Here are some tips for practicing Baby Led Weaning (BLW) with your little ones aged 6-9 months with Bumkins. BLW allows babies to explore solid foods at their own pace while promoting self-feeding and independence. Remember to prioritise safety when introducing new foods to avoid any potential choking hazards.
During this stage, babies have a palmar grasp, which means they can only pick up food with their palms. To accommodate their abilities, it's best to offer foods that are easy to grab, typically in strip or wedge form.
Babies can chew food using their gums from a young age, so there's no need to wait for their teeth to come in. However, it's crucial to provide safe food options to support your baby's feeding journey and prevent choking incidents.
When offering food, ensure it is cut into strips to make it easier for your child to pick up and self-feed. You can also assist them initially but encourage them to learn to bring the food to their mouth independently.
The texture of the food you offer should be soft enough to be squished easily between your index finger and thumb. For round foods like blueberries, raspberries, grapes, and cherry tomatoes, it's essential to modify them to eliminate choking risks. Blueberries and raspberries can be smushed using your thumb and index finger, while grapes and cherry tomatoes should be quartered. These smaller food pieces may be more challenging for your baby to handle initially, but allow them to practice. You can also consider using Bumkins Chewtensil fork to load these foods for your baby.
Eggs can be served as omelet strips, quartered hard-boiled eggs, or small pancakes. Fish can be cut into strips or flaked. Shredded soft chicken, boneless baked chicken drumsticks (ensure removal of tiny bones), or meatloaf cut into strips are other protein options you can offer.
Oranges can be given as wedges with the skin on. Remember to wash the oranges thoroughly before cutting. Alternatively, you can remove the pith and offer segmented oranges.
There are several fruits that can be easily offered, such as baked apple wedges, ripe soft pear strips, pineapple strips (avoiding the core), mango seed or strips, and whole bananas.
For vegetables, you can offer thin strips of cooked green beans, zucchini, bell pepper, potato, broccoli, and cauliflower.
When introducing food to your baby, you can add seasonings that are culturally relevant to you, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, garlic powder, paprika, oregano, and more.
I hope these tips help you and your little one enjoy many delightful meals together on their feeding journey!
Baby Led Weaning with Bumkins