Lucky Dog

Baby-Led Weaning is a messy business. Mess on the high chair. Mess on the floor. Mess on the baby. Mess on me! As we are experimenting with different foods, Ethan is deciding what he likes and dislikes. If he likes something, his eyes will widen and he will stuff it in his mouth - then of course gag on it because he hasn't quite figured out how to deal with all that food just yet. He is slowly getting better though!

On the other hand, when he dislikes something there are a few different ways he will show us. One of these is releasing his grip on the item of food in his hand and it will fall into his lap, only for us to find a pile of food on his seat when we remove his tray. Another is that he will put it in his mouth, take it out, and then scream very loudly. And finally he will shoot his arm out over the side of the high chair and throw the food away! This very final method means that piece of food is gone forever - the other methods we can retrieve the food and put it back in case he changes his mind. But once it goes on the floor thats it - even if we were to use a drop mat, we have no choice - because our dog Barney is there in a flash, cleaning up the mess! I think no one could be more pleased than Barney that Ethan has reached the age of solid foods. It means he will be getting all sorts of extra treats through the day!

So in the last few days, Ethan has tried a couple of new foods. Banana - he has been offered it before but was having trouble picking it up. I decided to mash it up and give him a pre-loaded spoon. He couldn't get it into his mouth fast enough! Zucchini - steamed until just soft. It wasn't one of his favourites, it ended up being donated to Barney pretty quickly. That doesn't mean we will  never offer it to him again. Sometimes it can take 10 to 20 tastes of a food before they decide they like it, so I won't give up on the zucchini just yet!

In the next few days i am hoping to let him taste some more fruits, since his diet so far has been mostly vegetables. We will have a go with plums, nectarines and apricots. I am forecasting that he will love those, given how well watermelon and banana went down! Ethan is turning 6 months old on Saturday, so I am also going to start introducing him to foods such as yogurts, cheese, bread, cereals and meat. Not all at once of course, just gradually as he improves his skills with firmer foods.