Baby-led Weaning Support Thread Part 3

[Lippy Chick]

Bryony, you could maybe with hold her morning feed if she doesn't eat anything, by lunch she should be hungry enough to eat something, especially as there won't be any cereal.  Just a thought.  She may well make up for it later in the day and then get away with out having to feed her in the night.  I know what you mean, I would hate to have her waking in the night for a feed.  There's a girl at the music group we go to who still feeds 3 times a night and he's about 7 months.  .

Cathy other things we put on her bread, mushed banana or any fruit puree.  I was told by the HV that peanut butter is OK from 7 months as long as there are no allergies in the family, unfortunately there is in our family, so we have to wait until a year, not long now though.  "Glad that Alice did so well at her health check", thank you muchly.

We gave Alice a fillet of salmon today and she ate the whole lot.  I hate fish, so we were wondering how she would take to it and we couldn't believe she ate the lot and looked like she would eat more!!!

Pauline

[Bryony]

Pauline - well Katie always eats a good breakfast, cos that is when we legitimately give her breakfast cereal!!  So I would not want to withold her 7am milk....    And she doesnt' have any milk mid morning and very little mid afternoon these days...

Wow, a whole salmon fillet    that's great!

[Lippy Chick]

Sorry Bryony, I meant her solid feeds rather than milk.  I know what you mean about dropping feeds, it is a bit scary, because I assume she would just wake up in the night.  We just couldn't believe she ate the whole lot, hubby was hoping to get some and was really disappointed when there were only "crumbs" left.

This 4pm milk feed is becoming a problem and is the one I think we're going to drop fairly soon.  She just needs something to keep her going until dinner and she is just loosing interest in it by the day.  So I think we're going to reduce it until we can fit some cows' milk into a cup and give her that instead.  She just ends up wanting to play with the bottle and getting frustrated when I don't let her.

Pauline

[Freya'sMum]

Fork v Spoon first? Fork - stabbing an easier action than scooping natural progression from pincer grip, if fork is about at mealtimes, babies will learn what to do with it by practising and watching you!

Ax

[grahamsmama]

FWas just enjoying the fact that we are starting to get much neater at eating, with less mess on the floor/table/high chair. But introducing cutlery will, I imagine, rather undo that!

It isn't too messy.  Just give it with things that will stick even when she waves it around a bit.  I gave her little chunks of cheese and her fork today.  Worked great.

[elliesmama]

Hi ladies!  I've been out of town visiting my parents and am due to stay with them for the next two weeks as my hubby's in peru.  I have to admit I haven't been very consistent about giving solids regularly, though dd is getting quite a bit offered to her.  But since she's been here, she really doesn't want much and we've been so busy that I have forgotten to sit her down in her high chair and give her solid meals.  Is that okay?  Her milk intake is through the roof so I'm guessing that she's getting what she needs from that...what do you think?

[Cathy_D]

Fork v Spoon first? Fork - stabbing an easier action than scooping natural progression from pincer grip, if fork is about at mealtimes, babies will learn what to do with it by practising and watching you!

Ok - fork shopping tomorrow, then!  And will try and find some suitably stab-able things that wont disintegrate for her to practice with.  And some fork-able things for me to eat with her, too. (we only eat breakfast and lunch together, and breakfast is cereal for us both, and lunch is usually a sandiwch for me. So fork use isn't really being modelled much yet!) Never mind HER eating habits .... BLW has had a real impact on what *I* eat 

[Bryony]

Never mind HER eating habits .... BLW has had a real impact on what *I* eat 

  Yes I know what you mean!

Katie has been on a bit of an eating strike recently, and then woke up hungry at 6am this morning as I didn't give her any cereal last night   And she doesn't like the shredded wheat (can't say I blame her however  ). However she ate masses this evening - a home-made beefburger (one thing she will ALWAYs eat), a philly sandwich left over from lunch (ie a whole slice of bread), plus some of DH and I's dinner from last night (pasta carbonara - which she usually ignores).... and then out of interest I gave her a spoon and a pot of pear puree which we had in the cupboard and showed her how to scoop it up, and she polished off the lot      I have loaded the spoon with yoghurt for her before, so she knew what to do with a spoon, but it's the first time she's used it herself to get food out of the pot.It was a bit messy but not too bad - only one spoonful wanged itself out of the pot at high speed and landed on the wall behind, the rest when in her mouth or vaguely in that direction. She had such a happy grin on herself, I think she was really chuffed!  So no more mummy loading up the spoon! 

I will also try a fork sometime this week as we haven't tried that yet either.

Today we were at a party and they had lots of children's finger food. Katie ignored the lot but tucked into my chips and fish goujons ....

Bryony

[grahamsmama]

Fork v Spoon first? Fork - stabbing an easier action than scooping natural progression from pincer grip, if fork is about at mealtimes, babies will learn what to do with it by practising and watching you!

Ok - fork shopping tomorrow, then!  And will try and find some suitably stab-able things that wont disintegrate for her to practice with.  And some fork-able things for me to eat with her, too. (we only eat breakfast and lunch together, and breakfast is cereal for us both, and lunch is usually a sandiwch for me. So fork use isn't really being modelled much yet!) Never mind HER eating habits .... BLW has had a real impact on what *I* eat 

Today I cut her sandwich into little bites and let her stab her fork into it.  It was turkey and melted cheese and it actually worked pretty well.

What a big girl Katie is!  I think that's the way to go with the hunger strike, just distract her with all kinds of utensil fun!   

[VickyB20]

Hi everybody!  Just wanted to say sorry for not posting these last couple of weeks (is it really that long?!?!)  The boys had their 1st birthday on the 1st Feb and it's all been hectic since then.  I took the children away with my parents from Sat 2nd till the following Tuesday, whilst their daddy was away on work, and we had a lovely time in Somerset.  The best bits were the meals!  I didn't have to worry in the slightest about taking food for them because they were always happy to eat what we had!  They had shepherd's pie (yes - with fingers - very messy), scampi, sausages, roast chicken, salmon, lots of fresh veggies and quite a few chips, i'm afriad, but I don't think I've ever known them to eat so much... must be because we all sat down together for every meal and there was one adult for every child!

Very impressed that Katie ate a pot of puree on her own!!  What a clever girl!!

Have been thinking of you all despite not posting!

Vicky
x

[Lippy Chick]

Vicky, glad to have you back.

Bryony, really glad you've managed to get Katie to eat again, long may it continue.

Just a quickie today.

Pauline

[Lippy Chick]

We reduced Alice's 4pm milk yesterday to 4oz.  She drank the lot and was signing for more.  However, she wasn't sick at all after that and ate loads at dinner time.  When she's not hungry she can be really fussy and just throw everything on the floor, which is such a waste.  Anyway, going to stick with the 3 x 6oz bottles and the 4oz bottle at 4pm for now and see how it goes.  She is having a lot of milk and I do wonder if her system just doesn't need it so she keeps being sick, because today she was sick quite a few times after the 11am milk feed. 

Pauline

[VickyB20]

Pauline - I'm very impressed that Alice is signing at 10 months!  Well done!

Sorry to hear that the sickness issue still isn't resolved.  I cut a bottle about 3 weeks ago and the boys have been eating even better as a result of it and reliably finishing the remaining 3 bottles whereas before they would often leave some (normally the bedtime one!) and then be up in the night to make up for it.  They now have 6ozs formula on waking (or at 4 or 5am!!) then 6ozs cows' milk at about 2pm and 8ozs formula at bedtime.

My very limited experience on these matters suggests though that maybe boys take more milk than girls.   (Would be interested to do a poll on this actually.)  You're obviously very aware of Alice's needs so go with your instincts and I'm sure you'll figure it all out very soon.

Vicky
x

[grahamsmama]

Meghan just doesn't take much at all.  She's taking about 6-7oz upon waking, a 3 oz snack at 10, 3 oz snack at 2, and 7oz at bedtime.  20 oz max.  But, I'm wondering if that morning bottle is actually too big because she's starting to refuse her breakfast.  I'll feed her some food with the milk snack at 10 or a little earlier and she eats fine, so I think she just isn't a big eater and the milk fills her up in the early morning.

[Lippy Chick]

Vicky, thanks.  She seems to pick things up quite quickly, everything, except mummy.  She has always been a very sicky baby and just doesn't eat al ot.  I think Lyn and I had similar problems when they were about 15 weeks old, when they just wouldn't eat at all and screamed the place down instead.  Actually, she just doesn't drink a lot, she eats loads.

Vicky did you go with solids first at all?  Lyn, are you thinking about doing that?  Anyone doing or going to do this?  The nursery nurse who did her check last week said at this age, they are generally only having two milk feeds a day anyway.

Pauline