Hi all,
Well it has been a while since my last post (15 weeks) so I'll have a few things to talk about. Last time I posted on here, I was talking about breastfeeding, weaning and touched slightly on baby development.
Well, since I last posted, Joshua has come on a bit with his feeding. He is still not eating as much as I would like him too but there has been a definite improvement and he has been steadily gaining weight. I have continued with mostly baby led weaning and let Joshua feed himself most of the time as this is what he preferred. He has never ever eaten baby foods out of a jar - he just wouldn't have them. He did have some home made purees which he started to eat quite well but then went off them and since then, he has just had what we have had most of the time. I have just decided that I have got to give in and admit that he is going to be a fussy eater like his mummy.
I am still going to try and offer more flavours to him even if has refused it a few times and we'll just take each day as it comes. Joshua seems to be a happy and healthy baby and I am happy that he will eat food now (he does have his favourites now).
During the time since my last post, Joshua kept getting persistent coughs and I took him the doctors 3 times after hi having one for 3 weeks. Eventually the doctor sent him for a chest x-ray. The day he had the x-ray we had a phone call within 5 hours of the x-ray saying they had the results and they wanted to see us. Well, my heart was in my mouth. I just didn't know what to think. We returned to the hospital the next day (thinking that they had found something on his chest to do with his cough) only to be told that his heart is on the right side of his body - dextrocardia. All thoughts went running through my head about heart problems, operations, illnesses and everything a parent dreads to think of their child.
The doctors explained to us that as long as Joshua seemed to be developing properly and didn't have any signs of heart problems that he should be OK and having the heart on the right side is not common but they called it a "variation of normal".We were told that Joshua would have to have an ultrasound because sometimes when the heart is on the wrong side, all of the organs are and he would have to have an echo cardiogram to look at his heart to make sure that all of the vessels are where they should be and that the heart is functioning properly as it should. It was all a lot to take in but we were assured that there was more than likely nothing to worry about because he seemed a normal, happy, healthy baby.
Anyway, few weeks back Joshua had his ultrasound and we found out that all of his other organs are on the right side where they should be. Today we have been for the echo cardiogram and the doctor has told us that the heart is not completely on the right side, it is more towards the middle of the chest and this is called mesocardia. The doctor said that the heart is functioning OK and he should be fine. He has got to go back in a year to have a check up.
As for other things; Joshua has been sitting unsupported now for a couple of months, he is staring to try to pull up on things to get to standing and he is trying to move around on the floor a bit but it is more like shuffling. He doesn't roll over much and he doesn't crawl yet. Personally, I don't think he will crawl. I think he will be a shuffler :o)
I am still breastfeeding Joshua. He has a morning breastfeed, a mid afternoon one and a night time one. However he is still not sleeping through the night and wakes 1 or 2 times to feed. Sometimes he wakes because he is teething or poorly but I crave a night of uninterrupted sleep. lol. The day will come eventually. Until then, I need to be there for him.
I will return soon to talk more about routines, breastfeeding in the later months and baby development.
Thanks all for reading.
Thursday 22 November 2012
Tuesday 7 August 2012
Finger Foods
Well as you know Joshua has been a bit challenging to wean. I have been trying lots of different things to get him to eat more food and I will talk about what I have recently found successful.
Joshua would not eat any purees and after 2 weeks of what seemed successful weaning he seemed to go on a weaning strike. He would not eat anything. He did continues to show interest in food and kept trying to grab food off my plate but when he tried it, he just cried.
If you have read my previous posts, you will know that when I started weaning Joshua, all seemed to be going well for a couple of weeks and then he started to reject his food. I had a breakfast routine all sorted out and was about to move on when he seemed to go on a weaning strike and started to even refuse his breakfast which he normally loved.
So, I know that he did like his porridge breakfasts and some of his purees but I also knew that he liked grabbing food and trying to feed himself so I decided to try to combine the two. I started to offer him finger foods such as carrot batons, fingers of baked parsnip, an oven chip, a piece of cucumber or tomato and anything else I could think of as easy finger food. However, I would also warm up one of two of his purees that I knew he had previously enjoyed eating and dipped the finger foods into the puree. He really liked this and once or twice finished off a couple of cubes of purees as well as most of the finger food. Success at last. He has now had this kind of meal on a couple of occasions and it has been very successful. At least now I know I can get the veggies down him this way.
Since trying this method about 5 days ago, he has had a couple of good days and a couple of bad days where he hasn't eaten as much. The one thing I will say to you all from this is to never give up no matter how long it takes to get them eating something. Babies will eat when they are hungry.
The one thing I am starting to do is reduce the amount of breastfeeds he has. He still has his morning one, one before his mid morning nap, sometimes one in the afternoon and then one before bed. So he is now on between 4 and 5 breastfeeds a day. However he is still waking in the night. It is slow progress but at least it is progress and I am happy with it for now.
I offer drinks at meal time. I offer cooled boiled water with some fresh juice in with breakfast (1 part fresh juice to 5 parts water), just cooled boiled water at lunch time and then water with juice again with his evening meal. Adding the bit of fresh juice helps to increase his vitamin C intake. By doing this, I think he is automatically becoming less interested in milk during the day so this is a good idea to all you breastfeeding mums. I think that Joshua was thirsty sometimes when wanting breast milk before so by adding these drinks, it reduces his thirst and therefore reduces his breastfeeds. It's win win.
So to summarise, if your baby is difficult to wean or going on a weaning strike, perhaps try different methods of feeding them (finger foods, purees, a mixture of the two, Baby Led Weaning), offer a drink at meal times to reduce thirst and therefore the want for milk and just persevere!
Good luck.
7 weeks and 6 days until I return to work, the countdown begins to get Joshua weaned and down to 2 breastfeeds a day.
Will update soon.
Joshua would not eat any purees and after 2 weeks of what seemed successful weaning he seemed to go on a weaning strike. He would not eat anything. He did continues to show interest in food and kept trying to grab food off my plate but when he tried it, he just cried.
If you have read my previous posts, you will know that when I started weaning Joshua, all seemed to be going well for a couple of weeks and then he started to reject his food. I had a breakfast routine all sorted out and was about to move on when he seemed to go on a weaning strike and started to even refuse his breakfast which he normally loved.
So, I know that he did like his porridge breakfasts and some of his purees but I also knew that he liked grabbing food and trying to feed himself so I decided to try to combine the two. I started to offer him finger foods such as carrot batons, fingers of baked parsnip, an oven chip, a piece of cucumber or tomato and anything else I could think of as easy finger food. However, I would also warm up one of two of his purees that I knew he had previously enjoyed eating and dipped the finger foods into the puree. He really liked this and once or twice finished off a couple of cubes of purees as well as most of the finger food. Success at last. He has now had this kind of meal on a couple of occasions and it has been very successful. At least now I know I can get the veggies down him this way.
Since trying this method about 5 days ago, he has had a couple of good days and a couple of bad days where he hasn't eaten as much. The one thing I will say to you all from this is to never give up no matter how long it takes to get them eating something. Babies will eat when they are hungry.
The one thing I am starting to do is reduce the amount of breastfeeds he has. He still has his morning one, one before his mid morning nap, sometimes one in the afternoon and then one before bed. So he is now on between 4 and 5 breastfeeds a day. However he is still waking in the night. It is slow progress but at least it is progress and I am happy with it for now.
I offer drinks at meal time. I offer cooled boiled water with some fresh juice in with breakfast (1 part fresh juice to 5 parts water), just cooled boiled water at lunch time and then water with juice again with his evening meal. Adding the bit of fresh juice helps to increase his vitamin C intake. By doing this, I think he is automatically becoming less interested in milk during the day so this is a good idea to all you breastfeeding mums. I think that Joshua was thirsty sometimes when wanting breast milk before so by adding these drinks, it reduces his thirst and therefore reduces his breastfeeds. It's win win.
So to summarise, if your baby is difficult to wean or going on a weaning strike, perhaps try different methods of feeding them (finger foods, purees, a mixture of the two, Baby Led Weaning), offer a drink at meal times to reduce thirst and therefore the want for milk and just persevere!
Good luck.
7 weeks and 6 days until I return to work, the countdown begins to get Joshua weaned and down to 2 breastfeeds a day.
Will update soon.
Wednesday 1 August 2012
Baby Led Weaning
OK, I'll start with an apology as I haven't posted for a while.
As you have read, so far the weaning hasn't been going great. I have decided to opt for baby led weaning instead and Joshua seems to prefer to hold the food himself and feed himself. He won't even let me feed him his breakfast anymore and has completely gone off "sloppy foods". He doesn't like purees, he has never liked the jars of baby food and he has gone off his porridge he used to love and get really excited about. So, sloppy food is out of the window. I don't know what it is. Maybe he just doesn't like the texture and prefers something with more of a bite.
So therefore, for breakfast, I have been giving him toast which he likes as he can feed it to himself and the other day I tried him with cornflakes with some formula milk on. He liked the cornflakes but not the milk (yes I am still trying to get him used to formula to get him off the breast which seems like it will never happen!) Today I tried him with some cheerios and he didn't like them with the formula milk on but would quite happily eat them with no milk on. Hmmmm, I am starting to think I have a fussy eater who doesn't like anything sloppy, soggy or too soft in his mouth!!! He always seems to do better with more crunchy stuff or stuff with a "bite" to it. He quite happily ate some melon sticks at the weekend and really enjoyed them and he has just eaten two strawberries and enjoyed them.
So, I am ruling out sloppy, soggy and soft foods for now and going to just go with things he can hold and bite on. They say to let babies try finger foods at this stage anyway as it will help them with their hand-eye coordination. I used to worry about him choking on his food when we went for BLW but I am not so worried now. I have seen him gag a few times but I don't jump up and start panicking, I just watch him closely and usually he will just be gagging to bring the food back to the front of his mouth and he does this quite successfully. All babies have a gag reflex and as hard as it is for a parent to just stand by while your baby is gagging, it is a natural response for them and most of the time they will be fine.
I was spoilt with Thomas as he was easy to wean. He went through the stages one by one from purees to mashed stuff right up to eating what myself and dad were eating and it was a natural progression with Thomas. Joshua is completely different. Well, they do say that no two babies are the same!
So just to give you and idea of what I have been giving Joshua as finger foods, here are some of the things he has tried (but not necessarily liked them all):
Will update again soon.
As you have read, so far the weaning hasn't been going great. I have decided to opt for baby led weaning instead and Joshua seems to prefer to hold the food himself and feed himself. He won't even let me feed him his breakfast anymore and has completely gone off "sloppy foods". He doesn't like purees, he has never liked the jars of baby food and he has gone off his porridge he used to love and get really excited about. So, sloppy food is out of the window. I don't know what it is. Maybe he just doesn't like the texture and prefers something with more of a bite.
So therefore, for breakfast, I have been giving him toast which he likes as he can feed it to himself and the other day I tried him with cornflakes with some formula milk on. He liked the cornflakes but not the milk (yes I am still trying to get him used to formula to get him off the breast which seems like it will never happen!) Today I tried him with some cheerios and he didn't like them with the formula milk on but would quite happily eat them with no milk on. Hmmmm, I am starting to think I have a fussy eater who doesn't like anything sloppy, soggy or too soft in his mouth!!! He always seems to do better with more crunchy stuff or stuff with a "bite" to it. He quite happily ate some melon sticks at the weekend and really enjoyed them and he has just eaten two strawberries and enjoyed them.
So, I am ruling out sloppy, soggy and soft foods for now and going to just go with things he can hold and bite on. They say to let babies try finger foods at this stage anyway as it will help them with their hand-eye coordination. I used to worry about him choking on his food when we went for BLW but I am not so worried now. I have seen him gag a few times but I don't jump up and start panicking, I just watch him closely and usually he will just be gagging to bring the food back to the front of his mouth and he does this quite successfully. All babies have a gag reflex and as hard as it is for a parent to just stand by while your baby is gagging, it is a natural response for them and most of the time they will be fine.
I was spoilt with Thomas as he was easy to wean. He went through the stages one by one from purees to mashed stuff right up to eating what myself and dad were eating and it was a natural progression with Thomas. Joshua is completely different. Well, they do say that no two babies are the same!
So just to give you and idea of what I have been giving Joshua as finger foods, here are some of the things he has tried (but not necessarily liked them all):
- carrot sticks
- broccoli
- cauliflower
- melon
- strawberries
- banana slices
- tomato
- cucumber slices
- cheese spread sandwiches
- meat sandwiches
- egg sandwiches
- toast
- cheesy oatcakes
- spaghetti
- cornflakes
- cheerios
- an oven chip (yep, health visitor says this is fine for him to taste. It's not about what we eat, it's the way we cook it so as long as they are oven chips it's OK occasionally)
- a small slice of pizza
- pear slices
- apple slices
- various meat and fish chunks
- peach slices
- more veggies (not pureed)
- pasta twists
Will update again soon.
Monday 23 July 2012
Baby Development 0-6 months
I thought I would just take a step aside from talking about weaning and do a post about baby development because I have come to a bit of a standstill with weaning for now as Joshua has fallen a bit poorly and won't eat much now anyway :o(
So, a lot of you mums and mums-to-be out there may have read some of these websites that give you grids about baby development at different stages. When Thomas was a baby, I used to look at these and compare them to what Thomas was doing at the time to see if he was behind, about right or advanced for his age. I drove myself crazy sometimes when it said that by age 4 months most babies can roll over and by 6 months most babies can sit unaided etc etc. I used to worry that Thomas was never going to do the things that he should be doing by his age and looking back, I was sort of wishing his babyness away because I wanted him to be doing things that most babies can do.
This time around, I feel completely differently to baby development. Thomas did things when HE was ready and I don't think I have once looked at milestone charts and compared Joshua's development to them. I have come to accept that Joshua will do things when he is ready and I am enjoying and savouring every moment that he can't do things. That may sound strange but some of you out there may know what I mean. Every time your baby does something new, it is like a little bit of the babyness fades. I don't want to feel like I am wishing Joshua to "grow up" too quick. I think I feel more like this the second time around because I have experienced it with Thomas and I have seen how fast the last 4 and half years have gone and how quick he has grown up to be the lovely boy he is now.
It is nice when Joshua does new things and it is still lovely to see and exciting to experience it but the only difference is, I am not worried about when he does things in comparison to other babies and the milestone charts. Thomas was late at rolling over and crawling and I remember trying to get him to crawl because I was worried he was "behind" but then literally overnight he did it. One day he couldn't crawl and the next he could. That was pretty much the way everything was with Thomas. He just seemed to pick things up overnight.
So with all of that said I'll just let you know what Joshua can do so far.
He is now 6 months, 2 weeks and 4 days old.
I would just say to all of you first time mums or mums to be out there to definitely make sure you cherish every little moment with your little ones and try to capture as many moments as possible because as cliche as it sounds, they do grow up too quick!!! Also, don't worry if your baby isn't doing things that other babies of the same age are. Remember that those milestone charts are very general guides and every baby develops differently. Most importantly, just remember they will do things when they are ready.
Have fun watching your baby grow, develop and achieve! :o)
So, a lot of you mums and mums-to-be out there may have read some of these websites that give you grids about baby development at different stages. When Thomas was a baby, I used to look at these and compare them to what Thomas was doing at the time to see if he was behind, about right or advanced for his age. I drove myself crazy sometimes when it said that by age 4 months most babies can roll over and by 6 months most babies can sit unaided etc etc. I used to worry that Thomas was never going to do the things that he should be doing by his age and looking back, I was sort of wishing his babyness away because I wanted him to be doing things that most babies can do.
This time around, I feel completely differently to baby development. Thomas did things when HE was ready and I don't think I have once looked at milestone charts and compared Joshua's development to them. I have come to accept that Joshua will do things when he is ready and I am enjoying and savouring every moment that he can't do things. That may sound strange but some of you out there may know what I mean. Every time your baby does something new, it is like a little bit of the babyness fades. I don't want to feel like I am wishing Joshua to "grow up" too quick. I think I feel more like this the second time around because I have experienced it with Thomas and I have seen how fast the last 4 and half years have gone and how quick he has grown up to be the lovely boy he is now.
It is nice when Joshua does new things and it is still lovely to see and exciting to experience it but the only difference is, I am not worried about when he does things in comparison to other babies and the milestone charts. Thomas was late at rolling over and crawling and I remember trying to get him to crawl because I was worried he was "behind" but then literally overnight he did it. One day he couldn't crawl and the next he could. That was pretty much the way everything was with Thomas. He just seemed to pick things up overnight.
So with all of that said I'll just let you know what Joshua can do so far.
He is now 6 months, 2 weeks and 4 days old.
- He has cut his fist 2 bottom teeth about 3 weeks ago (both came through in the space of 3 days)
- He has rolled over about 2 weeks ago in his cot. He rolled onto his front and couldn't roll back to his back. lol. His arm got stuck under him and he just got stressed out and cried so I had to roll him back over. He did it twice in one morning and then didn't roll over onto his front again until today and the same thing happened - he couldn't roll back. It will come my little Boo boo :o)
- He is babbling away loads. I have never been worried about this with any of my children. When Joshua found his voice, that was it, there is no shutting him up. It was the same with Thomas. I love babies cute babbles. Savour them before they turn into words and backchat in just few years. Lol.
- Sitting is a bit of an issue with Joshua. He cannot sit without support yet and we still can't put him in his high chair for this reason (although we do try now and again to get him used to it). The thing with Joshua is he is a small baby and I think the smaller the baby, the longer they will take to sit unaided because of the size and weight of their head in comparison to their body. Bigger, more robust babies may sit sooner because they have the lower body strength to hold their head up. Again, Joshua seems to be a late developer in this field but so was Thomas (and this time around, I'm not worrying).
- Turns towards sounds and voices. Joshua has been doing this for a while so again, no worries here. However, he doesn't always look when you say his name so I am not sure if he knows it yet or not. lol. I think he does. I think he just chooses to be ignorant sometimes. Little monkey!
- He can hold objects and yes, they all end up in his mouth.
- Lift his head. He can hold his head up really well now and has lost most of the floppiness. However, if I put him on his belly so he can practise lifting his head to strengthen his neck, back and shoulder muscles, he just get stressed out and cries. I don't want to upset my little Boo boo so again, this will happen in his own time when he can roll onto his front himself and roll back over. I am not concerned about this.
- He can bear his weight on his legs for a short period of time.
- He can sort of imitate some sounds (well at least I think he does anyway). Sometimes it sounds like he says baba and mama. It's so cute. I love these little babbles.
I would just say to all of you first time mums or mums to be out there to definitely make sure you cherish every little moment with your little ones and try to capture as many moments as possible because as cliche as it sounds, they do grow up too quick!!! Also, don't worry if your baby isn't doing things that other babies of the same age are. Remember that those milestone charts are very general guides and every baby develops differently. Most importantly, just remember they will do things when they are ready.
Have fun watching your baby grow, develop and achieve! :o)
Thursday 19 July 2012
Weaning Stage 1 - My experience so far
Well, after Joshua accepting and eating most of his pureed veggies in the first couple of weeks of weaning, i thought everything was going to be plain sailing and pretty straight forward for the whole weaning process. I was wrong!
Over the last few days in particular, he doesn't seem to be wanting to eat the pureed foods. He will, however, still quite happily and eat his breakfast of fruity or banana porridge. This morning, he had some fruity porridge and then a small slice of toast which he quite happily munched on for a while and actually managed to eat most of it.
In short, he will eat pureed things that are sweet but will not seem to eat his veggies..............AAAAGGGGRRRAHHHHH! So now I have the wonderful task of trying to get him to like his veggies again. Easier said than do though hey....? I am still going to be offering his pureed veggies I have already got frozen as I am determined to get something down him. I know he wants food because he always seems hungry but he is not as interested in his milk (my breasts) anymore.
The one thing I have noticed is that he seems to want what myself, the hubby and Thomas are having. If I offer him something off our plate, he will quite happily take it and munch on it. So, I think the way forward for me in this weaning process is to go more with the Baby Led Weaning. I am going to start doing a small selection of food for him and just let him take what he wants and try things himself so he can let me know what he likes rather than me trying to feed him things he might not like or be ready to try yet.
I wasn't a massive fan of just going along with BLW alone because I am uncertain of what he will actually be eating. But if it goes in his mouth, at least i know he is tasting things.
I was so lucky with Thomas when I weaned him. He was a good eater and ate most of what I offered him and looking back, it was easier to wean Thomas than it has been so far with Joshua.
The only problem I am experiencing with trying BLW with Joshua is that he is still so small and can't sit properly in his high chair. I tried him in it again today and he just slid down in it and got distressed in the end. I am finding it a little frustrating to be honest because I know he is not getting enough to eat. He is always crying in hunger but refuses his food and then I put him on my breast, he has a bit of milk, seems satisfied so I take him off and then within half an hour again he is crying in hunger but he gets so wound up that it is difficult to offer him food because it just stresses him out.
So what I need to start doing is anticipating when he is going to be hungry and trying to get food ready for then. Again, easier said than done because Joshua has never been in a routine with his feeding. He has just gone on the breast whenever he is hungry and has never had set feeding times.
I am wishing now that I would have held off the sweet things for a couple more weeks and just stuck to vegetables but who knows, the same thing might have happened. I'm not sure if it's a case of him not liking it, I think it is more a case of he wants to be in control of what he is eating because he is always trying to grab his spoon and he knows what to do with it.
I guess I have just got to go along with what he wants and just do him baby meals of the same thing that the rest of us are having.
Sooooooooooooo, lets see how this all goes.
If any of you mums are experiencing the same problems it would be nice to hear form you. We can share ideas/experiences....? All I can offer as advice on this one is keep trying and persevere! I am sure all will be ok in the end :o)
So BLW it is. Will post updates soon.
Over the last few days in particular, he doesn't seem to be wanting to eat the pureed foods. He will, however, still quite happily and eat his breakfast of fruity or banana porridge. This morning, he had some fruity porridge and then a small slice of toast which he quite happily munched on for a while and actually managed to eat most of it.
In short, he will eat pureed things that are sweet but will not seem to eat his veggies..............AAAAGGGGRRRAHHHHH! So now I have the wonderful task of trying to get him to like his veggies again. Easier said than do though hey....? I am still going to be offering his pureed veggies I have already got frozen as I am determined to get something down him. I know he wants food because he always seems hungry but he is not as interested in his milk (my breasts) anymore.
The one thing I have noticed is that he seems to want what myself, the hubby and Thomas are having. If I offer him something off our plate, he will quite happily take it and munch on it. So, I think the way forward for me in this weaning process is to go more with the Baby Led Weaning. I am going to start doing a small selection of food for him and just let him take what he wants and try things himself so he can let me know what he likes rather than me trying to feed him things he might not like or be ready to try yet.
I wasn't a massive fan of just going along with BLW alone because I am uncertain of what he will actually be eating. But if it goes in his mouth, at least i know he is tasting things.
I was so lucky with Thomas when I weaned him. He was a good eater and ate most of what I offered him and looking back, it was easier to wean Thomas than it has been so far with Joshua.
The only problem I am experiencing with trying BLW with Joshua is that he is still so small and can't sit properly in his high chair. I tried him in it again today and he just slid down in it and got distressed in the end. I am finding it a little frustrating to be honest because I know he is not getting enough to eat. He is always crying in hunger but refuses his food and then I put him on my breast, he has a bit of milk, seems satisfied so I take him off and then within half an hour again he is crying in hunger but he gets so wound up that it is difficult to offer him food because it just stresses him out.
So what I need to start doing is anticipating when he is going to be hungry and trying to get food ready for then. Again, easier said than done because Joshua has never been in a routine with his feeding. He has just gone on the breast whenever he is hungry and has never had set feeding times.
I am wishing now that I would have held off the sweet things for a couple more weeks and just stuck to vegetables but who knows, the same thing might have happened. I'm not sure if it's a case of him not liking it, I think it is more a case of he wants to be in control of what he is eating because he is always trying to grab his spoon and he knows what to do with it.
I guess I have just got to go along with what he wants and just do him baby meals of the same thing that the rest of us are having.
Sooooooooooooo, lets see how this all goes.
If any of you mums are experiencing the same problems it would be nice to hear form you. We can share ideas/experiences....? All I can offer as advice on this one is keep trying and persevere! I am sure all will be ok in the end :o)
So BLW it is. Will post updates soon.
Sunday 15 July 2012
Weaning - Increasing the Amount of Food
Well, after a couple of weeks of getting Joshua's breakfast routine sorted, I think it is now time to concentrate on his other two meals. Ideally, I have decided I would rather to get his evening meal routine sorted before his lunch time meal. The reason for this is because Joshua is still waking in the night for feeds so he obviously isn't having enough during the day to satisfy him to last throughout the night.
I am not really sure what to offer him at night time at the moment. I try to offer some pureed vegetable at lunch time followed by some kind of pudding and over the last few days have been offering cereal again as an evening meal so it doesn't lay too heavy on him. However this is still not satisfying him.
Also, he seems to be getting a bit too much of a sweet tooth. He won't eat all of his vegetables but cries because he is still hungry so I end up giving him some pureed fruit and he will eat that then. I don't want him to develop bad habits this young so I really need to try to find vegetables that he will enjoy and eat before having a pudding. After all, Thomas is told that he can't have any pudding unless he eats all of his meal so start as you mean to go on I say. I think I will continue to try Joshua with the purees I know he has liked so far (butternut squash, sweet potato, parsnip, carrot) and try to introduce some new vegetables to him over the next week or so to see how he get on with a few more new tastes. I would advise mums that start weaning to make sure you do persist with the vegetables and don't push the sweet stuff too much. I know fruit is good for them but babies may start to refuse more bland vegetables if they know they will be offered a sweet alternative. I need to nip this in the bud and get him back on his veggies!
I have also bought some baby wheat biscuits and will be trying him with them as a breakfast. They could also make a good healthy snack and you could always put a bit of fruit puree in with them. I plan on using formula milk to make this breakfast up for him so that he gets used to the taste of formula. Then eventually, I want to try him with a bottle or tommee tippee cup again with formula in as I really need to work on getting him off the breast now. For one, I go back to work in a couple of months and I need to know that someone else can feed him milk and I don't have to worry about expressing all of the time and because he still keeps biting me the little monkey. I know he doesn't mean it buy crikey, it hurts! lol.
I am gradually increasing the amount of breakfast he is having and offering an extra couple of spoons of food at each meal time now to try to increase his intake of food so he is not so reliant on my breast milk all of the time. He is still having about 6 or 7 breastfeeds in the day and I want this reduced to 2 or 3 by the time I return to work - morning, midday and before bed.
I will post again soon letting you know how the new tastes go down and if I figure out how to get him to sleep through!
I am not really sure what to offer him at night time at the moment. I try to offer some pureed vegetable at lunch time followed by some kind of pudding and over the last few days have been offering cereal again as an evening meal so it doesn't lay too heavy on him. However this is still not satisfying him.
Also, he seems to be getting a bit too much of a sweet tooth. He won't eat all of his vegetables but cries because he is still hungry so I end up giving him some pureed fruit and he will eat that then. I don't want him to develop bad habits this young so I really need to try to find vegetables that he will enjoy and eat before having a pudding. After all, Thomas is told that he can't have any pudding unless he eats all of his meal so start as you mean to go on I say. I think I will continue to try Joshua with the purees I know he has liked so far (butternut squash, sweet potato, parsnip, carrot) and try to introduce some new vegetables to him over the next week or so to see how he get on with a few more new tastes. I would advise mums that start weaning to make sure you do persist with the vegetables and don't push the sweet stuff too much. I know fruit is good for them but babies may start to refuse more bland vegetables if they know they will be offered a sweet alternative. I need to nip this in the bud and get him back on his veggies!
I have also bought some baby wheat biscuits and will be trying him with them as a breakfast. They could also make a good healthy snack and you could always put a bit of fruit puree in with them. I plan on using formula milk to make this breakfast up for him so that he gets used to the taste of formula. Then eventually, I want to try him with a bottle or tommee tippee cup again with formula in as I really need to work on getting him off the breast now. For one, I go back to work in a couple of months and I need to know that someone else can feed him milk and I don't have to worry about expressing all of the time and because he still keeps biting me the little monkey. I know he doesn't mean it buy crikey, it hurts! lol.
I am gradually increasing the amount of breakfast he is having and offering an extra couple of spoons of food at each meal time now to try to increase his intake of food so he is not so reliant on my breast milk all of the time. He is still having about 6 or 7 breastfeeds in the day and I want this reduced to 2 or 3 by the time I return to work - morning, midday and before bed.
I will post again soon letting you know how the new tastes go down and if I figure out how to get him to sleep through!
Wednesday 11 July 2012
Weaning and Getting a Breakfast Routine
Weaning can be a long process and some of us mums can get a bit lost along the way. I for one wasn't sure what to do and what to offer my baby the first time around and even this time, it can get a bit confusing about what foods to offer and when.
Should I be offering something pureed at evey meal time?
When should I start leaving little lumps in th food rather than it being completely smooth?
Now my baby has teeth, can I be offering things for him to gum on?
All of these questions might be going around in your head too.
Anyway, I am going to be doing something similar to what I did with Thomas. My first step was to get Joshua eating breakfast every day. This has been going well so far. He has been having breakfast every day for about 10 days now. This step is relatively easy to achieve because generally breakfast foods are naturally quite sweet so babies will enjoy them. Joshua enjoys his breakfast and gets excited when he sees his bowl in the morning. This is the general morning routine:
Joshua wakes up anytime between 5 and 6am and has a breastfeed (one breast satisfies him in the morning). By the time I have gone downstairs, washed, sorted Thomas out and done breakfast, Joshua is ready for his because he is not too full after just having one breast of milk. I started doing fruity porridge made with water. In the first few days I did it quite runny but now he has it quite thick. I gradually increased the thickness of it over the week so he could get used to swallowing it. Now he really enjoys either fruity porridge or porridge with banana. I will be trying him with wheat bisciuts in the next few days and will gradually vary his breakfast so he has a variety of 3 or 4 things to have.
As for lunch time, I will generally offer just a couple of spoons of vegetable puree (sweet potato, butternut squash, parsnip, carrot, pea) or some fruit puree (apple, banana, pear, mango, peach).
At dinner time, I will perhaps just offer Joshua something solid what we are having (veg cut into small hand sized portions for him). This is more for him to just play with to try and keep him happy whilst I TRY to have my dinner in peace. lol. I am not too fussed if he doesn't eat any as I don't want anything too heavy in his tummy close to bed time. If we aren't having anything that Joshua can't gum on, I won't offer anything.
At the moment I am not offering meats of any kind. You can introduce pureed meats from 6 months but if you can puree meat down to the right consistency, you are better then me. lol. I will probably be introducing meats at 8 months when Joshua can have more texture to his foods as I find it easier to mince meats rather than puree them.
The reason for offering something at lunch and dinner time is to get him used to knowing about meal times and so we can eat together because I feel guilty when I eat and he has nothing because he is so interested in food and just stares at me. I am not too fussed about the quantity of what he eats right now, it's just about him learning about the tastes of different foods.
I don't think it is completely necessary to offer something at every meal time especially as he is still only just over 6 months old but this is the way I am finding it best so he can learn when meal times are and have meal times with mummy :o)
My next aim will be to increase the amount of food he has at lunch time and start decreasing his milk intake at meal times. However, this will be VERY gradual because milk is still his main source of nutrients for the next couple of months.
Should I be offering something pureed at evey meal time?
When should I start leaving little lumps in th food rather than it being completely smooth?
Now my baby has teeth, can I be offering things for him to gum on?
All of these questions might be going around in your head too.
Anyway, I am going to be doing something similar to what I did with Thomas. My first step was to get Joshua eating breakfast every day. This has been going well so far. He has been having breakfast every day for about 10 days now. This step is relatively easy to achieve because generally breakfast foods are naturally quite sweet so babies will enjoy them. Joshua enjoys his breakfast and gets excited when he sees his bowl in the morning. This is the general morning routine:
Joshua wakes up anytime between 5 and 6am and has a breastfeed (one breast satisfies him in the morning). By the time I have gone downstairs, washed, sorted Thomas out and done breakfast, Joshua is ready for his because he is not too full after just having one breast of milk. I started doing fruity porridge made with water. In the first few days I did it quite runny but now he has it quite thick. I gradually increased the thickness of it over the week so he could get used to swallowing it. Now he really enjoys either fruity porridge or porridge with banana. I will be trying him with wheat bisciuts in the next few days and will gradually vary his breakfast so he has a variety of 3 or 4 things to have.
As for lunch time, I will generally offer just a couple of spoons of vegetable puree (sweet potato, butternut squash, parsnip, carrot, pea) or some fruit puree (apple, banana, pear, mango, peach).
At dinner time, I will perhaps just offer Joshua something solid what we are having (veg cut into small hand sized portions for him). This is more for him to just play with to try and keep him happy whilst I TRY to have my dinner in peace. lol. I am not too fussed if he doesn't eat any as I don't want anything too heavy in his tummy close to bed time. If we aren't having anything that Joshua can't gum on, I won't offer anything.
At the moment I am not offering meats of any kind. You can introduce pureed meats from 6 months but if you can puree meat down to the right consistency, you are better then me. lol. I will probably be introducing meats at 8 months when Joshua can have more texture to his foods as I find it easier to mince meats rather than puree them.
The reason for offering something at lunch and dinner time is to get him used to knowing about meal times and so we can eat together because I feel guilty when I eat and he has nothing because he is so interested in food and just stares at me. I am not too fussed about the quantity of what he eats right now, it's just about him learning about the tastes of different foods.
I don't think it is completely necessary to offer something at every meal time especially as he is still only just over 6 months old but this is the way I am finding it best so he can learn when meal times are and have meal times with mummy :o)
My next aim will be to increase the amount of food he has at lunch time and start decreasing his milk intake at meal times. However, this will be VERY gradual because milk is still his main source of nutrients for the next couple of months.
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