One of the best perks to baby-led weaning is being able to easily feed Sebastian on the go. He is getting to an age where we do tote around some snacks as he is hungry often, but when we stop for a meal he gets to share in the experience and just have what we’re having.
Babies are notoriously fussy when hungry and sometimes Sebastian does get mad waiting for an order, or waiting for hot food to cool down. In that case, packaged snacks are a fun and easy appetizer. Puffs and squeeze pouches of pureed fruit and veggies are our go-to snacks and I consider these BLW because Sebastian still feeds himself. They are also not typical gross baby food – The squeeze pouches are really good and I frequently find myself popping puffs into my own mouth.
Last week Sebastian and I ate out at one of our favorite places. I ordered an entree and we ate outside. Zeb snacked on some puree and puffs until the chicken arrived.
Chicken is probably the most controversial food that Sebastian enjoys. He had some this week from the same restaurant and my mother, who is normally very on board with BLW, was visibly nervous. At first it was a scary food for me too but he has never had a problem with it and it is clearly one of his favorites. He sucks on it and uses his hands to pull it against his front teeth to shred it, and he ingests a lot. Last time we were out a woman at another table flat out stared at us and watched him eat it, looking disapproving or maybe just disbelieving. Either way it was rude. But for every obnoxious fellow patron there is a good experience. We are complimented a lot, with my son being referred to as a “good baby.” Really he is simply chill because with BLW his needs are met and then some. Most babies I see screaming in public are doing so because they want something that others are enjoying without them.
Waffles are a big hit with Sebastian, and we enjoyed some last Saturday at the farmers market, complete with whipped cream and strawberries. He and I routinely share a plate of food, although it is sometimes a battle for me to get my half down before he devours it. He is very much a carb lover and into bread of any kind. At the markets so far this summer I have seen another family or two give whole foods to their babies, although not quite the way we do. Whenever I see a child under 2 eating, I’ll admit that I crane my neck to see what is going in their mouth.
As you can see, my 8 month old is starting to look a lot like a toddler so I doubt I’ll be dealing with people’s looks for too much longer.
What are your babies eating this summer? What are the reactions when your babies eat in public?
Janine @ Alternative Housewife
Janine resides in Portland with her small family. Sebastian arrived in September 2010 and enjoys Mama's "milkies", carrots and pears. Janine loves all things hot and spicy. When not eating, they like to spend their time Jumperoo-ing and thrift shopping, respectively. UPDATE: Now pregnant with Baby #2, due May 2013. Can't wait to start BLW all over again!
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My little guy is a fan of chicken, too. He used to hold a big piece and shred of strips with his teeth, but now he’s more of a fan of me cutting it in bite sized pieces and just picking them up and plopping the whole thing in his mouth. He HATES fruit, so that’s a bummer, since Summer always makes me think of sweet, cooling fruit…
I have found that when I go out, I don’t get a lot of comments or looks because my son has always looked older and is bigger than the norm for his age, so that’s nice… on the other hand, with him being that big, I have gotten dirty looks for breastfeeding him since like age 4 months… people think I’m nursing an older toddler now, and for some reason, that offends them more than me letting him chow down on real food.
[...] ♥ Chicken, puffs and squeezies. [...]
Anneliese has also started the bite-pull shredding method. It’s pretty adorable.
We went to the farmer’s market on Thursday and I got kebabs. Anneliese sat in my lap and ate pieces of chicken while the girl I was with stared in disbelief and kept saying, “oh my gosh, she’s really eating it!”
She was reaching for one of the bell peppers as I was putting it in my mouth, and the other girl said “your teeth aren’t ready for those yet.” I corrected her gently and said, “Actually she really likes bell peppers.” and handed one to Anneliese. More amazed stares from her as Anneliese gnawed on it.
I have never noticed any disapproving stares, but maybe I’ve programmed myself to not notice because I just don’t care?
I have gotten way more positive feedback than negative. I think this was the only (offline lol) disapproval I’ve encountered and I only noticed because it was REALLY obvious. I made myself look even worse because I went against my instincts and did a finger sweep of his mouth between foods, scraping his mouth with my nail and resulting in wailing.
But usually we get smiles and compliments. My dad always makes jokes and will declare, “You can’t give him [food]!” at every meal. But really he has no opinion and my mother does her best to find a new food to introduce every time we visit.
Weirdly enough, two BLW and I’ve gotten no reaction at all. Possibly because neither one of mine were really into eating until 11-12 months. After that point my oldest would eat anything, and we did get some eyebrows because she enjoys salsa and hot foods in general, and stuff not typically considered “kid food” like hummus, calamari, edamame, etc. Weird thing is, there’s nothing that makes them NOT kid food except for the fact that many people never try those foods with kids. My second child is crazy picky, though. Go figure.
We always get comments like “what a good eater” and “wow she is actually eating that stuff”. I love it.
our little “DangerGirl” has no teeth yet, although we’re working on some, I think. She *loves* ‘real’ food, and is always eagerly watching us eat. No chicken yet, but her faves are peaches (without skin), granny smith apples, english muffins, banana, strawberry and melon. She also will put spoons in her mouth (yogurt or baby pouch yogurt, or oatmeal).