Connell Sanders: A little child shall lead me — a new take on weaning
“That’s not how I thought this would go,” my husband said.
“What did you expect to happen?” I asked him.
“I guess, I pictured her actually eating it,” he replied.
My infant daughter sat with us at the dinner table, coated in a slippery layer of avocado. He was right, none of the bright green pulp had actually made it into her mouth.
She didn’t seem to mind the mess. In fact, she looked highly amused. I put cucumber slices over her eyes and pretended she was at the baby spa.
“Not a total loss,” I said.
So went our first attempt at baby-led weaning. I became a "weaner" after endless hours of combing the internet, multiple conversations with admirable moms, and one lengthy text exchange with a trusty labor and delivery nurse.
Baby-led weaning encourages parents to hand over reasonably sized pieces of whatever the family is having for dinner and allow their little angel-faced bambino to eat it — or not. In my daughter’s case, avocado seemed to be a “not.” At least, for now.
On a T-shirt, the philosophy might read: “Chew now and swallow later.” In other words, ixnay on the purees.
Baby-led weaning blogs advise beginning with “chip sized” portions. Whether that means Ruffles, Pringles, or poker chips, no one is sure. The important thing is to avoid grapes, cherry tomatoes, hot dogs, popcorn, and excess sugar. They recommend starting with soft food like avocado, yogurt, avocado, eggs, avocado, sweet potato, or avocado.
Our second attempt took place for an audience at the Thanksgiving table. I prepared a special dish of plain boiled potatoes for the baby.
We "oohed" and "aahed," but once again, she mushed the contents in her hands and smeared it across the table cloth with no interest in consumption.
If the scoop of mashed potatoes on my plate was any indication, I understood why — I had underboiled them by about 10 minutes. Still, I hoped she’d bite. Literally. She’s mostly Irish, after all.
I’ll be honest, there isn’t much scholarly research on baby-led weaning. Why put ourselves through the mess? Supporters say baby-led weaning leads to less picky eating habits, and frankly, that sounds great.
I landed on the couch the day after Thanksgiving, searching for answers online while I breastfed our daughter.
An article on baby-led weaning that appeared in The Boston Globe earlier this year used a turn of phrase I had never heard before: “Food before one is just for fun.” The expression brought me comfort. She would eat when she was ready.
“Would you like a slice of pumpkin pie?” my husband called from the kitchen.
“Yes, please,” I said.
Months of nursing had taught me to balance a plate on one knee. I dug out a spoonful and moved it slowly toward my mouth. My daughter broke her latch and in one swift motion, palmed the pie off my plate and straight into her mouth.
The mom blogs would object to the sugar, but I decided not to think too hard. “Everything in moderation,” I said. A grin spread across her face like I’ve never seen before.
This article originally appeared on Worcester Magazine: Walk on the wild side: Give baby-led weaning a try
