Hey Kim how is your Jack doing now?
Hi Creations, welcome to BLW. I would say it sounds like you have a little pig on your hands, I know my DD was/ still is a pig! She 'ate' from day one whereas DS took from 6-9 months to figure out how to eat. We had to 'feed' DD solids properly within weeks of starting, she cried for solid food. By time she was one she had no more milk during the day only a 5oz bottle for breakfast and breast fed at bedtime! Even though DS was a slow starter he was the same, no milk feeds during the day by one year, just morning and bedtime breast feeds!
Enjoy it, go with it, and try not to worry about allergies, choking and all that. I have given DS seeded bread (Tescos finest loaves) since he started on solids with no issues, some people say it's more an allergy risk than a choking risk. I would say as long as there is no history of allergies in your family crack on. We gave DD EVERYTHING but DS is a little more delicate! Both of mine have gagged when something has gone down the wrong hole and both have learnt to deal with it quickly.
As for cutlery, we learnt very early on that DS would not eat something different from us, likewise he just had to have something shiny like us! He would go crazy if he didn't have a fork or spoon so we gave him one! We started with the melamine sets, but they're just not shiny so gave him one of DD's old Tommee Tippee forks. He could stab and eat food with it by 11 months!!!!! Obviously we watched him like a hawk to make sure he didn't stab himself with it.
We use the long sleeve bibs mostly from Mothercare, but avoid the toweling cheaper ones as the food sticks to it and is a right pain! We strap DS into the highchair first and then put the bib on over the straps (or they get destroyed). We also put a rubbery pelican bib on him as he has a tendancy to spit out anything he doesn't like so this catches the fall out! We have a £10 splash mat (also from Mothercare) under the highchair which catches most of what drops on the floor. Then use cheap flannels for the facial clean up which go in bleach once in a while for a good clean!
{{{{Huggles}}}} Bex, how is she doing now? Just curious is she gaining weight, healthy, meeting her milestones and all that? Does she show any interest in you when your eating? Have you tried feeding her in different places? So let her eat an apple while she's playing or anything like that? If I'm busy I'll put a handful of raisins in one of J's toy dump trucks, he'll happily play taking them in and out of it eating them as he goes. Since he's sprouted top teeth he loves apples, he'll sit in his push chair for about 45 minutes eating one! He also loves to 'scavange' my food, I always eat my breakfast sat on the sofa and he'll stand there waiting to be fed. I feel like a mother bird sometimes with my two kids stood there mouths open waiting to be fed!!!!!
