i started out feeding cedar pretty calmly and optimistically. he was happy, i was happy. then he started to get picky.. and pickier. and then i read about BLW. and the stress began.
baby led weaning is a newer approach to introducing solids to babies, skipping the mushy food stage and focusing more on giving baby small manageable pieces of solid food and letting them choose what they like and putting them more in charge of their eating.
(read more about BLW here)
i don't know why i felt suddenly pressured to take this approach. cedar was being picky but what we were doing was working and i had my mum's knowledge and recipes. but i decided to try BLW. and honestly, it was frustrating. other than bananas, cedar pretty much refused to actually eat any other food i gave him. oh sure, he'd mush it up and lick it, and throw it off his highchair, but not actually consume it. its important for him to get to play and experiment with food, but i still needed him to actually ingest some if it too.
it was beginning to feel like a never ending battle, and that's not how i wanted meals and eating to be. (not to mention i have reoccurring nightmares about serving cedar a bowl of baby cereal with a candle in it for his 1st birthday.) so i gave up! and pulled out the food processor and everything was good.
he's happy and gobbling up (almost) everything i make him. he still gets his beloved "bananans" and other bits of food to play with, but the pressure is off for those finger foods to provide nutrition. and the planning and fun begins to whip up tiny little puree meals.
whether i'll find a "cake" type food to serve him for his birthday in a couple of weeks that he will eat- i'm not sure, but you know what? i don't care. if he wants a banana with a candle in it, that's what he gets. <3
I like to think there is no such thing as black and white with parenting. All these moms who say they ONLY do this and this and this and that...I call HOGWASH! I do BLW but have to use puréed food too, baby needs to eat! I breastfeed but supplement with bottles. I babywear but own a stroller too. There is a time and a place for everything and all that matters is that mom and baby are happy! Do what works mamma!
ReplyDeleteI think that the key term here is "baby led"...if your baby is telling you that he does better with the mashies than with the chunkier stuff, then bravo for following his cues. Three babes in, and I can attest to the fact that none of my three have led us down the same path, and that all of them have attacked table foods at the pace and with the consistency that worked best for them...the baby led theory certainly isn't an exact prescription. :)
ReplyDeleteIt´s just diffrent trends... Big in Sweden to. I could never do it , I would worry to death that Dexter ( my son) would choke. The best thing to do is what your heart tells you to do! <3
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