The Lazy Guide to Baby Led Weaning on the Road

Laying the Foundation: 3 Things to Do Before You Go

• We followed Solid Starts Baby Led Weaning advice with Isla as soon as she was ready. For us, that was around 6 months. This way of introducing Isla to food, in my opinion, gave the foundation for 1) Isla being okay with a wide variety of food 2) Isla being okay with table food 3) us knowing that Isla so far was not allergic to any common allergens.

• We offer no pressure eating environments. She can eat as much as her body wants and we don’t entice her to take additional bites if she expresses she’s done. This helps us all focus on enjoying food at home, and especially makes things low-hassle on a trip.

• We also work to be in tune with Isla’s expressed hunger cues to keep her hydrated and drinking milk as often as she needs.

Essential Supplies: 3 Things to Bring

• We bought a travel high chair for picnics and hotel meals. This one in particular was fairly easy to clean, and a breeze to set up and pack away; huge for us being constantly moving locations. The tray fits smoothly into the same bag as the chair and snaps on and off quick! It's lightweight but sturdy for our baby that loves to climb (and after meals provided plenty of up and down entertainment!). But best of all, it allowed Jimmy and I to enjoy our own meals without much worry about Isla’s set up.

• We brought along our beloved (and one and only) silicone baby bib. We’re packing in our car and space is limited - so we keep it to the essentials and one easy wash bib is all we need!

• We’re all about Isla eating with her hands while providing exposure to utensils. We brought along a couple of her spoons to make curries, yogurts, dips or anything else we might order a little easier on us.

Let’s Talk Logistics: 3 Plans to Make

• We kept it simple - feed the baby solids when we eat, with what we eat (cut and served appropriately).

• With our dog in tow, we largely ate outside or in our hotel (or parked car), so clean up was easily handled by our resident clean up crew: Zero. Since not everyone has a dog vacuum, Solid Starts has content on eating out with babies to help be prepared. One tip that’s been especially helpful for us is having a set of toys that only come out when we’re at restaurants! That way, they feel new, and keep Isla engaged for longer.

• We made small modifications to what we ordered based on Isla’s needs. We have been doing a low and slow approach to introducing Isla to spicier foods. While we were on the trip she was still fairly sensitive to trying even the smallest amounts of spice. So when we dined in, we ordered milder dishes to share with her or ensured we had easy options to offer. We decided trying something that would likely cause an adverse reaction in a dine-in setting (where we needed to stay a while and ideally not cough or cry near other patrons) wasn’t the right fit for us.

We have upcoming trips planned for when Isla will be 13, 14, 15 and 18 months, and more fully (if not fully) transitioned to solids. That will of course come with snack preparation, planning, and potentially more picky eating. Follow along as we adapt to each age’s needs!