 15:19

I know, I think it's because when we were kids porridge was standard and Ready Brek was a big treat!!
Mind you proper porridge with golden syrup is the bees knees.....not that I'd allow my girls to enjoy such a naughtiness!

aitch71 · 27/09/2006 17:47

i'd call it a day, easily. but then i don't put milk in if i'm taking them out, as that seems to me to be the most corruptible part of the pancake. oats and water... sounds practically inert to me. the neon gas of kiddie nutrition.

hub2dee · 27/09/2006 17:57

Do you usually make yours with water or milk then aitch ? I love noble gasses LOL.

aitch71 · 27/09/2006 19:07

DD is on aptamil so i usually add one scoop per pancake chez nous. i think argon's my favourite.

Original poster
littlepiggie · 29/09/2006 19:33

HV asked about weaning today, the horror when i said blw.

I got 'nothing before 6 months then they need plenty of food', then said to ds 'you can have a bit of baby rice soon'!

What planet are these people on, he will eat when he is ready, we now offer somthing at breakfast and then its up to him, whats worst, offering banana at 23 weeks or forceing baby rice and whatever else down in 3 weeks time?

OP posts:
aitch71 · 29/09/2006 22:43

had she ever heard of BLW before? i don't mind if it's not for some people (we all do what we think is best) so long as they actually know what it is they are dismissing out of hand...

Original poster
littlepiggie · 29/09/2006 23:03

not by the look an her face, looked about like what ever are you talking about, then told me again that he HAD to be weaned at 6 months, like its a magic number or something, and how he would not be getting enough iron. Fine if its not working for us then go to spoon feeding, but give it a go, its not as is he is not putting on weight or unhappy.

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