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Sami, 7 mths is fine for not really being 'into' family foods, even doing BLS. He is experiencing the texture and taste of things and that is a big part of the introductory process. I know of babies who didn't even TRY solids using BLS until 9 mths or so. If babies are ready from 6-9 mths it seems fair that some will go to the latter part of that age bracket and some earlier. My DD didn't take to BLS until just after 7 mths.
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Ah ok, guess i'll just give her what im eating then.
Tanya- Charli does the same thing, everytime i give her something she squishes it in her hands and breaks it all up everywhere and then the only bits left are squished in her fist which she cant get tooUnfortunately i have no helpful hints, i too am a lil lost
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SAMI Let me know how your zucchini slice goes. I think I mentioned it is nicer the next day. Dunno why, but it just seems a nicer texture. I will eat it cold, but do prefer it warm too. It sounds like Z is enjoying his food. It won't be long before it's all going down.
TANYA I think they just get use to holding the avo etc. BJ use to squash it too but it didn't take long for him to realise not to hold it so tight. He still does sometimes. I make the pieces bigger, like a big wedge. I give him everything that big. He holds it with 2 hands sometimes. It sounds like Maya is doing what BJ did when I decided to go full BLS. He just refused the puree & being spoon fed. I definately think he eats more doing BLS, most days anyway
MUMMYT It sounds like Jett & BJ have the same finished signals. I always offer something else & if he pushes my hand away I know that is definately it. Thanks, it sounds like i'm on the right track then
ALYSSAS MUM I love the sounds of that list. Can you start it off???
NAGROMEYK How'd the risotto go? Yeah we started BLS cause BJ just refused to open his mouth to the spoon. He's doing great now. He hardly gags anymore & just hoes into everything I give him
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Georgi - It def sounds like you are on the right track. The BLS thing is a bit daunting at first, but I think it is more to do with what we perceive is the 'right' thing, being spoon fed puree with one vegetable at a time, and who can blame us - it is what we see and hear from everyone including the professionals. Especially those from the old school such as parents. I know I started very delicately at first, but then I bought the Baby-led Weaning book and it gave me the confidence to take a deep breath and dive in. Now I am completely comfortable with it all, so much so that when I see babies the same age as Jett being spoon-fed puree and given very little chance to feed themselves I kind of feel uncomfortable and feel like they've got it wrong IYKWIM. I know it is their choice and I completely 'get' the puree to begin with for those uncomfortable with BLS, but not allowing them to suck or chew on anything at 9 months old just kind of seems cruel.I was talking with one of the girls in my mothers group today who is doing just that and I tried to gently make her understand that if he never gets to experience 'whole' foods he will never learn to eat them. They don't just magically know when they grow older how to handle and chew food. She was just not confident with letting him control his food and has all sorts of excuses like age and digestion problems. Then the other girl (there were only 3 of us today) was feeding her boy whole veges, but that was just it, she was the one holding it and popping it in his mouth.
But it didn't help that Jett had a bit of fatty chewy chicken that he started gagging on in front of them. But he coughed it up and it was all good!
Tanya - The firm but squishy/slippery foods like avocado and banana they very quickly learn how to hold and grasp at what pressure. Jett used to smoosh it all beyond recognition but now he will eat a banana perfectly with barely a blob dropped! He used to love the challenge of picking it up. I also gave him ice-cubes to chase around his tray in restaurants while waiting for our food and he learnt very quickly how to catch it and grasp it to get a quick suck of it. And he used to drop it to have another go. I even struggle catching it sometimes so that is a challenge you could try too!
SamiH - Off topic - I love that nappy! Which one is it? It looks so gorgeous!
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Georgi - Yeah it sounds like Maya is going down the same path as BJ. She doesn't take the spoon as much now (except if there's potato on it.She seems to like feeding herself though and I do like the idea of BLS anyway!
Well today I'm cutting things up in longer pieces so Maya is managing to get some into her mouth.
Another newbie question. I've noticed that when I put a few things on Maya's tray she will have a go at picking everything up and drops a lot on the floor and not much goes in her mouth. But if I give her one thing at a time she will pick it up and eat it till she's finished or drops it. So I've been giving her one or two pieces of things at a time. Does that defeat the purpose of BLS? Or is that how others started too?
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Hehe only just started my adventures - it is a Cushie Tushie Couture - very lush
Zander sucked on a banana when we were out this morning - he went back to bed after an early feed (5.30) until 8am and then out the door for school - he went to bed at 11.30 and still there now (!) so prob wont have time for "lunch" either going out the door for pick-up now!
ANyone else have this problem - and if so, when do you offer the LO's food???
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TANYA I always give 3 different types of food, though I will only put 1 wedge of each on his tray so he can choose what he wants. Once he has finished a wedge of whatever he's eating, I'll put another wedge down so he always has the 3 options without mushing it up too much. Does that make any sense?????? BJ will take yoghurt from the spoon but he still needs to hold it, while I hold it too
MUMMYT Wow, that's interesting. Even at 9 months she won't allow self feeding. It must be hard to refrain yourself from saying anything. Lol about gagging on the chicken at the wrong time
I got the puddle wear feeding coat today. It's great. But they sent me the wrong booklet. They sent the Weaning booklet. I really wanted the booklet you have MT. What is the exact name on it?
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Georgi - Mine is not a booklet, it is actually a book and is def worth it IMO! It is called "Baby-Led Weaning" by Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett. Mothers Direct/ABA sells it. There is also a DVD of it, but that costs a fortune so borrow that one!! It is a great bible and I've said it before in here, but it really gave me the confidence to jump right in to it.
How small is the feeding coat? Jett isn't a large baby and most things that are size 1 just swim on him which kind of makes it annoying for him because it ends up swinging around and getting in the way. Some of the large bibs I've put on him he picks up and flings over his shoulder so he wears them as a cape intead!!Cute and funny, but not practical!
Tanya - Yeah the playing and dropping is all part of the experimenting and learning about the food. Some babies apparently can throw all but one type of food off the tray so they can concentrate on the one type! But it all comes down to allowing them to learn, and that includes what gravity does to the food!! Eventually they stop doing that when they have discovered all they want and need to about that particular food and filed it away in their developing brain! There is nothing wrong with offering one thing at a time if that seems to be what your baby wants, but as long as you remember the mantra "Food is for fun until they are one" meaning it really doesn't matter how much actually gets eaten and they don't feel that pressure to eat IYKWIM. When we first began we started with one type of food but a fair number of pieces such as steamed carrot sticks. After a week I put 3 different vegies on the tray and again more than one of each. Invariably he would always go for the carrots first, but the others would be picked up and eaten eventually. I also put a clean mat under him and would just pick up whatever dropped and put it back on his tray. I think within 2 weeks he got a little of everything and just left him to it, just picking up the dropped pieces as necessary.
SamiH - Thanks for the tipAs for the
we get that sometimes too. I just go with the rule that he eats when we eat, and if he's asleep then he misses that meal. In that event I tend to give him a snack such as an Arrowroot biscuit, toast or sandwich or piece of fruit after he wakes up and then he eats at the next meal. Again, as long as they are getting their milk they aren't in any nutritional danger so it is just fine to skip meals if you need to.
The other thing to remember when feeding your baby is to not treat them like they are doing something special. If you think about it as if you were eating would you like someone hovering over you, cheering you on because you ate something, taking things out of your mouth or hand because it was sticking out awkwardly etc? It is hard not to stare and of course you need to keep an eye on them, but that is why Jett eats when we eat so it is all part of the normal family meal. We then chat to him like we are just having a conversation. My Mum however can't help but stand by and hover, and pick small pieces off his tray and hold them up to his mouth to eat and generally make a fuss over him. I constantly tell her off but she keeps pulling out the Grandma card!! She enjoys it and he doesn't seem to mind so I don't think I will take action yet. She was doing it today with his lasagne which he handles very well, but she couldn't help herself. But I do get a secret glow of pride when we are out at cafes and he is sitting there hoeing into whatever culinary delights are on the menu and I overhear comments from strangers saying "Look at that baby enjoying his food!" and "Wow, look how well that baby is feeding himself"
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Georgi - Maya is really following in BJs footsteps! She now totally refuses the spoon (unless she is wielding it herself). In fact she scrunches up her entire face - mouth, eyes, everything.. if I put anything near her face.
MT - Yeah I've noticed Maya will go for the thing she likes the most and drop everything else on the floor. But I guess that's all part of the learning. hehe.. I think I need to get myself a mat for the floor!
Maya's favourite food seems to be potato at the moment so I was wondering if anyone has a good way of giving her potato to eat? I was thinking I could cut potato into chip like pieces and then roast them. Another other ideas?
My DH feeds Maya dinner and he thinks she needs to have pur?ed food from a spoon (even though I've told him I give her sticks of food now and she'll eat them without trouble!
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TANYA Yep.. That's exactly what BJ started doing. How strange are they. Gees, they're so similar. I thought I had a strange kid.. LOL It's good to know he's not the only one. I would cut the potato into wedges. She'll still squish it though. If BJ drops something on the floor, I put it back onto his tray. I have disinfectant wipes which I use to clean the tiles beneath him after every feed so I'm happy there's not too many germs. He's not doing it on purpose, yet. Otherwise I would take it away assuming he didn't want it. It took my DH a while to get his head around the BLS. Now he realised it's fantastic for BJ's hand/eye co ordination so he's all for it. I would definately invest in a feeding mat. You can get them from Big W for around $13. I'm sure Kmart & Target would sell them too.
MUMMYT Thanks for those tips. It makes alot of sense doesn't it. I must of got confused... I thought it was a booklet from ABA. Oopsy. Well that book sounds good. I think it'll check it out. Actually the coat is a good size. BJ isn't a big baby either. Keep in mind he's only 7 months corrected age. It is a little big, but I would say it fits quite well.
BJ had a peice of steak for the first time last night. He really enjoyed it. I think he's like his Dad.. Loves meat, chicken etc.
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LOL Georgi, charli loves it too such it dry though. lol Last night she had pumpkin, broccoli and carrot, she squished it all up and licked it off her fingers then tried licking it out of the bowl. was so cute. Then the lil rascal rubbed it all over her face, in her hair and eyes, up her nose. lol. I gave her a bath and it was funny to see the lil bits of food floating around.
I just give charli boiled potato atm, she squishes everything in her fingers anyway. DP says she's gonna think its ok to play with her food by doing BLS but i explained to him she's not playign shes exploring. lol
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I think I need to get a feeding coat too. At the moment I just keep changing her clothes.
For lunch I offered three choices of things - one of each at a time - and now what she's started doing is trying to shove everything into her mouth at once.
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I used to just boil a quick potato up (not too soft so that it would fall apart, but soft enough to hold and eat easily) and cut it into good sized pieces. I find even now DD still loves just plain potato (although Daddy's homemade potato chips go down very well also!).
A quick potato in the microwave was a good fall back too when I found I was short on lunch or dinner options and needed to go shopping!
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Mashed potato is a favourite in our house!! Makes such a mess but he loves digging his hands in and scooping it up and shovelling in to his mouth. This is def his favourite way to eat potato!
Steak was the first meat we gave Jett, sucked it white!!
It is funny other peoples reactions to BLS. And it is so hard to convince them that it is a positive way to introduce food. They all think the worst - choking, not learning how to eat neatly, not getting enough etc. But the only way to convince these people is to demonstrate how well they do cope, but I'm sure half of them think the baby must be unique or very clever! And then you see them watching on in awe!
Thanks Georgi for the coat info. Might have to order one! I have a plastic apron style bib (it goes on like a smock by putting arms through it, but it is sleeveless) but they are size small and it won't be long before he outgrows them.
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I had a similar comment made the other day to me because Kye was eating a sandwhich whilst sitting in the trolley in Woolworths. An elderly couple asked me how old Kye was and I said 8.5 months and they said "wow and hes eating whole sandwhiches"
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MT: i totally agree with you on peoples reaction to BLS. people who see DD eat think she is amazing but i try to explain that any baby would eat like that if given the chance, but you get the same reaction 'oh no, if my dd has even a little lump in her spoon food she gags' what do you say!? mean while dd is leaning in taking bites out of a ham sandwich im holding and the mothers are going 'oh, be carefull, shes got your sandwich' my reply...'its not my sandwich, its ours!'
mash potato is a fav here too...DH makes it a bit lumpy which is perfect! made a shepards pie and she loved that with the cheesy mash on top.
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Me too - that's what Kye is having for dinner tonightours!'
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Hi Girls!
I haven't been in here for ages, quite a few posts to read up on! Will do that after this.
We are plodding along with BLS. I'd like to try some of the muffins and things some of you cook. They sound good, I think Em would love them.
I had the parents as teachers lady here again week before last and she was saying since me telling her about BLS she has been telling all her mums about it and how much sense it makes...how good is that!
Does anyone else get a bit slack sometime and not give 3 meals a day? Should I be more diligent at feeding her at 8 months?
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