6mth old - first 2 weeks good, now getting upset!

[caspercat]

DD 6mths old tomorrow. Started weaning 2wks ago as showing all signs. Started with baby rice which she loved and couldn't wait for next mouthful. Have since been introducing new food every 3 days. Last 2 foods (melon & banana) she started taking well, but after 5/6 spoonfuls, started getting upset and trying to get out of bumbo. Didn't force, etc, but just wondering - am i trying to get her to take too much, is she not ready, or just doesn't like these foods? Any ideas would be appreciated x

[AitchTwoOhOhSeven]

ah now, be honest... were they gagging or choking? did she stop breathing, cos that's choking, and very serious and awful and worthy of being turned upside down. gagging is horrid to watch, but it's them using their throats and tongues to move food out of the way, apparently.

personally, i think that learning not to gag won't take place until you're allowed to gag a bit, because the baby is learning how much to take in, how far to move it back in the mouth, how to move it out of harm's way with their tongue etc etc. but it's not easy for some people to watch their children do it, cos it looks like it might be uncomfortable. (it probably is, lord knows...)

but to answer your question, it took dd about a month of finger foods to stop gagging. i would say i can't remember the last time she did it but i'd be lying, as for the first time in months she did it today. she's very good at it though and immediately got back to eating her bread.

[caspercat]

Getting into it now. Broccoli not a hit, but loved banana and steamed carrot yesterday. Roasted some butternut squash & courgette today and she loved them. The nappies are something to behold though! How do people manage when out? Do you take prepared stuff with you? When get to the stage of offering food from our plates, what about the fact that most places will cook with salt? Sorry bout yet more questions xx

[DizzyBint]

the gagging stopped after about a month. what i found helped was to do chewing faces at dd while she gagged. yes your instinct is to grab the food out or whack them on the back but you really have to just make light of it, go chew chew, and baby then keeps calm and goes back to chewing. it's actually good that they gag, it stops them choking. and like aitch said, a little cough and a splutter is ok, it's just their body dealing with the food. the more they eat the better they get at it.

[AitchTwoOhOhSeven]

i took prepared things out in the beginning (if you can call some cucumber and some rice cakes prepared). i still always have ricecakes and celery and raisins with me.
after a while, though, i decided to chill out about the salt thing. we don't eat out every day, so i reckoned that if she wasn't getting any from me then some pasta probably cooked in salt wouldn't kill her. also salads are good and dare i say chips (which you ask for unsalted).

[fizzbuzz]

Well not sure really, it was sort of in between the two, I don't really know-it was just scary. If it was gagging it went on for a long time, although she has gagged as well

Should I reintroduce them but with firmer food. Help!

[AitchTwoOhOhSeven]

probably. Gill Rapley (blw guru) suggests toast rather than soft bread, for example, as soft bread can get stuck in their mouths. try toast and see where you go from there... let the baby get the practice in.

[GingGangGooley]

I'm with the others... as a fellow BLW'er is the best thing ever. I am a lazy cow and its so much less stressful.

No preperation needed really.

I weaned my son at 4 months with (young, stupid, didn't know any better and listened to advice of HV - god they're rubbish!)

anyway this time round I researched everything myself and its loads better.

A lot of people do mistake gagging for choking so be calm. ALso don't rush, its a slow process.

oh and my dd also choked on apple so beware! haha!

OK so i:m slow on the uptake and have noticed you@re rocking with the blw already! i do have a screaming 7.5 month old on my knee though

[caspercat]

Me again. DH just ate last banana which was keeping for DDs brekkie! Don't want to go back to frozen purees! Someone mentioned baby rice pancakes!! Sorry for sounding thick but how do u make these?

[AitchTwoOhOhSeven]

porridge pancakes, have a look on the blog for the recipe.

[caspercat]

Re : soft pears! Is there a particular type to buy or do u just use v ripe ones? Could i quickly poach them?

[deaconblue]

Ds hated bumbo and highchair until I gave him washable toys to play with while he was eating. That might help. We then moved on to finger foods. He went off eating after about 4 weeks of weaning though and I jsut went right back to the things he's liked at first like pear and carrot, and then started building up again.

[Plibble]

I can't do BLW because DD is off to nursery and they won't be able to cope there, but I didn't want her turning into one of those kids who refuse lumps. I also didn't want to spoon in little lumps because it seemed to me that they might surprise her by being in her mouth all of a sudden. So for the last 3 days I have given banana (cut up as described on Aitch's blog), papaya (similarly chopped), pear (no skin as she was finding it rather too hard to cope with) and strips of chicken (which she sucked and then threw at me). Already the gagging has lessened and she smiles right away after each grimace. Personally I think it helps to act like it is nothing as I have met people who suspect their children of gagging for attention. I also let her have a spoon if we're eating puree (cue parsnip in the eye), but at least she seems to be having fun eating for the first time since we started weaning.

[caspercat]

Just wanted to say, DIZZYBINT, thanks loads for pointing me towards BLW. i know it's early days, but dd taken to it brilliantly. At such a young age she is already a very strong willed, contrary baby (but obviously wouldn't have her any other way!), and i could foresee probs with the lumps issue (post purees) and it def suits her to find out for herself. Have already become quite evangelical about BLW with friends (they all think i'm mad). I know it won't all be plain sailing, but we'll have fun getting there xxxx

[AitchTwoOhOhSeven]

it might all be plain sailing, you know...
and if you want to poach the pears, poach 'em. do whatever you feel comfortable with, honestly. i didn't bother, but then my prime reason for doing blw was laziness.

Plibble, have you asked the nursery about finger food? maybe print off some info about it for them? it's much less labour-intensive for the nursery, and you are paying them, so it's worth asking them to try i think. plenty of other people have... you could maybe start a thread asking how they broached the subject?

[DizzyBint]

aww bless you caspercat!

plibble- my dd started nursery last week. they're fine with blw. she has what the call toddler food rather than lumpy puree like the other babies in her room. we've agreed if the toddler food for that day isn't suitable, ie soup, then they make her a sandwich. so far so good! she had tuna wrap on monday, beans on toast thursday and on friday she had sandwiches. also, when they would be giving yoghurts, dd has fruit, same as the toddlers. i did wonder how she'd feel being the odd baby out, but i figure they'll all catch up in the end, so it's only for a few months. she doesn't seem bothered! she's 8 months now.

[Plibble]

Aitch - They do give some finger food at snack time (just chopped fruit really), but Mini-Plibble is not so good at picking little bits up, so I will be asking them to provide bigger pieces for her. There was a thread about BLW at nursery somewhere on here a few weeks ago, so I shall have a search for that in a sec.
DD ate a large peach today and growled at me at one point when I tried to take it away - very funny! I took a lot of photos as proof that she doesn't need mush for the MIL!

[AitchTwoOhOhSeven]

yeah, it takes them a while to get that pincer grip thing down. funnily enough, dd now likes having her food cut up bite-sized ao everything is subject to change..

[caspercat]

Hi all. Quick silly Q. Is it ok to give bubs veggies/potatoes that have been roasted around meat (pork roast today) as long as no extra salt has been added? And olive oil used? Or is it best to cook her separate ones? NB she's 25wks old, so not quite the magic 6 months yet, but coping with BLW v well xxx

[AitchTwoOh]

it'll be fine. delicious, in fact.

[caspercat]

Thanks for that. Didn't want her to miss out on her 1st scrummy roastie, just thought pork might be a bit salty. Best keep the crackling for DH though

[AitchTwoOh]

casper, the thinking is that if they can do BLW, then they are probably ready internally. no-one's had an endoscope down there to check, though, of course, but that's the theory.
if the pork will have had salt rubbed into it and then the juices will have basted the roasties, then you could always give the roastie a quick rinse before handing it over. someitmes i do that ust to cool things down quicker anyway. enjoy your lunch.

[caspercat]

Hi. BLW going really well. LO had a broccoli beard today, and loves roasted courgette! Will be 6mths next week and can't wait to try new things, but as ever have a few qs. i.e, when giving Weetabix & milk, do i just make it up and plop a spoonful on the tray in front of her and let her play with it and hope some goes in her mouth? Same for rice pudding, soups etc? Also i presume she'll still need to learn how to use a spoon, so if want to give her yoghurt etc, if i spoon feed her is that taking a backward step? Do i load the spoon up and give it to her? Feel like i need a DVD instruction manual!!

[DizzyBint]

pour soup onto bread, or dip bread into it, then let dd pick up soggy bread.

weetabix etc can be made quite thick, ie not loads of milk so baby can pick it up. think of it like thick mashed potato.

and yes, another good option is to get a load of spoons, load them up, let her do her worst. or have 2 spoons, one you load up for her while she plays with the other, then you both swap.

don't worry about her learning to use a spoon, with blw she'll develop hand eye co ordination very quickly and then utensils are an easy next step. dd is 8 months now and can take a fork of food and eat it. i load it up, she can shovel it into her mouth.

[caspercat]

Hi all. Enjoying the BLW thing, can't wait till next wk when lo 6mths old so looking forward to toast, cheese, pasta etc. Is wholemeal bread o.k, or can it cause constipation? Also, if i want to give yoghurtor other 'spoony' things, do i wait till she can hold a spoon, but how does she learn that if using fingers? If i spoonfeed her things like that will it confuse her re BLW? Or do i load up the spoon and give her one end and let her get on with it? Last Q! Sweetcorn & peas - do you mush them up or give as they are, and bubbs will pick up when pincer grip kicks in? Sorry if dumbass questions!!! DH keeps bugging me...

[caspercat]

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