DD is a week off 5 months and crying for food

[hobbgoblin]

Wasn't planning to wean (will be BLW) til 6 months give or take a week or so) but DD is actually crying for food as she sees any of us eating. She dipped her fingers in some pumpkin soup (cold) the other day and munched them then cried for more trying to reach the pot and then she was eyeing up my satsuma last night so I let her suck a segment and she cried when I stopped despite having been cluster fed in the hour or so prior to this.

What to do?

Wean her

My DS1 was like this at a week short of 5 months so I weaned him - they are guidleines not hard, fast rules!

DS2 only just showing the same signs now & he is 6+2! I have tried solids a couple of times before now but he was not ready & didnt have a clue what to do!

With DS1 I always gave him finger foods from early-on with his meals (like what you would offer with BLW) so a mix of the 2 methods really. I also held back on wheat, meat & eggs untill he had been weaned for couple of months.

No other "stage" are all babies expected to be the same - DS1 went on to crawl 7 walk quite early too.

You'd be following her cues if you wean her. The guidelines might say 6 months but it seems cruel to leave her crying for food.

DS2 is just coming up 4 months and has been getting more and more obviously interested in the food we eat. He stares at our food and smacks his lips together and he wants to be up at the table with everyone else at meal times.

He's started grabbing my hand if I'm eating while holding him on my lap and trying to shove whatever it is in his mouth. He doesn't know what to do with it once he gets it there really, but he's managed to get himself a lick of banana this morning, and a lick or two of the cooked carrot and brocolli that I was picking out of the serving bowls after dinner (I can never be bothered to salt veg before I cook it so there's no problem in that regard).

He hasn't actually eaten anything yet and I have no intention of trying to feed him anything, but I don't have a problem with letting him try out licking some fruit and veg. I guess he'll start trying to eat it when he's ready. The problem at the moment is that I can't eat anything unsuitable (and delicious) while I'm holding him.

There will be no baby rice in this house because it's disgusting.

This satsuma - did you hold it to her mouth, or did she take it herself?

She'll have fully functioning taste buds - but just because she likes the taste of fruit juice / soup doesn't mean she's ready for solid foods.

Can she sit up OK? Perhaps you should try the banana test?

I should of said DS1 was sitting unaided by 4 months, crawling at 7 & walking at 10.

I also only use baby rice (or plum baby porridge) to thicken purees rather than on it's own as I cant believe there is any goodness in it when it is more processed than normal white rice.

DS2 still not sitting un aided so have been taking things much slower also I appreciate how much easier it is to go out with just a pair of boobs rather than baby food, spoons, bib, spare top etc.

DS2 can sit up unaided. He can also lunge for stuff and I'd have to fight quite hard against him to stop him moving stuff towards his mouth.

I never really understood the whole baby rice thing. Why was/is it thought necessary to wean babies on hideous, tasteless mush? Tasty mush I can understand, but not baby rice.

What's the banana test?

I'd gradually start weaning, tbh. It makes sense to me that babies digestive systems develop at different rates as everything else does. Neither of mine were at all bothered at 5 monthss, but by 7 months were eyeing up food and trying to grab it which was when I started weaning them.

im a health visitor and all i can say is follow your baby, and just remember the guidelines are just that juidelines and every child is different. to wean a baby he/ she needs to be able to sit up aided, not always unaided. what we dont want are babies being weaned at 6,7,8 weeks etc which does happen but i personally feel 5 months plus is fine if they really are interested in food and are suddenly awake at night for a feed when they were sleeping through. i weaned my dd at 5 months as she is a big baby and was drinking too much milk, she took to weaning like a duck to water. i would recommend starting slowly. all i can say as a mother is i wish i had the perfect child who followed all the guidelines for me but for some reason she wont!!!!!! funny but i come across all these other babies who are just the same when im at work!!!!

that should be guidelines !