Weaning – still winging it second time around

Weaning – still winging it second time around
Alex is now 6 months old and what happens when a baby turns 6 months? Yup, you guessed, the messy ride of weaning begins. In actual fact, I was told by the health visitor to start introducing Alex to solids at about 5 and a half months as she was concerned about his weight and he’d dropped a couple lines on the graph in his red book. You would think that with Alex being my second baby that I was feeling pretty confident and prepared for weaning, truth be told I felt more clueless than before.

Weaning – still winging it with baby number 2

weaning

With Leo being  my first baby I did A LOT of reading on introducing solid food as he approached the holy grail of the 6 month mark. I had chats with the health visitor, regularly Googled ‘how to give solids to a breastfed baby’ and found myself hanging out it mumsnet forums quite regularly trying to scope out how other mums were tackling this weaning thing. When it came to actually giving him his first little spoon of baby’s rice though, I didn’t really feel like I knew what I was doing.

As with most things parenting, you’ve just got to follow your baby’s lead and kind of just go with the flow. I made homemade purees and froze them in little pots, steamed veg for him to throw all over the floor and attempted to get him to take one measly sip of cooled boiled water from the tenth friggin beaker I’d bought from Boots. It wasn’t all terrible though, seeing his face scrunch up when he tasted a new food for the first time was priceless and watching him smear spag bol all over his face/highchair/wall may have been a bit frustrating but was also comedy gold.

What I’m trying to say is that the whole time I had no clue if I was doing it right. Google was now being inundated with searches of ‘how much veg should my 8 month old eat?’ , ‘when should I start dropping milk feeds’ and ‘will my weaned baby EVER stop waking for night feeds?’. I didn’t know what I was doing but I felt ok about it, to an extent, as Leo was my first baby. I’d never weaned anyone before so I was allowed to be clueless, winging it is the accepted approach to parenting when you’re doing it for the first time around.

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I kind of feel like I should know what I’m doing now though.

It would appear that in the last 3 years of my life, where I have been consumed with bringing up Leo, I have developed some kind of amnesia and all memories of when and how I did what in the weaning stage have been forgotten. I know I must have done something right though as, at 3 and a half, Leo is eating 3 meals a day with some unhealthy snacks and is no longer breastfed. At some point through my desperate Google searches and worries I was doing it wrong I came out the other side and I’m pretty sure that’s what is going to happen this time around too.

So yes, I still freak out over finger foods (Alex eats his through a little net snack holder thing) and I do worry I’m giving him too much/not enough solid food meals compared to his milk. The headache I  gave myself over mixing avocado and banana together which then resulted in a constipated baby was probably  bit of a silly reaction but at the time I felt like I’d condemned Alex to a life of blocked painful bowels.

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Yes, despite being a second time mum and against popular belief that I should know what I’m doing, I totally don’t know what I’m doing. I am taking comfort in the fact though that Leo is very much alive and kicking at 3 years olds, yes he is a bit of a fussy eater but he does like some fruit and veg, and that Alex seems content and happy. He’s currently still on 5 breastfeeds a day (plus 2 nights feeds *sob*) and is having baby porridge for breakfast and some kind of homemade puree for his tea. I don’t when to start dropping breastfeeds or when to introduce lunch but he is a child who has always been fed on demand so I’m totally confident he will let me know, in his own little way, when he is ready too say goodbye to his mummy’s milk.

For now I am just taking each meal as it comes, investing in loads of bibs and wet wipes and just trying to be confident that I am giving my baby the healthiest diet possible. Winging it maybe but I’m positive we will get to the other side.  I mean, I don’t know any 16 year olds who are still breastfed and only eat one meal a day of broccoli puree, do you?

Are you weaning your baby? How are you finding the transition from milk to solids so far? What about weaning the second time around, how did that go for you? I would love to hear your experiences and if you have any tips please feel free to share them.

You can find this post linked to some of these amazing blog link ups –

Maternity Mondays | Marvellous Mondays | Posts from the Heart | #MG | Big Pink Link | Twinkly Tuesday | Dream Team | Tried and Tested | Blogger Club UK | Best and Worst | Family Fun | Cool Mum Club | A Blogging Good Time | The List Linky | PoCoLo |For the Love of Blog | KCACOLS  …and of course #BlogCrush, the linky I co host every Friday.

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16 Comments

  1. May 2, 2017 / 8:08 am

    It is funny what you remember and what you forget, isn’t it? I’d totally forgotten about having to boil / cool the drinking water first, and Baby Lighty isn’t even two yet!! I’m sure you’re doing a great job, and in a few years time you’ll have forgotten weaning a second time around, too!! #DreamTeam 🙂
    Mrs Lighty recently posted…How to Rock a Photoshoot, Toddler Style: A Munchkins Photography ReviewMy Profile

    • May 9, 2017 / 8:41 am

      Just popping back from this week’s #DreamTeam. Not sure whether my comment above has the right linky hashtag…did I mean #coolmumclub?! Sorry, I’m a wally!! xxx
      Mrs Lighty recently posted…Five times it Sucks to be Gluten FreeMy Profile

  2. May 3, 2017 / 10:56 pm

    I’m approaching 6 months (well I’m not, the baby is) and as my first, I have no idea what I’m supposed to do! It’s so reassuring to read that as a second time mum, you’re pretty much in that boat too! #dreamteam
    Muffin top mummy blog recently posted…A new mother’s guide to mummy etiquette My Profile

  3. May 4, 2017 / 9:23 pm

    It’s amazing how different the weaning experience can be with your second isn’t it? I remember with my first I had lists of different purees that we’d tried with the dates to make sure we were introducing a good variety for her palette etc. With our second we did baby led – I think mostly because of lack of time. Our hv just said that from 6 months they can have pretty much anything that we have (except honey and whole nuts of course) and just to give it in chunks bigger than his fist so that he could chew on the bits that poked out of his little paw. At 7 months old he was on full Sunday dinners with all the trimmings. Just cut into big pieces for him to grab and chomp at. It was so messy but so much easier than all the pureeing. He’s now 2.5 and still less picky than his big sister ironically. Someone also suggested (don’t cringe when you first hear it) tinned carrots and veggies as finger foods. I hadn’t thought of it but they’re room temp, cooked and safely prepared, ready to go if you’re in a rush. They went down a treat if I just needed a quick fix! Good luck – but it sounds to me like you’ve got exactly the right idea. Just let him lead you. :0) Thank you for sharing with #DreamTeam x
    Rhyming with Wine recently posted…The Stat Race.My Profile

  4. May 5, 2017 / 6:24 am

    You’re doing everything perfectly honey – winging it and following your intuition! xx #blogcrush

  5. May 5, 2017 / 3:19 pm

    You know what’s funny? With our first we were so textbook. Second…less textbook and more exhausted and delirious. The twins? I can not even remember. I think I threw some lentil soup at them when they were about five months old. We were all just trying to survive.

    #blogcrush
    kristin mccarthy recently posted…Comment on Great Neighbors Are Real Estate Gold by EmmaMy Profile

  6. May 5, 2017 / 5:50 pm

    Glad to know im not the only one who thinks motherhood is going to be a lot of winging it! Pregnant with my first and already don’t know how id cope with it without google and my mum and this is just the beginning of a very long journey! #blogcrush
    The Fat Girl recently posted…What on earth is that?My Profile

  7. May 5, 2017 / 8:22 pm

    Interesting. I watched my niece and nephew do baby led weaning, so followed suit. Interesting to read a different experience. #BlogCrush

  8. May 5, 2017 / 9:50 pm

    Bless you – I remember feeling a bit at sea with the twins, even though it was 2nd time round. I’d decided to go more BLW with them but nearly bottled it – I remember crying on the health visitor about how fixated I was getting about choking hazards. Actually she was very kind and I quickly chilled out once I got into it again. One of the ‘mantra’s that really helped me was: ‘first is for fun in the first year.’ You’ll find your way – Mum’s intuition will win through xx #blogcrush
    Hayley@ Mission: Mindfulness recently posted…Giveaway: Win Tickets to The Mindful Living ShowMy Profile

  9. May 7, 2017 / 8:03 pm

    It’s funny how we tend to forget so many things, considering we spent so much time and effort on them not too long ago. But I’m sure you’re doing it just fine…
    I LOVE all the pics in this post; he’s adorable!
    #blogcrush

  10. May 8, 2017 / 6:48 pm

    I remember being really reluctant to introduce solids with both my kids – we were finally in a good place where I had gotten used to having a baby (or 2 kids when it was the 2nd time around) and we had established some sense of routine… and suddenly I had to change it all and start weaning. Eeek! But we got there in the end. We’re all winging it if we’re honest because no two kids are the same. #blogcrush
    Lucy At Home recently posted…Blogcrush Week 12 – 5th May 2017My Profile

  11. May 8, 2017 / 9:07 pm

    Despite getting many an Annabel Karmel book. We’ve not followed many if any of her fancy recipes. Hubby is a firm believer of veg with everything so that’s what the girls have alongside us. #BlogCrush
    Helena recently posted…The Gruffalo Trail at Westonbirt ArboretumMy Profile