Weaning when on holiday

[kazzah29]

We're going on a self catering holiday to the Lake District for a week in mid October. We just started weaning our six month old ten days ago so by the time we go she'll have been on solids for about 5-6 weeks.

Breakfast and dinner won't be an issue as we'll be in our holiday flat but no idea what we'll do for lunches as we're baby led weaning which can obviously be very messy.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what to feed for lunch (assuming we'll be eating in cafes etc) or should we skip lunch for her and I'll just breastfeed her at lunch when we're out?

I did BLW on holiday in the lakes! Teacakes, cheese on toast and sausages work well in cafes.

Meals out with a BLW is a doddle!! Just make sure you have one of those long sleeved bibs, and either take things with you such as mini sandwiches, steamed/roasted veg/fruit eye, or just give your baby a bit of whatever you're having.

Just give her a bit of whatever your having out, plus breast milk and take some snacks.

So breakfast and dinner at the house, lunch out if you stop somewhere. Take some breadsticks, avocados and banana incase you and dh end up not eating much lunch

Eye=etc! Typo sorry!

I was just going to say tea cakes.

Also a big F Off pack of wet wipes and a carrier bag. In my experience most cafes chill out pretty quick if you stick them on the table at the beginning so they can see you intend to leave the table as you found it.
Enjoy your holiday!

Thanks everyone, that puts my mind at rest a bit. We'll have a go at feeding when out and about, maybe (wishful thinking) she'll be a wee bit less messy by then, lol!

For early BLW we bought cheap plastic cloths (try the baby section at poundland, or failing that tablecloths) that folded up really small and light to tuck in the nappy bag. It meant that we could pick up dropped food safely and then quickly clear up at the end of the meal. Yes to big bibs (the ikea ones are great as you can wipe them down easily for reuse)

As for food, I found jacket potato with cheese and salad (no dressing) was a really easy meal out to share for BLW purposes. We also took along a few bits that we knew he liked just in case we couldn't find much that was suitable. Oranges were ideal portable food, and we took little plastic tubs to put things like cucumber sticks, cheese sticks etc.

If she's messy, a bib like this is a real godsend when out and about!
m.ebay.co.uk/itm/351479175485

Unfortunately I think you just have to suck up the mess! In a way it's easier with BLW when you eat out, but on the flip side I'm quite jealous of mums happily spooning purees into their baby's mouth while I scrabble away on the floor picking up half gummed bits of sandwich and fruit that have been flung down there. The other thing I find is if we're going out for lunch somewhere I have to take twice as much food because while at home I'll happily pick stuff off the floor and put it back on her tray, I don't necessarily want to do that in some random pub or cafe. I guess I find it all less hassle than bringing a floor mat along with me though....
I find even if we're going out somewhere that should have suitable food, I still almost always pack something I know she'll eat (namely dairylea sandwich, cucumber sticks, and some fruit).

I sometimes put a big muslin under the highchair, then I can just scoop up the mess at the end :) As a pp said, having the huge pack of wet wipes on the table at the start helps show people you have a plan to deal with the chaos. I always have a banana and some cheese about my person just in case, but have always been able to find something to give DD.