5 Ways to Celebrate Baby-Led Weaning Day
Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post.
It’s National Baby-Led Weaning Day…and I know everybody has a day these days, but we are so excited to kick off the 2nd annual BLW day. Here’s how you can celebrate…
What is Baby-Led Weaning Day?
July 1 is National Baby-Led Weaning Day (...and yes, it is also Canada day.)
But July 1 is also the 6 month point in the year…and babies who are 6 months of age and showing the other reliable signs of readiness to eat can safely start feeding themselves foods using baby-led weaning!
The first National Baby-Led Weaning Day was celebrated in 2021 and we are excited to bring it back for a second year. Click here to read about the original Baby-Led Weaning Day.
What is Baby-Led Weaning?
Baby-Led Weaning is a safe and effective alternative to conventional parent-led spoon-feeding. Babies who are 6 months of age and showing the other reliable signs of readiness to eat can start solid foods safely using the baby-led weaning approach.
Baby-led weaning recognizes a baby’s inborn ability and desire to feed themselves plus opens the door for helping babies to meet their feeding and developmental milestones, helps reduce the severity of picky eating and has the potential to lower the risk of food allergy development too.
The term baby-led weaning was coined by BLW pioneer Gill Rapley, PhD who is also the co-author of the original baby-led weaning book, “Baby-Led Weaning: The Ultimate Guide”.
If you want to learn more about Gill Rapley and baby-led weaning, here are some additional resources:
“How did Baby-Led Weaning Get its Name? with Gill Rapley, PhD” interview on the BABY-LED WEANING MADE EASY podcast with Katie Ferraro
“Combo Feeding: Can I Do BLW + Traditional Spoon-Feeding Together? with Gill Rapley, PhD” interview on the BABY-LED WEANING MADE EASY podcast with Katie Ferraro
“The History of BLW with its Founding Philosopher Gill Rapley, PhD (Part 1)” interview on the BABY-LED WEANING MADE EASY podcast with Katie Ferraro
How Can I Celebrate Baby-Led Weaning Day?
While a real and emerging body of research supports baby-led weaning as a safe and effective alternative to conventional parent-led spoon feeding, parents are by far the biggest advocates for this approach.
Here are 5 ways you can celebrate BLW day:
Try a New Food With Your Baby
One of the most fun things about BLW is trying new foods, and what makes it even more fun is trying a new food with the whole family! Try to choose a food that nobody in your family has tried before and share this new experience together. Babies can eat all different foods if prepared safely.
If you’re looking for some ideas, I teach a FREE one hour video training called Baby-Led Weaning for Beginners and everyone on the training gets a free copy of the original 100 First Foods list! The list has ideas for fruits, vegetables, starches, proteins, and potential allergens for you to try with your baby.
Let me know which food you try together and how the family enjoyed trying something new! You can tag me on Instagram @babyledweanteam
2. Help Your Baby Practice OPEN CUP DRINKING
Another developmental milestone happening while your baby is learning how to eat is…drinking from an open cup! Babies can start drinking out of an open up at 6 months of age instead of using a sippy cup based on the recommendation of feeding therapists. The goal is to be drinking out of an open up independently by age 12 months, albeit with some spillage.
I like to do 5 minutes of open cup practice with breastmilk or formula after meals. The cup that I use is the tiny cup by ezpz. This is my favorite because it was designed by SLP feeding therapist, Dawn Winkelmann, to be appropriate for babies and support their development. Dawn and other feeding therapist colleagues also recommend using breastmilk or formula as opposed to water when beginning to practice with the open cup because thin liquids (water) are more difficult for babies to swallow than the thicker liquids (breastmilk or formula) that they are used to.
I have an affiliate code if you’re looking to check out the ezpz Tiny Cup! Code KATIE10 is good for 10% off your purchase on the ezpz website.
3. Let Your Baby Get Messy!
BLW mess is one of the top deteriants that I hear from parents nervous about doing baby-led weaning…and trust me, I get it! Baby-led weaning can definitely get messy at times, but all of the exploring and sensory experiences for your baby are both developmentally appropriate and helpful to learning how to eat.
For today, dive into that food you’ve been hesitant to try because of a possible mess (looking at you, pasta with red sauce) to give your baby a full sensory experience. Let them explore the taste, texture, colors, and smells of a new food and try to lean into the joy of a new experience and learning instead of focusing on the mess. This is also an awesome time to snap a fun picture for memories!
I also have some tips to help with cleanup and managing the mess so you’re not totally stressed out :)
Take your baby to the sink and run hands under running water and then use water to wipe face
Naked eating can be an unpleasant sensory experience for babies (and leads to a full bath!) so I like to us a full-coverage bib that doesn’t restrict babies’ movements. Bapron Baby is my favorite…they don’t restrict range of motion, they’re waterproof, they can be thrown in the dishwasher, and they’re so cute! My affiliate code KATIE10 is valid for 10% of bapronbaby.com if you want to check them out!
Use a splash mat under the highchair. A clean splash mat under the highchair allows you to recycle dropped food back up to your baby’s plate and protects your floors from dropped food. Bapron Baby also makes a great waterproof splash mat. I use it under highchairs at home but it is also great to bring on the go if eating at a friend or relative’s house where you definitely don’t want to drop food on the floor :)
4. Watch Other Babies’ Gagging Videos
Gagging is a necessary and natural part of learning how to eat and is different from choking. It may not be comfortable to watch, but it is part of the learning process and once baby is 6 months of age and presented with age appropriate texture foods, your baby will be able to handle it, even if he or she does not have teeth!
When your baby is first starting to eat he or she will bite off pieces that baby might not know what to do with. Baby will explore and munch or chew, and some of the food might be swallowed, but baby will likely spit food out and play with it as well. This is all part of learning HOW to eat. Because breastmilk and/or formula is still the primary source of nutrition until age 1, don’t worry that baby isn’t eating “enough”. Learning HOW to eat is just as important as what baby is eating or how much!
You may not be able to prevent gagging (remember it’s different from choking!), but you can prepare yourself for when it happens. I encourage parents to watch videos of babies gagging on food (weird sounding, I know!) to help become more familiar with the sounds to be able to remain calm through your own baby’s gag.
My favorite part about teaching BLW is the visual impact because seeing really is believing for those who are hesitant to start. I recently started Youtube channel so that I could really walk parents through baby-led weaning and their fears with more visual examples…and there is a gagging video for you!
Click here to see our first YouTube gagging video “10 Babies Gagging on Their First Foods (Why it’s a GOOD Thing!): Baby-Led Weaning”
5. Share a Video of Your Baby Self-Feeding
No matter where you are in you and your baby’s BLW journey, remember it’s YOUR journey. Parenting can sometimes feel a little lonely especially when you’re learning how to do something new, but you’re definitely not alone in baby-led weaning!
To celebrate BLW Day, share a picture or video of your baby eating REAL FOOD.
Use the hashtag #blwday and tag me @babyledweanteam to celebrate you and your baby while also giving some encouragement to other BLW families out there.
Some ideas for you to share
Show us the last food your baby tried
Show us your latest BLW win (absolutely okay if your baby isn’t eating much yet and your win is just getting the food on the plate and the baby in the chair!)
Show us family favorite meal that your baby got to be included in
Show us BLW on the road
Show us learning about BLW if you’re not quite ready to start yet (check out my FREE Baby-Led Weaning for Beginners at babyledweaning.co :)
Happy Baby-Led Weaning Day! However you celebrate, be sure to tag me on Instagram @babyledweanteam and use #blwday so that I can cheer you on :)
