food theft

[CricketSoph]

So the story is...DD was on my lap and I was eating an apple. She was very interested in watching me eating; following the apple with eyes etc then all of a sudden she dived mouth first at the apple with the enthusiasm she normally reserves for bf. I am intending to give blw a whirl when it comes to weaning...
So far so good EXCEPT DD is only 19 weeks old. So do we (a) make sure we keep food further out of her reach until she's the magic 6 months old; (b) keep eating around her and if she steals food, she steals food until the magic 6 months when she gets her own; or (c) break out the high chair now???
Personally I'm leaning towards option (b) (as is DH) but DH insists that I post the question on here just in case...

[BizzyDint]

if you're going to do blw then the idea is that she may well lunge at food/lick food/pick bits up etc etc before 6 months. but until around 6 months she won't actually be able to do the full..pick up, chew, swallow bit. so yes she might go so far as to chew, but it'll probably just drop back out of her mouth again.

what i would do..? sit her in a highchair while you eat at the table or wherever and give her something to wave around or get some high chair toy things. that way she's involved in the social bit of eating and gets to watch you and see how enjoyable food is.

fwiw, she'd probably also lunge at a newspaper if she were sat on your lap while you intently read away..

[BizzyDint]

by 'something to wave around' i mean like a beaker, a whisk, a seive etc etc...not really a carrot IYSWIM!!

[terramum]

Im with Bizzy on this one - Babies naturally want to imitate everything you do & want to have what you are holding & solids are no different imo.....but as its so hard to tell exactly when their gut is mature so we decided to hold off on solids until DS was 7 months just to be sure...he started looking quite mourneful while we ate so gave him a spoon and bowl to play with while we ate & that seemed to satisfy him.

[CricketSoph]

cool, thanks, sounds pretty much what i was leaning towards... looks like we'll have to move our evening meal time to whilst she's still awake. I'll have to start pretending to be a proper housewife and have DH's dinner on the table when he gets home

Was soo sweet to see her go after the apple though. She has reached for paper/book/computer before but not with her "latch" face.