First Food

Abigail is officially six months old! We celebrated on Sunday with her first taste of avocado. Here's the story:

"Hey - you promised! Now you won't even let me touch it?!?"

"Oy you! Bring that back!!"

"Woah - why is it on fire?"

"Wait - it's cool - I can handle the fire. Don't take it away again!"

"Oh thank goodness. Now how does this work?"

 ...a while later...

"Oh, I did it!"

You may be wondering why we give Abigail carrot and celery sticks and why she is given a whole slice of avocado. If you are curious, read on!

A bit about "baby-led weaning" or "baby-led solids"

The principle of baby-led weaning is based on the way babies develop and the skills that appear naturally in their first year. If parents give their baby the opportunity to handle foods at about the right time, she will instinctively start to feed herself when she is ready. 

Most people take it for granted that spoon-feeding is the normal way to give babies their first solid foods. But spoon feeding is left over from the days when parents were advised to start solids at 3-4 months of age - when their babies were too young to feed themselves.

This is what typically happens:

• The baby is included in family mealtimes, where she watches what others are doing and is offered the chance to join in
• Nobody "feeds" the baby; when she is ready she starts handling food and taking it to her mouth first (at first with her fingers and later with silverware)
• To start with, food is offered in pieces that are easy to pick up (babies soon learn how to handle a range of sizes, shapes, and textures)
• It's up to the baby how much she eats and how fast she eats it. It's also up to her how quickly she moves on to a wider range of foods
• The baby continues to have milk feedings whenever she wants them, and she decides when she is ready to begin reducing them

Key benefits

• Allows each baby to move on to solid foods at the right time and pace for her developing body, and ensures that her important milk feedings are not cut out too early 
• Helps to develop babies' hand-eye coordination, dexterity, and chewing skills
• Allows each baby to eat as much as she needs, in her own time, so establishing good eating habits that may last a lifetime
• Makes picky eating and mealtime battles less likely
• Allows babies to explore the taste, texture, color, and smell of individual foods
• Encourages confidence at mealtimes and enjoyment of a wide range of foods
• Means babies can be a part of family mealtimes from the beginning

Is it safe?
Yes - check out http://www.babyledweaning.com/ for more information.