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Weaning

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

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Original poster

Anyone NOT doing BLW?

8 replies

fluffyanimal · 07/10/2006 11:51

I hear so much about it here, but it has never been mentioned to me by HVs or any of the mums I know in RL. I'm starting to feel as if I ought to be doing it but would like to feel that I'm not a bad mum for not doing it. So anyone else just doing the conventional spponfeeding thing like me?

OP posts:

Toothyboy · 07/10/2006 11:58

I'm sort of doing a bit of both really! Ds2 is 7.5 months - I spoon feed him about 70% of his meals and make up the rest with finger foods like cooked carrot sticks, bread sticks, toast fingers.

He loves his food, and I just find he doesn't eat enough if left up to himself as he hasn't got great co-ordination or staying power yet!

How old is your baby? Are you giving any finger foods yet?

colditz · 07/10/2006 12:15

If it's his dinner time, I feed him. If it is my dinnertime, he feeds himself little bits and bobs of mine.

My personal opinion is this - we haven't always used spoons to feed our babies, but5 we have always chewed stuff up to put in their mouths, which is no differant to mqashing it with a fork.

He is only 6 months, and gets extremely cross with his food if I don't help him.

glamourbadger · 07/10/2006 12:49

Hi fluffyanimal

I have to agree - I'm friends with loads of mums currently weaning their babies and everyone doing it the conventional spponfeeding way. To be honest this forum is the only place I've ever heard of baby led weaning and I attend lots of baby groups.

My twins are getting on fine with spoonfeeding - I give them their own spoon which they tend to wave around and spread pureed food through their hair. I'll progress to finger foods when they have better co-ordination, at the moment I doubt very much of it would actually reach their mouth!

Original poster

fluffyanimal · 07/10/2006 13:00

Fluffybaby is nearly 7 months. I started weaning at just under 6 months. I'm going to introduce a few bits of fingerfood now as he likes to help me put the spoon in, and he likes to gnaw on a bickiepeg, but I still think I'll have to feed him most of his solids for a while.

OP posts:

Rookiemum · 08/10/2006 20:56

I'm not doing BLW as whilst it sounds like a cool idea I am a bit of a control freak and like to read books about what I am doing and follow some recipes. Also I have given DS some rice crackers & carrot sticks to eat with his hands and they just seem to end up on the floor so I think it requires a LOT more patience than I have.

I know what you mean though about feeling a wee bit bad about it too as I thought I was being a good mum by doing my own fruit & veg purees and then I find out about yet something else that I should learn about and try sigggghhhhh !

However from the type of posts I have seen about BLW I don't get the sense that it is in the realm of the breast vs bottle feeding discussions as I think the people doing BLW are just trying to spread awareness about it.

TheBlairAitchProject · 08/10/2006 21:00

totally right, rookiemum. i really like BLW but it's not a good vs bad debate. (actually i think of it as more of an industrious vs lazy debate, and i know which side i fall on, that's for sure).
and i think that the fact that everybody can have a bit more confidence about letting their babies try finger food at or around 6 months can only be a good thing, regardless of whether or not they are principally spoon feeding.

Mum2FunkyDude · 08/10/2006 21:07

BLW is based on giving baby control of all the food that goes in. This includes just sucking it and throwing it on the floor, I spoonfed before I heard of BLW and to be honest, now I'm doing spoonfeeding with finger foods, I know how much FunkyDude eats, his a big baby 10.5 months. BLW is just another approach to weaning and does require some time and patience, it doesn't suit me a 100% as I tend to eat foods not fit for FunkyDude yet and I'm very lazy eating set meals during the day so I tend to make sure he has 3 meals at set times to help with his routine, which without he tends to be a very disorganised little chap.

HTH, I think you should rather look at it as a new way of thought rather than a set way. If you feel confident to combine the two do so, if not then that is good too.

Drillbert · 08/10/2006 21:28

I started with a spoon and then progressed to a few finger foods and the spoon and that's where we are at 9 months. I found DS shoved too much in his mouth, choked and threw everything up if allowed to self feed. He's getting better now but still has a tendency to do it sometimes. I let him have his finger foods first so that if it happens, I still have his meal left to give him!! He has his own spoon but it has to be really sticky food for it to still be on the spoon when it finally reaches his mouth.

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