Baby Led Weaning at 5.5 Months: Getting Started for Fun

Though its highly recommended to only start giving solids at 6 months, we started a bit early with foods that were easy to hold and suck on. We really only did it as a way to keep him entertained when we sit at the table. Most of what we've handed him he's only sucked on and practiced chewing so far. He still spits out any chunks he manages to break off. The real benefit has been watching him improve his dexterity and also improving his ability to sit.

I make an effort to sit him at the table with me when I eat, especially at dinner time when everyone is home. He gets something random to play with, either a toy, a spoon or a piece of what we're eating.

If you're planning to do baby led weaning but are terrified of your baby chocking or gagging, you can try starting with some of the easier foods we've started with. Browse my 5.5m posts to see pictures showing how I chose to cut various foods when starting out. They are foods which don't come apart very easily and that are satisfying to suck on. Note that it's recommended that you start baby on iron rich foods, so though you might try to introduce a large variety of foods like we are, you'll also want to ensure you're consistently offering foods high in iron and pairing them up to help the iron get absorbed. Some foods are also easier to digest than others, so you might decide to avoid certain foods for the first while if you baby struggles with digestion.

Note: As soon as Wyatt started actually chewing and breaking large chunks off, I completely changed my approach to what I gave him. What I previously considered safe, I found was too hard and could become a chocking hazard when bitten off, so we then transitioned to roasted vegetables that were easily mashed when pressed on.