Parenting Guide | How to Wean your Baby
Introducing your baby to their first solid foods is a big moment. It’s the beginning of a long and important relationship with food and a new chapter in your child’s development. There are a few different approaches to baby weaning, but experts agree that a good time to start introducing food into their diet is at around six months, when they can sit up independently and are able to cope with solid foods. Your baby may well show signs of being interested in your food around this time — another sign that they're ready to start weaning.
The term "solid food" is a bit misleading as the first foods you offer your baby are likely to be quite mushy. Mixing baby rice or porridge into their familiar breast or formula milk is a great place to start, with single pureed vegetables as the next step. In the beginning, one meal per day is all that's needed alongside their regular milk feeds, and you can progress from there. Apart from a delicious menu of food, you'll need a few feeding accessories. And we've got cups, bowls, cutley and not forgetting your new best friend, a bib!
Image by aden + anais
13 Jun 2023
What You'll Need . . .
Baby's own special cup, spoon and plate will help create a positive association with meal times.
Making Mealtimes Fun
A special mealtime set is a lovely way to introduce your baby to the excitement of eating and eventually feeding themselves. Silicone and bamboo are great materials that are gentle on little gums, easy to hold onto and anti-microbial. We love Liewood's easy-to-grip sippy cups that can be used with the lid on or off to encourage independent drinking — another skill that they'll start to learn. Dishes that are divided into sections are a great idea when you start to introduce different flavours and food groups, and food containers with lids make storing in the fridge or carrying meals on-the-go easier.
Image by Liewood
Keeping Clothes and Floors Clean
Most parents are taken aback by how little food actually makes it into their baby's mouth during the weaning phase. There's likely to be quite a lot of spitting out in the early stages, and once they get older and start to feed themselves, there will be food and drink flying everywhere! Keep those gorgeous outfits as clean as possible with cloth bibs — which are super easy to store and travel with — or for more advanced eaters, a silicone bib with a built-in trough designed to collect dropped food and help keep baby (and the floor) clean. If you have a very expressive eater, a sweet apron bib with sleeves will guarantee they stay clean, dry and comfortable throughout their meal.
Image by Elodie
