Tag Archives: BLW blog

The Baby-Lead Weaning Mindset – Have you got it?

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BLW lunch out

BiP enjoying lunch out with Mummy

I know I have been talking a lot about Baby-Led Weaning recently, I guess it’s because I have become a fan/obsessed (or a bit of both)! The one thing that has struck me is that it goes beyond food and nutrition; it’s a mindset. Some mothers have said “yeah we do a bit of spoon-feeding and a bit of BLW” which in all honesty doesn’t make much sense to me.

Today I stumbled upon a post about Why you can’t do BLW by halves which highlights the fundamental differences between BABY-Led Weaning (BLW) and PARENT-Led Weaning (PLW), the latter being spoon-feeding and finger foods. One thing that rings true to me is that you can’t do both.

So, what do I mean why I say the BLW Mindset? Since I love lists here we go:

  • The BLW Mindset is about allowing your baby to have absolute control over what they eat and how they eat it. As long as you offer a varied and healthy diet that is safe and manageable for them to eat the rest is up to them.
  • It is all about trusting your baby to know what they need of certain foods and how much.  There is no measuring with BLW – how much your baby eats is up to them, always.
  • Daily nutrition should not be the concern, instead weekly nutrition is the priority. If you ensure that your baby always has healthy options it does not matter if they don’t eat a combination of meat, vegetables and carbs in one sitting.
  • BLW starts with what YOU eat – it’s about how the whole family eats – not just your baby. You can’t expect your baby to be delighted with steamed veges whilst you are devouring a Big Mac meal in front of them.  You need to rethink how YOU eat as a family.
  • BLW is based on mutual trust between you and your baby; your baby trusts you to provide healthy food and you, in turn, need to trust your baby to know what to do with it. No coaxing, “helping”, games .. etc.
  • There is no food introduction schedule in BLW unless there is a family allergy. You do not need to wait 3 days between new foods, you don’t have to wait to introduce milk/wheat/dairy/egg whites … the list is endless… basically if there no family allergy issue and your baby shows all the signs of readiness – GO FOR IT!
  • If you have a treat or a desert you should let your baby try it – it is only fair – you are enjoying something so let them join in. Denying them this makes whatever you are eating forbidden and perhaps desirable in the future but can cause distrust between you and your baby – why is mummy letting me have everything but not that? The BLW Mindset includes the whole family – just make sure you don’t do it everyday!

So, that’s what I feel about the BLW Mindset. Have you go it?

 

My 10 (straight up) Tips on Starting Baby-Led Weaning (BLW)

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Since I’ve become part of the great new Baby-Led Weaning site I’ve been asked about tips on how to start Baby-Led Weaning so I thought I’d give my top 10 tips. As, what I would call, a hardcore BLW fan I hope you find these tips helpful! (WARNING: This post is straight up, I am not sugar coating anything because sugar is bad for you!)

1. Buy Gill Rapley’s book “Baby-Led Weaning” – I have not been asked to promote this book but it is the best way to get started. Read it, read it again, keep it by your bed, in the bathroom, keep it where ever you do your reading!)

2. Start following the Baby-Led Weaning Blog – a new site with lots of different mothers posting about their BLW journey – see the mess, the reactions, the smiles and some more of the mess BLW entails!

Octopus Pasta BLW

BiP enjoying Octopus with rice pasta and roasted vegetables at 10months old

3. Trust your instinct – a lot of mothers cave in to baby foods because they fall prey to marketing and advice from others who believe its the only way to go. It is not. Do you eat out of a jar? If you do, then BLW is not for you.

4. Make sure your baby is READY to start BLW – your baby cannot sit upright, gags or cannot put food into its own mouth then your baby is NOT ready for solids. When was the last time you ate lying down?

5. The average age for “readiness” for solids is 6 months – OK, so we all think our baby is advanced and is a prodigy in making but when it comes the internal physical development they are all pretty much at the same age regardless of size. As the mother of a “big” baby I was told at 5 months that BiP needed more than just breast milk – luckily I knew better. This is not true, regardless of the new study published in the British Medical Journal.  Waiting until your baby is 6 months old means that most babies can eat ANYTHING, there is no need to delay the introduction of any food unless their is a family allergy. BLW expels the myth that babies need to wait 3 days between the introduction of each food (Seriously? That would take a lifetime to get everything covered).

BLW Salad Nicoise

BiP trying Salad Nicoise for the first time

6. Treat your baby as a person, not a thing or a pet – so many fail to treat their babies as the little people that they are. Many of us are guilty of making foods for our babies that we think they should have vs. what they should really have. Look at what you are eating and, provided it is unprocessed, salt and sugar free, let them try it.

7. Rethink the way YOU eat – if you want to BLW your baby you need to make sure that you, as a family, set an example. Ranging from table manners to the quality of the food on your plate. If your idea of a balanced meal is a Fried Chicken Family Bucket with coleslaw (that’s veg right?) or a microwave meal (but its says its a health food) then maybe you are better off giving baby food to your baby.  Your baby, will in time, check what is on your plate. When she sees you are eating something different it will arouse suspicion and create confusion. Oh and just in case you didn’t realise, that stuff is bad for you.

8. Be prepared for the mess – an important part of BLW is to allow your baby to put food into their mouths themselves. Now, I know that your baby is probably very advanced but even the most amazing babies WILL and I repeat, WILL drop food. A LOT of it.  They will smear it across their high chair, over their faces … absolutely EVERYWHERE … do not, ever, never ever, tell them off for this at the beginning, they are learning. There will be a whole lot of misses before there are hits! Go with it! Stock up on clothes and antibacterial wipes and consider getting a dog if you haven’t already got one. Oh and if you have beige suede chairs and a lovely cream carpet maybe you should feed your baby in the garden, garage or bathroom!

9. Be PATIENT – firstly, we all eat too fast. Your baby probably doesn’t have any teeth (not that it makes any difference) so will take a lot longer to devour that steak and roast vegetables. Allow your baby to take their time. They will make a mess but I promise, in time, they will become more efficient and tidier when it comes to meal times.

10. Keep your camera on hand – BLW is adorable – it’s fun, it’s messy and sometimes downright HILARIOUS especially when your little one has an octopus tentacle hanging out of its mouth or rice in its hair. Take photo’s, LOTS of them! Share them and rejoice in the reactions such as “Oh wow, I can’t believe you baby eats THAT!”

So, now that we got that covered, what are your BLW tips?