BLW - where can I get some good information on how to do this?

[Janus]

DD3 is only 4.5 months so we are not at the weaning stage yet but my other 2 were at this age and it was all puree pear, puree carrot, puree potato, etc, etc. If I can avoid the whole days spent in the kitchen pureeing this and that it sounds great!
But I don't know what I'm doing! Do you use baby rice at all? Do you boil up a carrot until very tender and then give it to her? Same with fruit? What do you do for breakfast? Can you hand over something like bread and butter if they have no teeth? What do you take with you if you are going out?
I can't seem to find a book on the subject but if anyone has one or knows of a good website which tells you how to start can you point me in the right direction?
Many thanks!

try my website www.babyledweaning.com
there's a wee forum as well, the women there can help (although most of them are here too... )

There isn't a book yet! Gill Rapley is the guru and she is still writing hers.
But you can try her website, or wiki, or this nice one here.
I didn't use baby rice (it doesn't make very good finger food ); boil the carrot until it is tender enough to be bitten but not so soft it falls apart (you'll get the hang of it!) Fruit is fab as often doesn't need to be cooked at all - I'd leave the skin on though, gives the baby something to grip (and they are amazing at spitting it out!). Broccoli and cauliflower are nice easy veg. Breakfast was fruit or toast fingers or porridge on a pre-loaded spoon. Have fun!

she filed it in march, boo, it's out in nov.you can order it on amazon.

Thanks Aitch but I'm still finding it difficult to work out!! Is there somewhere on that site that literally tells you what to give from the beginning? I understand the principal but need it laid out in basic terms!! ie, at 7.30am on first day offer banana, at 4pm offer a bowl of porridge, etc. I need it spelt out so I understand!

All I did was offer whatever veg we were having with our meal, when we had our meal. Sometimes she ate a bit, sometimes she didn't. If she was asleep or we weren't having anything suitable, she didn't get.

no you DON'T.

you eat, don't you? you're probably pretty good at it by now, with what, twenty, thirty years of experience?

that's all there is to it. truly.

i used to keep milk and food separate, that's my only top tip. so she wasn't hungry starving at lunch or tea time, etc, she was in the mood for playing and exploration. oh, and some days she only had one 'mealtime' if her naps and milk fell that way. no stress, no worry, it's fun. tbh the worry of having a book is that people will follow it rigidly, when that is not the point At All.

(it is a bit of a leap of faith though... don't worry. it's not for everyone, some people like a Method. main thing is to be happy with what you're doing at the end of the day.)

Offer what you eat and relax. If you are too nervous about not having a method, then I might suggest the following:

• start with chip shaped fruit and vegetables, whatever you would buy for yourself. Banana, avocado, pear, melon, cucumber, papaya can be eaten raw, some other veg may need cooking so they are soft. How cooked depends on your babies ability. Ditto with skin, some LOs like it some don't. If you see that she gags too much (and doesn't like the feeling of gagging) then peel the fruit.

• As your DD becomes more confident with handling food, try smaller pieces until she can pick up peas and similar stuff. If she can handle this, she can handle every meal.

• I introduced meat and fish until 9 months, but some can take it almost from the start.

• the most important: you should trust them that they will eat what they need and want. They can eat almost everything, because they eat in very little quantities. But if you try and put the food in their mouth then watch out what you are feeding them (I made that mistake a few times and induced a big colic on my DD), and of course, that wouldn't be BLW.

oh, and never put food in their mouths with your hands etc. big choke risk.

wow - never heard of this before and am thinking of weaning in the next few weeks. really interesting and like janus, was dreading the days spent pureeing now that i also have a toddler on the go. thanks for all the links.

"they can eat almost everything".... but definitely no honey and no whole nuts.

Thanks for the info. Can I ask if you can do both? ie can I puree and give finger food? I do still like the idea of feeding little one something like porridge for breakfast and maybe pasta with sauce for lunch but can't bear the mess of her doing it herself! I would, however, like to hand her some buttered bread, broccoli, etc, when she's hungry and sometimes when we go out, etc. Is it too confusing to mix?

I started at lunch by offering same as I had. Took ds2 a moment to believe his good luck and then the scrabble to get it in his mouth began. Added tea and breakfasts very quickly (days) much to ds2's delight. Took a while for him to get the hang of chewing most things and start cutting back on his milk, but he had an ace time.
Start planning a high chair or sticky bowl now though (I think you need a strategy for coping with the mess - that was the biggest shock to my system having done purees ad nauseum with ds1). I still decant a small amount into a bowl for him and add more when that's gone.

Janus - I did a bit of both, as when we started BLW I often fed ds a fromage frais or his porridge, but he very quickly wanted to do this himself, and before age one he was feeding everything himself, even stuff that needed spooning.

Great things we started with were steamed broccoli and cauliflower, roasted butternut squash and sweet potato sticks, cucumber and tomato, toast, sliced lengthways banana. Pasta tubes and spirals.

I would recommend it to anyone !!!

chankins, that sounds great, it's how I would like to start, ie food chunks but also doing things like yogurt and baby porridge rather than dd3 having everything as chunks, some things will have to be spoonfed. My life is frantic, 3 kids, a husband who works away for big chunk of the week, dog to walk, house to keep straight, etc. The thought of having to do hours of cleaning floors, walls and highchairs is kinda outweighing the benefit of blw for me but if I can do both then I think I've hit the jackpot! I love the idea of lunch being a sliver of cheese sandwich or something similar that she can gnaw on!

Janus, the dog will see to the mess . I am so glad you posted this, I am nervous about starting it too. My dd is 5 months and is starting to grab my food and try to eat it. Should I hold out another few weeks or start giving her some sweet potato or melon sticks now?

priceyp, from what I have been told from various members here it is important to try and hold out until 6 months because of the lining of the gut not being fully ready until that time. I was all ready to start at 4 months (I have two older children who started at this stage) but have decided to wait. Mine is a big girl, about 15lbs, only bf and even if she thinks she may be ready I'm holding out until as close to 6 months as I can bear. Anyway, I 've decided the longer I can put off the mess and fuss of weaning the better !

Oh yes, and the chocolate labrador will be her best friend when we start, catching all falling treats!

Good point! I shall try to hold out a few more weeks. My dog is going to be in heaven when all this begins. He was wagging his tail at the high chair when I got it out a few weeks ago!