Hints and tips for weaning (merged)

ceebeeby

Both mine weaned on home cooked food from about 3 - 4 months.

I never did that introduction thing, rather everything went in the blender and hey presto. both lovely healthy kids of 12 and 8 now. I think as long as you are sensible and don't put in salt, sugar or spices you should be fine at 7 months (although you say she's been a bit poorly which may make her diet more delicate?) to give her plain home cooked food of all times (not completely liquidised but no hard lumps to get her used to textures).

Spendless

I was always told that you introduced foods seperately so if there was a reaction to a particular food you could pinpoint the culprit. if she's fine on broccoli and cauliflower seperate i don't see why they can't be given together afterwards.

mine liked banana as well but it can stain clothes.

Counting_Pennies_2

Avocado they tend to love mashed up

Peas (maybe later on as an early finger food, great to see the pincer grip with this veg!)

Broccoli is very strong, hence adding it to the cauliflower, so you may want to introduce cauli first, and if no reaction, do them joint, and then you will see if there is a reaction to them individually. Don't be surprised if the nose is turned up to broccoli straight away, just try a few weeks later. I can't remember when you can add cheese to the diet, but a broccoli and cauliflower cheese goes down well.

Annabel Karmel is great

Sea78

Hi,

I have a 7 1/2 month old (& 3 yr old) and I gave him broccoli a while ago. Despite this his diet is also rather orange -butternut squash, carrot, sweet potato etc. Parsnip has gone own very well. I make cod in cheese sauce and pop a few cubes of veg (including broccoli) so no one taste is overwhelming. I tried curley kale (whizzed family meal but as supidlly whizzed he potato with it, it didn't go down well! Cabbage (white) has gone down wel too.

I tend to try new food/not so fond of food with favs ( like carrot or butternut squash) and find this helps to sneak in the green stuff. 3 yr old refused all visable greens for a year, and is now okish with some.

hth

Alleycat

Now your little one is 7 months, you can start to introduce finger foods. She may not actually eat it at first, but she will soon get the idea by watching you at meal times. Maybe start with something soft like a piece of banana, slice of hard boiled egg or steamed carrot and eat some with her. When she sees you picking it up and eating it, she will give it a try too. It is very funny when they put their first finger food in their mouth and realise that they can actually eat it unlike all the other stuff they've tried (like the tv remote etc!). You can then move onto foods such as buttered toast, cheese sticks. If she has got two teeth as well, then she will soon get the idea of biting and chewing. Our dd got soo involved she even tryed to chew her water.

For purees, tomato is a good one to mix in with stuff. I know its still sorta orange, but it helps to sweeten some of the more boring veges. Also pea puree is apparently okay as well (it looks foul though, so never gave it to dd). For breakfast you can try porridge oats (the really powdery ones) mixed with either expressed milk, formula or full fat cows milk.

Once she starts moving into more lumpy spoonfed food, you can try cheesey mash, spaghetti bolognaise. The more variety the better I reckon. My dd is not fussy at all and will happily eat a curry, chilli, shepherds pie, stirfry etc.

The first year is really about just getting into the whole food thing. Don't worry if she is not having her three meals a day or swallowing much food, it is such a massive learning curve. Just make sure you have your camera ready as you'll get some cracking photos as she tries more stuff.

Once babies are over the 6 month mark, you can be a lot more adventerous with their foods as they are a lot less likely to develp allergies. Also, at 7 months you can start to introduce meat as well. Just beware, that those stick blender thingies aren't overly best friends with meat (I tried to puree some roast dinner and the beef clogged the blades and nearly burned the motor out).

I know how difficult it can be though when they are poorly and off their food. One of the only things dd will eat when she is teething badly and full of cold is yoghurts. I am just soo paranoid that she will get like those toddlers you see on the house of tiny tearaways who will only eat them and nothing else.

Karnam

i have blended some broccoli, baby not had any yet so we'll see if she likes broccoli straight up! i also saw annabel recommends frozen peas.

Sea78

Back again...Alleycat, it is so lovely and funny - I still have photos of dd smearing carrot purree all over her face!

Forgot to say as well - my ds chokes the moment a lumpy puree is passed through his lips, but is fine with toast and rice cakes - turns his nose up at pear and the like, in sticks, no idea why!

Alleycat

Sea78 wrote:

Forgot to say as well - my ds chokes the moment a lumpy puree is passed through his lips, but is fine with toast and rice cakes - turns his nose up at pear and the like, in sticks, no idea why!

Rather than choking, it may be just your son's gagging reflex. This is where he is slowly learning how to manouvere the food around his mouth. If you are worried, don't strap him into his highchair, so if you need to whip him out in an emergency you can. Just whilst he is getting through this phase.

My older sister when she was being weaned was given some plum with the skin still on by our grandma. She did actually start to choke, so she grabbed her by the feet and flipped her upside down to get it out!

Re the pear, I found that with our daughter, it needs to have sat in the fruit bowl for a while to soften before she will eat it. I think it is a bit too bitty for her when still kind of hard, plus when its softer it tends to be more juicy. I als found this with plums.

Another meal I created (well sort of!) was using left over cauliflower and/or broccoli florets from sunday dinner. Already cooked, I put it in a ramakin, grated some cheese over it, packed it down a bit, sprinkled on some bread crumbs (sort of grated that too), a bit more cheese, then baked it in the oven on gas mark 4 for about 10 minutes. Gooey cauliflower cheese! You can put a bit of ham or cooked chicken in it as well, just make sure the ham isn't too salty.

Karnam

ive not take any pictures of weaning so far, v v hard to when OH works in the day when i wean!

my little one gags too, i normally just give her a minute or two, watch to check shes not choking and then continue. i also tend to give a bath afterwards and then a little milk to help the food stay down. then she drifts off at the boob guaranteed!

Alleycat

How old is your little one Karnam?

Camera in one hand, spoon in the other. You need to be quick, but it will be worth it!!