We've been weaning Isabelle for just over a month now and it has been a completely different experience to when we weaned our first daughter Alyssia. I've said before in a previous post that we weaned her early at 5 months under doctors advice so she was solely on purees. We weaned Isabelle when she was just over 6 months and we went full baby led weaning. We started with things like Ellas Kitchen Melty puffs, Kiddylicious Wafers (these melt in the mouth) Pancakes, Cottage Pie, Toast, Cucumber sticks, Broccoli etc..
A lot has changed in 3 years since we weaned our first daughter, including the things that we are using so I wanted to share some of my favourite weaning products with you all. With our first baby we paid £75 for a fancy high chair, with our second we have bought the £14 basic Ikea highchair and all in all the Ikea chair wins every time. It's so much easier to clean than the fancy highchairs and I have been using the milton spray and wipes to clean it. We have also been using the Bumbo multi seat for snack times and I took a few photos of her using it when she was 6 months old. Its a brilliant little seat and can be attached to a chair or can be used on its own. You can read my full review on it here.
In terms of cutlery/plates/bowls etc we've been using the Nuby suction plate which is brilliant and sticks amazingly on the kitchen side but I do find that it doesn't always stick so well on the ikea highchair, Isabelle's new favourite thing to do is chuck it on the floor so depending on the dinner I'll often just put it all on her tray. We've also been using the Doidy suction bowl which again is another fantastic product. I'm yet to find a suction plate/bowl that suctions well every time I'll be honest but the Doidy bowl is pretty good. We've also been trialling the Doidy cup, at first I was a little bit confused as its a two handed slanted cup and is so different to anything I've seen on the market before but it is created to teach infants to drink from a rim of a cup, and not a spout or teated bottle. The sloping design allows a more natural upward and downward motion of the hands and arms, it teaches infants to drink from an open cup which I think is great. Isabelle gets a bit excited and often tips it down herself so I wouldn't put too much water in there but its ideal for teaching them how to use a cup from an early age. We've been using the Nuby heat sensor spoons which are fab, quite often I'm not sure whether something is too hot or cold so I end up making it too cold and she wont it eat. Having the spoons has been a game changer, we've also been using the Tommee Tippee soft touch spoons which I love.
Another thing we've been using is the Tidy Tot Bib & Tray Kit, which is an award winning kit that stops your baby from making so much mess, amazing for baby led weaning. Usually I put the highchair right up against the table but somehow, Isabelle still manages to find a way to get it all on the floor meaning that I then have to throw the food away. With the Tidy Tot Bib & Tray Kit, there are no more gaps ensuring that the mess is contained in one place and we don't waste any food - amazing! The tray is wipeable and the long sleeve waterproof bib is machine washable. This kit fits amazingly with the Ikea Antilop highchair (I'm so glad we bought this one) and it includes a zipped storage bag to keep it all together making it easy to take out with you whether that be to your grandparents for dinner or even out to a restaurant. It's also great for messy or sensory play at home. I've always been one to shy away from that kind of thing but my girls absolutely love it so I am glad we have the tidy tot on our side. Suitable from 6 months to 2 years, I think this product is amazing.
All in all, I feel like we have discovered some really great products since weaning Isabelle. Of course I am still learning something new every day but BLW has been so much fun this time around and I would really recommend doing it. I was shocked at how well Isabelle took to it and now at 7 months she is a finger food pro munching on all kinds of different foods, but at the same time still loves to be spoon fed a yoghurt.
Do you have any favourite weaning products?
