Plan of action for reluctant weaner?

[SenseAndIrritability]

Help anyone? My DD1, 28 weeks, enjoyed her first couple of tastes of baby rice, and seemed to know exactly what to do with the spoon, but since then has taken to clamping her mouth shut and refusing any food. I have tried to entice her with a variety of fruit or veg purees and cereals, plus finger foods, but I am not mad keen on trying to wedge the spoon in - is this what I am supposed to do? I assume all this means she is not ready? But I wonder if I am just a big old wimp who gives in too easily?

Seems silly to make such a fuss but I am getting a bit stressed as I am on my last month of maternity leave and am trying to get her to take a bottle, too. Needs to be formula, as I can't express more than 10ml of breast milk, I have discovered... I have decided that I need to prioritise the bottles of formula, so that I can indeed hand her over to a childminder, but how late can I go without worrying about other solids?

P.S. Her first tooth has just come too. Would that be putting her off her food/bottles?

DS only really started eating properly at 10 months

Teething may well be putting her off, tbh. Sit her near you at meals and give her access to food from your plate - she may be tempted to nick stuff if it feels like contraband.

I wouldn't wedge the spoon in - it'll cause stress for both of you, make mealtimes a battleground, and really at this stage you're trying to get her to be interested in and enjoy food. Just keep offering, and when her mouth feels a bit less sore she'll probably get straight back in.

Have you tried a cup for milk? dd never took to a bottle, but got the hang of a basic tommee tippee cup fairly quickly.

Thanks FiveGoMad and Habbibu. Glad to know that a few months delay is not be panicked over. dd1 is now sitting on my lap, waving the top piece of bread off my sandwich around like a flag ... feels so much nicer than grappling with a weaning spoon...

DS was exactly like this, he loved the first couple of days then i couldn't tempt him with anything, even after leaving it a while after his milk feed, and also he was getting teeth at the same time so just to reassure you that now, at seven months he has just taken to it, and is loving everything i give him.so it will come, i know it's worrying though when they don't seem interested!

re the bottle, have you tried the "breast flow" bottle from the early years? i think mothercare do them. this is the only bottle bf ds will take when i express so it's worth a try.

Thanks Jic - that is reassuring. I am really hoping she takes an interest soon - was it about a month later for your little one or longer?

I have had a little bit of success with Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature bottles (DD1 spurned my righteously BPA free MAM bottles - typical!) but I have only got newborn teats - I bought some variflow ones, but they are bigger and it seems to put her off...

yes it is coming up to about a month later after starting to wean him that there is some interest, i was expecting him to really go for it because i waited til he was six months, but it just goes to show how different they all are! hope it improves for you soon.

sense I am having the same problem with my 6mo DS - after a great first week when he was happy, smily and going for it he now usually screams or is unhappy during feeding. He won't let me feed him and wants to do it all himself but gets frustrated that he can't do it (I think!) - after screaming at some pear puree and porridge today I made him some toast fingers and he happily sat there chewing it to mush before swallowing it. I think its a lot of trial and error! Jic its reassuring to know you've come out the otherside of this problem.

sense my DS is also BF, but does take a bottle however during meal times I have been using a Doidy cup which is really good - apparently they are good for BF babies and it seems true with my DS. Maybe worth a look?