DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor. This is just what worked for my family. I am in no way telling you to try this with your own baby, and I am here if you have any questions regarding things I tried with my own baby.  

I knew when I got pregnant that raising a baby would be the hardest thing I’d ever do. I worried about everything, especially what to feed her and how much to feed her. I also knew that I’d have to research and find something that would work for our busy family because both my husband and I work full time and do not have the time to be pureeing a ton of baby food.

One day I was looking at YouTube to get ideas on what to feed her when she first started eating solids and I found this awesome video. I knew that baby led weaning was the answer to my prayers. We tried it that night. It was pretty stressful because she gagged a ton and it was so scary at first that I was worried she wasn’t really eating much. But then she started taking more food down and found things she liked. 

Her motor skills were pretty advanced because she was feeding herself with her hands. Isla was hitting every milestone a little bit early.  She was able to express when she wanted something in particular to eat from the fridge (I would point to different items and she would lift her arms when she saw something she wanted to eat), and would get excited when she got to try something new and play with textures. She had mastered the pincer grasp by 7 months and was using a spoon correctly by 11 months. Don’t be weirded-out and think your baby can’t chew without teeth. I promise as long as it’s soft, your baby can probably chew it. 

Warning: BLW is super messy and we try to only feed her foods with sauces at night before bath time.  

Isla has choked on food  only twice. Once, I jerked her up out of the highchair and did a couple of back blows to get the banana or whatever it was out. The second time, she was able to cough and maneuver the food herself in her mouth. Isla can actually feel when food is going back too far in her mouth and can move it forward herself. She ate whole strawberries, big slices of watermelon, homemade popsicles, and everything she could get her hands on at 6 months old. She loves cottage cheese and dipping things in hummus currently. 

Isla liked the taste of pureed veggies so we did stick with those for about 4 months. This isn’t true to the BLW style but it worked for us and I needed her to get her greens down without a fight. Plus, it’s easier to feed her from a pouch when we are out and about. 

My worry has lessened even more because she has teeth now and can actually bite pieces off of bigger things now. Another great thing that has come of this transition is that she can usually eat whatever we eat. We can sit down as a family and eat together. We take her out to restaurants and I sometimes even order something like a side off the menu for her but typically I’ll bring something from home to accompany it like a sandwich. 

I hope you enjoyed this post about why I chose baby led weaning and will continue to use it in the future. If you decide to give it a try, I recommend being certified in CPR, first aid for infants, and also NEVER leave your baby alone while they eat. There are a lot of good resources and books on baby led weaning and it worked wonderfully for our family but do what works for you and your baby! No one way is right for everyone!

Update: Isla is now almost 15 months and eats everything that we eat (including cheeseburgers, sub sandwiches, raw broccoli, apple slices, soups, and a ton of other stuff). She uses a fork and spoon correctly and will ask for us to wipe her hands if they get dirty while she eats. She knows several words, including a few 2 word sentences so she is good about asking for things and telling us when she is done eating.