When r babies really ready for weaning ???

[kirsten1985]

BLW is not new, either - people have been doing it for years, it's only relatively recently it's had a name given to it!

Yep I know people who did it 10 years ago and knew what it was at the time, and people who also did it years and years ago without knowing they were doing it.

 

[Faerie]

From my point of view, I didn't have much choice about how to wean Sofia anyway... she has a fear of things being put in her mouth/nose (apparently quite common with NICU babies) and she was not impressed the 2 times somebody tried to feed her, and let them know!

Sofia has always put on weight, even with her v difficult start in life. Over here babies only get weighed every 2 months after they're 8 weeks old. The weaning guidlines here are 5-7 months but my paeditrican said it doesn't matter if she didn't start until she was around 8 months, they check at 9 months for iron levels and give drops if needed.

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

Ruby won't be spoon fed either. I tried twice and she clamps her mouth shut. Tbh, I don't blame her. I can't see Ruby eating much until she's 8-9 months at our current rate of progress!

 

[kirsten1985]

Freya wouldn't let me anywhere near her mouth with a spoon the first few times I tried, however sometimes she is lazy now and when I offer her the spoon to take she just opens her mouth I continue to hold it there and she either takes it in her hand or lunges forwards with her open mouth and gets it that way. Oh well.

Some days she eats great and some days nothing at all, but I don't even offer food 3 times a day yet (perhaps I should be doing? ) and I don't mind if she takes her time.

I wish it was 5-7 months over here, then maybe my family would get off my back about how little she eats.

 

[k8y]

Pure BLW isn't just about the baby eating finger foods, it is the principal that you don't put ANY food into their mouths at all, no spoon feeding, no 'top ups', you just offer food and if they want it they eat it. You don't feed them yourself at all.

A lot of people think it is the same as feeding purees and then giving finger foods as well, but it isn't. The idea is that they get confident at feeding themselves and don't see mealtimes as a battle at the same time not seeing food as something they get praised/punished for eating/not eating etc etc.

My boy is spoon fed and has finger foods and he is a very confident eater. overly confident if anything, so I dont see the difference to be honest. He has pureed food if he eats it great, if he doesnt then oh well. We dont force him to eat.In fact if he really likes it he says hmmmmmmm while he is eating which is lovely when I have made it myself. I think that a lot of mums are fighting to be the best, most wholesome hippy mum. Not saying this about you as I dont know you. A friend of mine has a nearlly 8 month old is doing BLW she is having lots of problems, her little girl cries alot and wakes every 1 1/2 - 2 hours during the night to be fed as she is hungry, but she is adamant that SHE wants to do BLW. Another mum I know who is BLW was lettign her 7 month old have a whole grape in his mouth! this is just dangerous, but she says... he wont choke he is BLW ! I just think that people need to do whats best for them... Your not going to cause your child not to be confident eater and have battles at meal times just beacuse you choose to give your baby some pureed food.

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

No one is saying spoon feeding is wrong....but according to the theory of BLW, which is obviously just that, a theory, it is unnecessary for a 6 month old.

of course traditional weaning doesn't cause battles etc in every baby. As with everything, what works for one baby will be no good for the next. We are only explaining BLW because another poster referred to it as complicated and 'new', when in fact it is neither.

I guess some mums would rather feed their LO extra milk at night for a few weeks/months and do BLW, than get more sleep and spoon feed (if indeed the baby will accept spoon feeding)

I don't see anyone competing to be the most wholesome hippy mum? I'm not sure where you've got that?

 

[kirsten1985]

Pure BLW isn't just about the baby eating finger foods, it is the principal that you don't put ANY food into their mouths at all, no spoon feeding, no 'top ups', you just offer food and if they want it they eat it. You don't feed them yourself at all.

A lot of people think it is the same as feeding purees and then giving finger foods as well, but it isn't. The idea is that they get confident at feeding themselves and don't see mealtimes as a battle at the same time not seeing food as something they get praised/punished for eating/not eating etc etc.

My boy is spoon fed and has finger foods and he is a very confident eater. overly confident if anything, so I dont see the difference to be honest. He has pureed food if he eats it great, if he doesnt then oh well. We dont force him to eat.In fact if he really likes it he says hmmmmmmm while he is eating which is lovely when I have made it myself. I think that a lot of mums are fighting to be the best, most wholesome hippy mum. Not saying this about you as I dont know you. A friend of mine has a nearlly 8 month old is doing BLW she is having lots of problems, her little girl cries alot and wakes every 1 1/2 - 2 hours during the night to be fed as she is hungry, but she is adamant that SHE wants to do BLW. Another mum I know who is BLW was lettign her 7 month old have a whole grape in his mouth! this is just dangerous, but she says... he wont choke he is BLW ! I just think that people need to do whats best for them... Your not going to cause your child not to be confident eater and have battles at meal times just beacuse you choose to give your baby some pureed food.

That isn't my opinion, it's what is written about BLW. I never said anything about people forcing babies to eat.

I agree, people need to do what's best for them and not listen to what others tell them - I have to do this with my pureeing family and friends, no-one I know in RL is BLW. They tell me all the time in a jokey way that the way I am doing it is wrong. I find it extremely difficult to defend a principle that they haven't heard of and as yet have no evidence of it working (with us).

And yes, you are not going to cause your child to be less confident, and you may not have battles at mealtimes. What the book is saying is that this happens sometimes and it can be avoided with BLW.

I find it odd to think that people are fighting to be the most hippyish mum, I would certainly not waste my time doing that!

Every baby is different, and every mum is different.

 

[Serene123]

End of the day, your baby is your baby. Do what YOU think is best for YOUR child and have no regrets. Everyones going to have an opinion and there's no use dismissing it or saying someone is putting your way down. They're just trying to help you, and let you know another way of doing things, and why they choose to do it that way, so you can make an informed decision.

Caitlyn did a bit of both, BLW and purees. Next time I will be doing BLW, Caitlyn eats with her fingers anyway

 

[Faerie]

Yep, my sister did homemade purees with both of hers and they are both very unfussy (well, actually the 10 year old is being a bit fussy now, but think that's something he's copying from friends). So obviously it worked very well for her, just not what I want to do.

 

[faille]

My boy is spoon fed and has finger foods and he is a very confident eater. overly confident if anything, so I dont see the difference to be honest. He has pureed food if he eats it great, if he doesnt then oh well. We dont force him to eat.In fact if he really likes it he says hmmmmmmm while he is eating which is lovely when I have made it myself. I think that a lot of mums are fighting to be the best, most wholesome hippy mum. Not saying this about you as I dont know you. A friend of mine has a nearlly 8 month old is doing BLW she is having lots of problems, her little girl cries alot and wakes every 1 1/2 - 2 hours during the night to be fed as she is hungry, but she is adamant that SHE wants to do BLW. Another mum I know who is BLW was lettign her 7 month old have a whole grape in his mouth! this is just dangerous, but she says... he wont choke he is BLW ! I just think that people need to do whats best for them... Your not going to cause your child not to be confident eater and have battles at meal times just beacuse you choose to give your baby some pureed food.

The key about BLW is letting the LO control everything - how much food they pick up, placing it in their mouths and then whether they swallow or spit it out. It can help avoid fussing eating and battles at mealtimes (as there's no "one more for mummy" or "here comes the aeroplane" which a lot (again, not saying all) parents do as they worry about how much their LO is eating). Fussy eaters isn't the main thing about BLW and nobody is saying a BLW baby won't be a fussy eater, they might be - just like a baby having puree might turn out to be the most adventerous eater. It's just by letting the baby have complete control over everything, they are eating what and how much they want to (and this can also help with avoiding overeating as in theory, they will learn to stop when they're full).

The issue with your friends LO waking up because she's hungry is irrelevant to how she's fed - sounds like she needs more milk, not food.

And I give Violet grapes (cut in half, not whole) and no, it's not dangerous because that's the whole point of BLW..... Trusting them to use their natural defenses and reflexes to take care of food. Their gag reflex is more than enough to deal with most food if it's taken too far back in the mouth. I'd personally rather her have half a grape in her mouth then watch somebody shove a spoon full of food into her mouth - I think the latter is actually far more dangerous, therefore, I never have and never will spoon feed.


Like everyone has said, there's no "best" way to feed your LO and what some are happy doing others will hate. You just need to find a way that suits both parent and baby and then there shouldn't be any battles or fussy eating.

 

[angelstardust]

But surely if you say you are giving purees and doing BLW, then your not actually BLW at all?

 

[Serene123]

But you can throw in the concept..........

Things aren't always black and white. I breastfed, but my daughter did have formula top-ups for 3 months. Does that mean I didn't breastfeed? Nope.

We did purees but moved to BLW concepts.

 

[angelstardust]

So basically it's just weaning in a way that you and bubs are comfortable with?

In that case, I BLW my boys with purees

I think I'm more amazed with the need to label everything. For example the breastfeeding. You can't 'just' breastfeed now, it has to be 'exclusive breastfeeding' or 'mixed/combination feeding'. That really got my goat, being told that because Amber had a formula top up at birth she would never be 'exclusively breastfed' by a midwife, why the hell does it matter?

Rant over.

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

I have to say I agree about the need to label everything being annoying and unnecessary. I don't follow BLW to the letter, e.g Ruby doesn't join OH and I at dinner because it's way past her bedtime and I'm not cooking a separate meal for OH when gets home. but that doesn't mean I don't do BLW.

 

[sublime_ivy]

dex will not let me spoon feed him at all. If I do try he screams or bats my hand away so BLW. I've stopped trying as i don't want to give him a complex.

In regards to the waking up, dex wakes every 2-3 hours for milk. I know he needs more but also food does not help. He had dinner last night before bed and he woke up more times than he ever has.