I feel like a mess!

[maldives]

My LO is only 3 months old. and I am starting from now to prepare what i need for weaning. i feel like a complete idiot i don't know what to buy, where to start, how to prepare things..etc
plz help.
1-what's the best high chair? and is the bumbo thing the small ground chair better to start with? which brand?
2-what type of blender do u use for ur babies food?
3-what did u start weaning him on? juices? food?
4-what is the best baby recepie book ?

I am soo confused.

What is the best baby site where u can buy these things and ships internationally?

 

[LisaJ1986]

I'm not overly brilliant at this stuff so i'll try my best.

I cannot help on highchairs just yet, i feed Angel in her Bumbo. But she can reach her feet and it's a distraction!

I bought a cheap hand blender from Asda for under a fiver. BUt i've seen hand blenders with the bits for it in Tesco for a tenner. Therefore no mess.

I initially started her on baby rice but my HV told me not to bother as it's tasteless, it's just for texture. So i started her on carrot and sweet potato. She loves them both.

I don't have any recipe books myself but i read the one my sister has and it's Annabel Karmel and it's brilliant. Gave me loads more ideas.

Good luck!

 

[Bee]

I feed Finlay is his baby rocker chair thingy

He has a bumbo too and have tried before in this buyt he fussed - may try again

We have a high chair but its for his xmas

I just pick a veg, steam it, blend and freeze. Sometimes he has it on its own and sometimes I mix it with another. We r making our way though veg just now then going to move onto fruit

I give him baby porridge too instead of baby rice

 

[Sherlock]

I'd not be in a major rush to wean from 4 months tbh. If your baby is doing well on milk then maybe go a bit longer. If he is sleeping well and not waking at night often seeming hungry I'd be inclined to wait a while. But thats just me.

Anyways in answer to your questions

1-what's the best high chair? and is the bumbo thing the small ground chair better to start with? which brand?

Your LO needs to be able to sit up unaided for a high chair to be of use. So don't use one to start with if you do wean from 4 months onwards. Bumbo's are good and you can get them with a tray so can put food in front of LO and he can try things himself as time goes on.

2-what type of blender do u use for ur babies food?

Just a simple hand blender. Steam all the veggies and the fruit that needs it and then mix in a little of the water and blend to a mush.

3-what did u start weaning him on? juices? food?

Not juice at all. Don't go there till at least 6 months. Just water is fine for now. In fact don't give juice at all is my way to go. What LO does not have he won't miss. Bad for teeth when they start coming through.

You need to start on simple foods and flavours. Here is a site with info, scroll down and read the weaning part and it tells you good foods to start with. http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/agesandstages/baby/weaning/

Don't give foods containing milk, gluten, nuts and a whole other list of things till 6 months plus (and in some cases older still). Stick with fruit and veg to start for the first few months. Then past 6 months you can introduce meat and pasta etc.

No salt. No added sugar.

4-what is the best baby recepie book ?

Annabel Karmel does a good starter one. 100 purees or something its called.

I think you really need to read up on things for yourself so you are aware of the guidelines on what foods to avoid and what to try to include etc. And from what ages. For example don't give honey to a baby under one at all.

BBC website also has some clear and useful info http://www.bbc.co.uk/parenting/your_kid ... ning.shtml

 

[Bee]

annabel karmel has a website too - saves u buying the books

 

[purple13]

you've got a long time to plan if you wait til the recommended 6 months to wean

as sherlock says, if your baby is doing well on milk, why hurry things? and if you wait til 6 months, you don't need to puree - its perfect if you are lazy and don't want to spend unnecessary money, like me!!

i use a bumbo and a highchair to feed from, depending on what connor's eating and when. what you use is completely up to you and will probably depend on the space you have.

 

[LisaJ1986]

My HV gave me a booklet of dos and don'ts. I found it quite useful.
No harm in preparing ready. I boil my veg as i don't have a steamer. And things like sweet potato and carrot puree brilliantly without anything added.
I use ice cube trays to store it. Just pop one out at the beginning then i moved onto two, then three. I'm gonna invest in some food ones with lids. I found them on ebay today and my sister has loaned me some Annabel Karmel ones.

Just try one thing for a few days so you know whether they like it or or allergic, then move onto something else. I started with carrot, then sweet potato, then mixed them both.

 

[maldives]

Hi,
Thanks all for ur valuable replies.
Sorry it sounded as i am going to wean him NOW LOL thats not the case. i am not planning to wean until 6 months actually but i just want to be prepared from now. i like to be organized LOL

what baby rice u use? i mean the ready ones u buy at the supermarket or u make them ur selves?

Sherlock thanks for the websites i'll check them out and i know about the honey

thanks for not recommending juice it sounds reasonable really.

you've got a long time to plan if you wait til the recommended 6 months to wean

as sherlock says, if your baby is doing well on milk, why hurry things? and if you wait til 6 months, you don't need to puree - its perfect if you are lazy and don't want to spend unnecessary money, like me!!

i use a bumbo and a highchair to feed from, depending on what connor's eating and when. what you use is completely up to you and will probably depend on the space you have.

Does it mean at 6 months he can have solids with out being blended?!

 

[Suzie and Faith]

i'm prepared too! I hate a 'weaning box' lol, i have the annabel karmel 100 purees book and i think it looks good but as Bee said her website has the info on it too!
Faith has a bumbo and we will use that until she gets a highchair - which will be xmas (just after she is 6 months) though hopefully we wont be weaning her until then anyway.

I think the baby rice comes in packets and you just add baby's normal milk. I wouldn't bother buying the flavoured ones as you can just add fruit/veg puree to the baby rice if you like.

Babies from 6 months can do 'baby led weaning (BLW)' there are a few threads around here on it, have a read, it looks like fun!

 

[Sherlock]

My HV gave me a booklet of dos and don'ts. I found it quite useful.
No harm in preparing ready. I boil my veg as i don't have a steamer.

FWIW you can get a steaming pan so don't need an actual plug in steamer. That's what we do. Up to 3 layers can go in.

 

[Magic Monkey]

If you wait until 6 months you can do baby led weaning - where you just give baby finger foods rather than purees. See the thread in here for more info (I don't do it)

Baby rice - I use the organix stuff, it is basically just a fine powder that you mix with babies normal milk. (I say this as I was expecting it to be like actual rice that is how clueless I was!) Ella still has this for breakfast mixed with different fruit purees. She won't eat porridge at all.

I have the Annabel Karmel book - complete baby and toddler meal planner, it is really good as it explains which foods are best when and how to go about starting weaning. I found it invaluable to start with.

 

[Sherlock]

Does it mean at 6 months he can have solids with out being blended?!

Sort of. He'll have to be introduced to foods. Its a whole other apporach to purees and then bringing in more solid foods later.

You really need to go do some reading about the different ways to wean as BLW might not be what you want to do at 6 months. Most people tend to start earlier if wanting to begin with puree. Some are not comfortable with giving their LO finger foods from the off etc and prefer to build up with purees and start earlier.

Also do some reading on the babys ability to learn to chew around a certain age etc. Then you might understand better the 2 different ways of weaning and why the times to do so differ.

Do you not have any groups you can attend there with regard to this sort of thing? I know over there things are done very differently and am not sure if you are an expat or what, but if so surely there is a Mums group for support where you can ask and seek advice.

Why not have a read of the recent discussions on weaning here on the forum. There are some stickies and also recent threads on both ways.

 

[purple13]

Does it mean at 6 months he can have solids with out being blended?!

yup, it means exactly that

take a look at www.rapleyweaning.com and you'll be able to read the origins of BLW and the reasons behind it. the thought is that babies are much less likely to choke when feeding themselves than when being spoon fed, as they're not in control of the latter.

perfect starter foods are things like banana, plum, soft pears, well steamed veg. the BLW blog thread has a few suggestions on it. connor's not quite 7 months but is now on 3 meals a day and pretty much eats what i eat - things like cereal/toast for breakfast, salad or pitta bread sandwich for lunch, then (for example) chicken & veg for tea.

 

[maldives]

OMG I really seem an idiot in this matter.

Well I guess I'm still learning this is my first so i guess the first year is full of learning and experimenting.

Which is good news as when i have my second hopefully i'll be an expert by then

Unfortunately I don't think there are any support groups over here. there isn't even a breast feeding counseling center which sucks

as I didn't quiet master it the first time and struggled so I defo need some help next time.

I will try and do some reading, tbh i thought it was easier and faster to get responses from u guyz than do some reading

 

[Sherlock]

I found reading very useful as it gave me lots of info and helped me make an informed choice as to the best way to wean my LO. The basic principals are the same but what you plan to give to your baby is personal choice. You could want to be giving jars of baby food instead of making your own. Or not have any idea about what is good for a baby to eat in terms of healthy food.

Also what and how we feed them as babies has an impact on what they grow up eating and liking I feel so its not something I'd go into without doing plenty of reading first. But thats just me

 

[dannii87]

OMG I really seem an idiot in this matter.

No you don't!! Miss Evie isn't even 3 weeks yet and I'm already trying to read up on everything because I didn't read up enough on breastfeeding and feel like we could have benefited a lot more if I'd have done so earlier!

It's really interesting reading all this by the way xx

 

[maldives]

well it was interesting to read when i was pregnant now i hardly have the time. I did alot of reading while pregnant on pregnancy only! so i wish i have read about baby stuff too!

 

[purple13]

well it was interesting to read when i was pregnant now i hardly have the time. I did alot of reading while pregnant on pregnancy only! so i wish i have read about baby stuff too!

you don't sound like an idiot one bit! i think that even when you read the baby stuff, the best thing is to find your own way through it all. only you can know what is right for you and your child, although a bit of knowledge in certain things can definitely be influential.

for the most part, i've gone with my instincts and then researched afterwards if i've felt like i've needed reassurance for my choices. i think breastfeeding and weaning are the two subjects i've spent the most time looking up on.