MSE Newborn to 1 year (& beyond!) baby club 3

Crabapple

I should be surprised that the HV is saying to start weaning before 26 weeks but I've heard all sorts from them so I'm not. The NHS and NICE guidelines are 26 weeks and you'd think they'd be repeating that!

There is some link between early weaning and digestive problems so if you can hold off as long as possible it's probably best. One thing to remember is that putting stuff into their mouths is just learning it doesn't mean they are desperate for food.

Hope that isn't coming across judgey - I'm honestly about what is doing what's best for your baby but that needs to be based on the right advice and information. My older one started food at 24 weeks cos she stole some food off a plate and actually ate it!

Personally I'd go with the porridge rather than baby rice. The rice has next to no calories or nutritional value, it just bungs them up a bit. It's also no guarantee they will sleep any better. My daughter didn't sleep through until she was about 1, and even then it was not every night. She was eating pretty well from about 8 months and certainly by a year she was having meals and snacks.

Oh, and sitting up - that can be with support, just so long as they aren't flopping all over the place! If they can sit fine in a highchair then that's okay. It's just important that they be upright to minimise risk of choking.

My baby is sleeping, although he keeps squirming and I can hear him filling his nappy from the other side of the room :eek:

Crabapple

Yep, what Oscar just said - there are way more calories in their milk than in any food they will take in, even if they take to weaning really well, so solid food does not equal sleep!

Plus, the nappies once they've got solids going through their system are just rank!

continualdiamond

Thanks for the replies we weaning. Didn't know that baby rice didn't have many calories, think based on that will try and put it off for a few more weeks then.

Bangton - sorry about your job. I forgot to reply about that in my previous reply. Hope it gets sorted out soon. Finding childcare has been one of bug bears, I've found a fab child minder but still waiting to hear back from my work on if I can work part time.

amus

Haven't really made my mind up yet with weaning. Think I might try a bit of BLW and do pur!es as well (I know the hardcore BLW day there's no such thing as mixing the two but you know what I mean).

LO licked my pancake the other day, she seemed to enjoy it haha.

Bangton

Thanks for your support on redundancy girls. That was such a whingey post and I'm so lucky the pay out means more time with lo, I just wish they'd give me a blumming date! !! As for weaning. .I started a week ago (lo 21 weeks). Tbh my baby is a big boy (17ibs and 2ft2 at 5 months old) but more than that I just know it's right for us. He watches us eat, grabs at our food and copies my chewing motions (although theres an argument to say he's bound to be inquisitive as I'm always eating in front of him and he grabs/copies other things). He seems to enjoy it. .smiling and taking his food well. I've found it all too easy to get bogged down with guidelines and was adamant I'd wait till 6 months but I'm glad I've started now. I trust the research but years ago when my sister had her baby she was told off for weaning too late (6 months because it effects speach??) So I consider the guidelines but definitely think every baby is different and its totally acceptable to bring weaning forward if you wish. Regards sleep. .. It defo isn't a cure though. My lo takes the same milk as always. . Including his night feed

lao_cat

Re weaning we are doing baby led here, c was so curios I starred giving him appropriate finger foods around 23 weeks or so and after a couple of weeks he started eating. The le leche league guidance is around the middle of the first year and every baby is different.

C is eating really well but it has not had any positive impact on his sleep

Lazywife just wondering when T started dropping feeds? Am back to work in may but don't want to stop bfing if u can help it

Mrshaworth2b

My lo took a couple of steps independantly tonight! I'm a very proud mummy! He's spent all day giving me cuddles, laying his head on my chest and giving me kisses! Awwww!

Regarding weaning, it doesn't make lo sleep any better, that's a complete myth. And don't feel bad if you use pur!es, I think they were great for me because I'm a control freak and I liked knowing the amount that lo had eaten I.e half a jar. Now we don't use them (11 months) and I'm giving lo pretty much what we eat everyday, but still I worry he's not eating enough but I'm learning!

lazywife

Lao, I've been a bit spoiled as I'll have had over a year off so I've been only slowly dropping off feeds as it suits. About 6.5 months (started blw at 6 months) he fed 1st thing, mid morning, mid afternoon, just after dinner then bedtime. Dropped off after dinner feed at 7 months. Then probably about 8 months would have dropped mid morning feed but I kept him on it (as it helped him to drift off for a nap) until 9 months. at 10 months now I don't think he really needs his afternoon feed, but again I'm keeping it on as it helps him nap, so then he'll only be on 1st thing and last thing. Even they'll drop fairly quickly as he didn't want 1st thing this morning, went straight into breakfast. The hardest part is the cow's milk not until 12 months, so I introduced the milk with some raisins as a mid morning snack once that feed was dropped. (I know it was earlier than suggested, but it's really only for hydration, not to fill him up). Also we gave him water with meals in a tippee cup (free flow) as soon as he started blw, he has his milk from a tippee cup too, so never had a bottle. You may be pushing it if you need to go back in May, but could probably get away with formula, or expressing only one feed for the day.

For those querying weaning. T is a big baby, on 80th percentile, and tall, and active. We didn't start blw until 26 weeks and he's taken to it brilliantly. My advice is to start with less mushy things. Penne pasta is good to get hold of (cook it a bit longer than al dente and we didn't put on sauce initially as that is messy!), carrot sticks (cooked), cucumber sticks. He loves cream crackers as he can gnaw on them to start with, but then they go nice and soft to swallow. By leaving it until then I didn't have to be too picky about food types and coordination was good enough that he could get food in and eat it pretty quickly. After the first couple of weeks I did some spoon in foods so he could have some messier stuff (yoghurt etc). Although true blw he should have had an apple stick to dunk in the yog himself, there is a limit to how much tidying up is reasonable! A great start to his day is porridge, proper adult jumbo oats porridge, he loves it, and definitely fills him up, although the blw comes through as some days he'll eat it all and some days he'll maybe only have a third. But I know that he knows when he's done.
Go with what suits you best though. Just because it worked for us doesn't mean it's for everyone. We're certainly not purists about it.

MrsH hooray for the steps! I'm sure he wouldn't be a happy (toddling!) baby giving you cuddles if he was hungry, he must be eating enough. Someone said to try and look at what they have over a few days rather than meal by meal. Sometimes T has a massive meal, then won't be interested in the next couple of meals.

Phew, long post, sorry.... can you tell T is having a cosy mummy cuddle sleep, an I've the laptop and the TV remote next to me... bliss.
x

continualdiamond

I'm getting a bit scared re this weaning business and dropping bottles down...I've got 11 weeks of my maternity leave left and it seems very daunting to be going back to work with weaning being so new to her and us as if we wait until she is 6 mths old it will only be 7 weeks of it before handing her to the child minder to continue.

Got her weighed today, 1st time in a month and she'd put on 1lb 1oz, 14lb 12oz now at 5 mths old. Felt bad for another mum who got told her baby needed to go on a diet :eek:, her daughter weighed 18lb and is 7.5mths old. I was mortified, as in the health visitor saying that, not that babies weight as to me personally the baby didn't even look big at all.

Sparkles87

Wow, my LO was 18lb 15oz at 7.5 months (a few weeks ago) and the HV looked at her but then said oh she's very long so probably fine - she was on 95th centile when last measured because one panicked about her weight. How horrible to say a baby needs to go on a diet though!
We started weaning at five months on the GP's advice as she started totally refusing all milk so we started with baby porridge and fruit purees. Now at 8 months, she has some BLW/finger foods and some jars/pouches/mushed food now and switches really well between the two. I'm not going to let her throw food all over the food out and about or at friend's houses I'm afraid so that's when I stick to spoon stuff. She's finally dropped her lunchtime bottle so has four of 6oz now and is on follow on because I bought it once and she refused first milk for days after so must prefer the taste. I'm still not sure if I should be giving her vitamin drops too but never see the HV so not a clue.