Hints and tips for weaning (merged)

brummiebabe

Thanks for all the advice - she's eaten well today...even having a full fromage frais after lunch...lunch was late though (as she was asleep) so I don't know if tiredness could be a factor in her not wanting to eat?
Any other thoughts/ideas???

black-saturn

What I did was put a tiny bit of a food she wouldnt eat and mix it in and then gradually reduce the thing she liked and increased the thing she didn't like until she was eating it no problem.

taggiesgirl

Hiya!

My baby girl is coming up to 10 months and is still on food jars (she will eat any that i do for her)
I think that us mums are too rushed into thinking by that age they have to be doing this etc....
She is happy and sleeps well still has her milk bottles and enjoys them.
After all she is still a baby!:rotfl:

My health visitor is like give her a sandwich,etc.... but at the moment i fell she is still to young but that is my own opinion.
I have 2 sons (7 and 3) and they are both fine i never rushed them into the whole solids thing,they have plenty of time for that both my kids are good eaters and i think my laid back attitude helps this.

Anyway what im trying to say to you is please do not worry,you have plenty of time,the worst thing to do is to get yourself worked up about it all.:D

mazmack

I don't have much advice for you, sadly, but I wanted to say I am in exactly the same situation with my daughter, who is 7.5 months old!

Am just trying to relax and not make a big issue out of it, and trust that if she needs it she will eat it!

It's hard though, she is tall and thin and my health visitor is also hassling me!

I think some babies are slower to take to solids than others, I also feel this is quite a difficult stage for them, they are teething and also my DD is getting really frustrated that she can't crawl and getting very clingy and upset if I leave the room.

She hasn't slept as well as she used to for quite a while now either, and is really tired! It's like life is too exciting for her to want to nap. She also keeps rolling over in sleep and getting stuck so waking herself (and us) up. I noticed she definitely won't take as much solids when tired, it seems easier to take the bottle. So I am going to work on her sleeping and napping to start with.

nats3006

some good advice above! nothing really to add only i know what its like!!

ooobedoo

Don't know if it helps, DD is just 6 months but was a very large girl(11lb 1oz), and I started weaning at 5 1/2 months.

7am-9oz hungry baby milk
9.30-breakfast, baby rice mixed with fruit puree
12pm-lunch-spag bol she likes
4/5pm-tea-food with puree fruit
6.30/7pm-9oz hungry baby milk then bed

water(tap water as per 0-5 nhs book)

Elle00

Hiya, sorry you're having a nightmare! I had similar problems at around 7m old though my son had been used to having baby rice in the morning from a 14wks due to problems (long story, was told to do this by a paediatrician so no comments please).

I started actually weaning at 6m and encountered a similar problem of his refusing to eat which worried me no end because he looked pale and had had anaemia at a few weeks old. So in the end I solved the problem by taking away all his bottles except at bedtime. He was clearly using the baby bottle as a comforter that he was accustomed to and wasn't happy about this "change" to eating food instead so I felt I had no alternative other than to remove his "options". Ie, give him no choice but to move onto the next stage.

I literally plonked a tippee cup with 6oz of milk down on his dinner tray besides a pot of mush and went "there you go" in a calm voice with a big smile. He howled for the first day every time he was given this beaker but the next day, and every day thereafter, he just picked up the cup and drank his milk without any assistance even! In between slurping the milk, he also started taking the food off the spoon that was being offered at a loss of what else to do if he wasn't going to get his bottles back. It took a matter of days for him to suddenly be yumming up three meals a day having discovered the joys of food.

I totally agree with the people suggesting an introduction of finger foods if you're not winning with the purees because they'll encourage your DD to take more of an interest and get involved. I understand your fear of choking but rest assured that this isn't a problem as long as you stay with her while she eats and feed only soft foods that can't completely block the airways in the unlikely event they get stuck. So things like Organix Carrot Cornsnacks for 7m+ which are thin and full of air bubbles, white bread, banana sticks etc. Most babies will have a little choke at some point but a pat on the back will usually dislodge the food easily.

The only helpful thing the Health Visitor told me to do at this time was give my son a spoon and again, it's about encouraging them to join in and take an interest. The added beauty being he could feed himself with a spoon by 11m old! I always let him whack his hands in his weetabix etc at this age for the same reasons, I'd rather he took an interest and explored his food than didn't eat enough.

As you've already experienced, your perseverance is already paying off. Just keep going, throw in any bits of advice you've been offered that you think might help things along and remember that she's going to have to get there in the end as long as you keep at it! Best of luck x.

Savvy_Sue

Elle83 wrote: »

The only helpful thing the Health Visitor told me to do at this time was give my son a spoon and again, it's about encouraging them to join in and take an interest. The added beauty being he could feed himself with a spoon by 11m old! I always let him whack his hands in his weetabix etc at this age for the same reasons, I'd rather he took an interest and explored his food than didn't eat enough.

:rotfl:Yes, eating soup with your fingers has to be seen to be believed, but is great fun! (there is bread soaked up in the soup, btw, which makes it a bit easier ...)

brummiebabe

mazmack wrote: »

I think some babies are slower to take to solids than others, I also feel this is quite a difficult stage for them, they are teething and also my DD is getting really frustrated that she can't crawl and getting very clingy and upset if I leave the room.

She hasn't slept as well as she used to for quite a while now either, and is really tired! It's like life is too exciting for her to want to nap. She also keeps rolling over in sleep and getting stuck so waking herself (and us) up. I noticed she definitely won't take as much solids when tired, it seems easier to take the bottle. So I am going to work on her sleeping and napping to start with.

Are you sure you haven't got my daughter....sounds suspiciously like her:rotfl:

My daughter is just beginning to come throught he really frustrated phase and is now basically sitting on her own (as of today!!):T With the rolling over thing (which she does ALL the time) - my mom suggested that we roll up 2 bath towels and put them either side of her in the cot - this stops her rolling most of the time ( and certainly helped in the night.) HTH

Thanks for all the support & advice - am generally feeling much more relaxed with the whole thing. Like today, all she's really eaten is a big bowl of porridge, a fromage frais and a few spoonfuls of chicken dinner - but I don't feel stressed - I know she'll probably eat better tomorrow. Think i was generally feeling low last week & everything was stressing me. Feeling more relaxed now, and that's DEFINATELY helping!! It's nice to know there are others in the same boat!!:A

heather38

glad that all is better with you. my DD is eating less this week with the heat and her teeth 3 coming together :eek: but she is eating finger foods for the first time, pineapple, ricecakes and rusks. she loves pineapple!