Milk - before or after solids?

[mamamoomin]

Have just started weaning and after a week of baby rice we had our first fruit today (which went down well). I am breastfeeding before giving the solids at the moment - how long should I do that for? Surely she will be full of milk and not want the solids as much?

Hi when I first started weaning my daughter I used to give her most of her milk first then some rice/fruit. As the amount increased I reduced the amount of milk I gave first until was giving half the milk first then half afterwards. Worked for me, hope this helps! xx

I'm going through the process at the minute and am doing much the same as mummypip1.

If they are under 6 mths or you have just started the food is really more about getting used to tastes rather than anything else but then itw working towards replacing the milk, I have noticed that DS 6.5 mths has started drinking a bit less milk naturally at his meals.

I didnt think of it in terms of milk first or last when DS started eating real food. I just kept bf on demand & he had food when we ate & he wasnt asleep. Sometimes he wanted breastfeeding during the mealtimes & sometimes he didnt. No different to when he was littler tbh - just that he had food in front of him to play with & eat if he wanted! He very gradually started eating more & bfing less but it wasnt until he was well past 1 year that he ate more food than bm.

I wouldnt worry about her wanting the solids as much at the start - milk will still be where she will get most of her calories & nutrients until she is 1 year at least. Any solids eaten will be a bonus for her!

I started off like that, mamamoomin, and once I felt that ds would eat as much as a whole ice cube (i.e. more than just tasting), then I stopped giving milk with the solids, and now I alternate a milk meal with a solid meal. I give water with the solids. That way he always wants his milk, and also drinks plenty of water. It took about 2 weeks max to reach that stage

dd is eating 2-3 teaspoons of food already - and we're only in our second week of weaning! She is 5 months old on friday, but is a big baby (9lb at birth - 2 weeks late) and is obviously hungry.
I guess I'll see if she starts drinking less breastmilk and continue to offer it before the meals for now and then try offering water with meals. Do you offer water in a bottle or cup? What kind of cup do people recommend?

I give water in a Tommee Tippee lidded cup, purely so that ds would get used to drinking from something other than a bottle, and because usually all my bottles are already made up with milk in them! Lots of HVs recommend the Doidy cup which is slanted and doesn't have a lid, but I reckoned that would be messy.