I’ve been reading about BLW since last month. At first I was hesitant because I’m scared that he might choke or what. But as I read through stories and write ups about it plus watching videos and seeing pictures of BLW babies, I am actually convince to have this for Coco as well.

What is Baby Led Weaning?
“Baby Led Weaning, quite simply, means letting your child feed themselves from the very start of weaning. You just hand them the food in a suitably-sized piece and if they like it they eat it and if they don’t they won’t. No purees, no ice cube trays, no food processor, no potato masher, no baby rice, no weird fruit and veg combos… just you and your child, eating food that you enjoy with you and your family.” (babyledweaning.com)

In short, “Self-feeding” si baby.

What should I expect?
1. Baby would not eat much at first. They would only eat (or nibble) small amounts, for the first few months. Meal times maybe “playtime and learning” in the beginning.
2. MESS! Baby may mash his food, throw it. Whatever it is that he would want to do.

Tips:
1. Baby is sitting upright while eating
2. Cut baby’s food in sticks or large strips.
3. Offer a variety of food so that he will be able to discover different tastes and textures, as well as he would be able to get the nutrients he needs. Cut small fruits in half.
4. During the first try of a certain food, have baby eat it for 3 days to check if he is allergic or not.
5. Avoid salt, sugar and fast food.
6. Don’t let anyone except your baby put food into her mouth
7. NEVER leave your baby alone with food
8. Choose times when your baby is not tired or hungry, so she can concentrate.
9. Don’t put food into your baby’s mouth for her or try to persuade
her to eat more than she wants.
10. Keep it enjoyable so that baby would look forward to the next meal time.

Pros:
1. allows babies to explore taste, texture, colour and smell the food themselves.
2. encourages independence and confidence
3. helps to develop their hand-eye coordination and chewing skills
4. makes picky eating and mealtime battles less likely – they would eat anything and everything
5. Allowing babies to control what goes in their mouth will health them learn to eat safely.
6. No need to prepare separate meals for baby.
7. No need to spoon feed.

Cons:
1. A MESS
2. Wasted food
3. Limit to the number of nutrients that he will get from his food
4. Worry of choking

Those are my notes from the sites where I read about BLW. I will do some research on the first few food that he can eat in another blog.

I’m getting more excited for Coco’s first solids, and it’s just a few days away! I’ll make sure to post about it here! 🙂

Are you BLWing your little one? What’s your story?

More stories on BLW & our BLW journey here. 😀