Top tips to get you started
1. Take your time
Weaning isn’t a race, what suits another family might not suit yours and that's ok. Have a plan of how you are going to do it, what foods you are going to offer and take it day by day. I always love to plan ahead and make sure I grab everything I need in the weekly shop.
2. Utensils at the ready
Have Plates, Bowls & a cup / beaker that will see you through the first couple of years. Silicone food grade plates and bowls are brilliant for washing and if they are knocked off the table they don’t break and trust me, they’ll be knocked off!
3. Best seat in the house
Having a highchair that is comfy, supporting & helps with their posture is really important. There are many brands of highchair that I can recommend to help with these- Stokke Tripp Trapp, Bugaboo Giraffe, Mamas & Papas Juice High chair and the Kaos Klapp meaning that meal times will be calmer, and less fidgety.
4. Do what works for you
Find an approach that suits you; Baby Led, Purées or a combination of the two. I enjoy the combination approach, because you can see how much they have eaten from the purée but also while letting them explore - solids. It’s such a joy seeing your little one develop opinions and explore new tastes and textures.
5. Batch cook
This will make life a lot easier when preparing your baby’s meal plan but also in case of emergency you have something you can pull out of the freezer at short notice. When batch cooking I tend to pop the food into icecube trays and then once frozen put them into little freezer bags. You can then pull out a variety of different foods to make a meal at any stage of the journey. Tired after a long day? No guilt needed because you have a perfectly nutritious meal ready to defrost.
6. Explore & Taste
Offer lots of different tastes and flavours, this will help their taste buds develop and grow. Even if they seem to not like it the first time –, keep going back to that food so they get a chance to develop a taste for it.
7. Lets be social
Where possible try and eat together and eat out. This will promote good table manners, a wonderful social event and will give them a positive and happy experience. On-the-go weaning is just as easy as being at home so why not treat yourself to your favourite coffee shop and bring some puree in a to-go bag. Fresh air always does everyone the world of good.
Make sure you follow the guidelines set by the NHS and The World Health Organisation (WHO). The current guidelines are to start weaning around 6 months and you shouldn’t offer any solid foods to your baby before they are just over 4 months (17 weeks) old. Milk should remain your child’s main source of nutrition until they are 1 year, the solid food is to complement the milk feeds.
