Whether you buy your baby holiday gifts or not, this is definitely the time of year to stock up on feeding gear!
As a registered dietitian specializing in infant feeding and a mom of 7, I’ve found that giving (and receiving!) useful, practical and safe items related to feeding is a unique alternative to toys and clothes.
There are some exciting new products in the feeding space this year along with valuable discount codes and deals in this gift guide.
This guide does contain affiliate links from which I earn a small commission. Thank you for supporting your baby’s ability to self-feed from their first bites and Happy Feeding!
-Katie Ferraro, MPH, RDN
0-6 months
When it comes to starting solid foods, your baby does not need anything except infant milk and/or formula until they are 6 months of age.
There are some developmental prefeeding tools you can utilize to help your baby get ready to start solid foods, but please don’t offer anything except infant milk until 6 months of age.
A High Quality High Chair
The single biggest investment you will make related to starting solids is purchasing your high chair. If you choose correctly, the chair your baby starts out in at 6 months can adapt and grow with your child well through childhood and even into adolescence.
For stationary high chairs to be used at home I look for 2 key criteria:
- Does the chair have an adjustable footrest? Baby’s feet need to be resting flat on the footrest to stabilize the baby’s core and facilitate a safe swallow. Most chairs on the market do not meet this basic safety consideration, so you can rule many out right off the bat.
- Can the chair be pulled up to the family table so your baby can participate in meals from his or her first bites? It’s not safe for high chairs to be at bar or counter height, but if you have a standard dining table, you can get a chair without a tray and bring your baby to the table.
Stokke Tripp Trapp
The Stokke Tripp Trapp is a high quality wooden chair with an adjustable footrest designed by Peter Opsvik in 1972. I have 7 Tripp Trappps for my 7 kids and the small footprint is ideal for multiples or if you have limited space in your feeding area.
If you’re looking for the iconic, classically designed chair that will fit your child up until around age 12 or 13, the Tripp Trapp is the way to go. Be sure to purchase the high chair version with the Baby Set for feeding infants 6-18 months. Click here to see the Stokke High Chair with Baby Set setup on Amazon.
SEE THE STOKKE TRIPP TRAPP ON AMAZON
Although any good high chair is a solid investment, because this chair has withstood the test of time, it is easy to get a used Tripp Trapp on various baby sites or Craigslist. I bought most of my Tripp Trapps on Craigslist for about $90 each.
CPR & Choking Courses
Prior to starting solid foods it’s a good idea to brush up on your CPR skills and take an infant refresher CPR as well as a choking prevention and response course.
CPR Course
I suggest that everyone who helps or is going to help feed your baby knows CPR.
I take an online infant CPR course every quarter and this online CPR class I take is very thorough and very affordable. You can use your login to then have everyone who helps feed your baby (partner, husband, mother-in-law, babysitter…) take the course too.
Click here to check out the online refresher CPR course for $35 and code KATIE10 works for $10 off when the code is active.
USE CODE KATIE10 FOR $10 OFF ONLINE CPR COURSE
Choking Prevention and Response Course
For parents and caregivers who are especially concerned with choking risk, I co-teach a comprehensive Choking Prevention and Response Course.
- Stop unsafe seating situations with our posture checklist proven to protect your child’s airway.
- Avoid dangerous household objects and modify choking risk foods to facilitate safe swallowing for infants, toddlers, and school-age children.
- Troubleshoot feeding difficulties that can impact safe swallowing at mealtimes, such as pocketing, overstuffing and excessive gagging.
You can get $10 off the Choking Prevention and Response course with affiliate discount code KATIE10. Click here to register.
USE CODE KATIE10 for $10 OFF CHOKING COURSE
Pre-Feeding Tools
If your baby is 4 or 5 months of age, you’re probably getting interested in starting solid foods…although that’s still a ways off.
In that interim period before your baby is ready, here are two pre-feeding tools that I like for 4 and 5 month old babies.
Breastmilk or Formula Pops
The ezpz Tiny Pops are wonderful for babies who are just starting to show interest in food. You can use these to freeze breastmilk and/or formula.
Their popsicle molds were developed by the ezpz feeding specialist and when your baby gets a little older you can also use other foods to freeze which is great for teething babies.
You can get 10% off everything on the ezpz site including the ezpz Tiny Pops with the affiliate discount code KATIE10.
Oral Development Tools
You’ll notice your baby bringing their hands and objects to their mouth as they get ready to start solid foods.
The ezpz Oral Development Tools help babies before they start solid foods and also aid with eventual speech development.
6-12 months
Once your baby hits the 6 month mark and is showing the other signs of readiness to feed, it’s time to get busy starting solid foods.
I’m a firm believer that you don’t need to buy a lot of stuff to give baby a safe start to solid foods, but a few key items - like a silicone suction bowl or mat really helps with independent feeding.
Click here to read my blog post all about why we want to feed baby from a suction mat or bowl and not place food directly on the tray or table.
Feeding Gear
You might think all baby plates and bowls are created the same, but they’re not. My favorite brand of infant feeding gear is ezpz and that is because their products are designed by a feeding expert with feeding milestones and developmentally appropriate features in mind.
Here is a quick list of my favorite feeding items from ezpz. You can get 10% off everything at ezpzfun.com with code KATIE10.
ezpz First Foods Set
The ezpz First Foods Set contains everything you need to get a safe start to solid foods. I used to buy the individual pieces of this set and put them together for baby shower gifts for my friends...but then thankfully ezpz went and did it for cheaper than the sum of the parts and in very cute packaging in a new product called the First Foods Set.
The ezpz First Foods Set consists of 1 ezpz Tiny Bowl, 1 Tiny Cup and a 2-pack of the Tiny Spoons. If you buy 1 thing to start baby-led weaning, let it be the First Foods Set.
ezpz Mini Mat
The ezpz Mini Mat is another favorite of mine for starting solid foods. I teach a 5-step feeding framework where you introduce baby to 1 new food per day. But once you get to Day 3, it’s time to start introducing that new food of the day + 2 familiar foods from previous days...and the Mini Mat - with its 3 individual portion pockets - makes that happen.
If you’re just getting started with BLW & want to learn more about this approach to really PUSHING your baby’s palate beyond the simple starter foods, come check out my free online workshop called “BABY-LED WEANING FOR BEGINNERS: How to get your baby to try 100 new foods before turning 1 without you having to spoon feed purees or buy pouches!”
Everyone on the workshop gets a copy of my 100 FIRST FOODS list and you can sign up for this week’s workshop times here.
ezpz Tiny Cup and Tiny Spoons
The ezpz Tiny Cup and a 2-pack of the Tiny Spoons are included in the First Foods Set mentioned above.
But it’s always a good idea to have a few extras of these lying around when you’re starting solid foods. Babies can start learning to self-feed by spoon and drink from an open cup at around 6 months of age, and these are my favorite BLW cups and spoons.
Click here to check out the Tiny Spoons and here for the Tiny Cup (both of these products are developmentally appropriate for 6-12m old babies)
Cleaning Stuff
Starting solids is an inherently messy undertaking. While it’s not our intent to ELIMINATE the mess, we can take a few key steps to help MINIMIZE the mess associated with baby-led weaning.
Best Bibs for Baby-Led Weaning
With 7 kids and 2 decades in the feeding business, I think I’ve tried every bib ever made for a baby. Hands down my favorite bibs for baby-led weaning are the full coverage BLW bibs called Baprons made by Bapron Baby.
This unique Bapron design is like an apron and a bib all rolled into one. Baprons tie around the back and under your baby’s shoulder blades (not all up in their neck), which leads to a more pleasant sensory experience when learning to eat (plus is harder for older babies to remove by themselves :)
The material is so durable and you can rinse the Bapron bibs in the sink right after meals, dry them on the drainboard and they’re ready to go for the next meal. No need to throw each bib in the wash after every feed like you have to do with other brands.
Oh, and a word about the Bapron sizing: their “Toddler” size is really for babies 6m+ and the “Preschool” size is what I size up to when the toddler turns about 18-24 months.
You can get 10% off Baprons with the code KATIE10: click here to shop.
Bapron Baby Splash Mats
When your baby is starting out with baby-led weaning, food will inevitably fall on the floor.
But all is not lost if you have a high quality splash mat under your baby’s chair.
The same company Bapron Baby that makes the BLW Bapron Bibs above also makes my favorite splash mats. The Bapron Splash Mats come in solid and prints, they’re huge (I use 1 Bapron splash mat under twin high chairs).
The Bapron splash mats are made from the same amazing fabric as their bibs. You can rinse them out under your own faucet and dry between feeds.
These splash mats also double as great picnic blankets if you’re out and about and they fold down so small you can easily transport them in your diaper bag.
You can get 10% off Bapron Splash Mats with the code KATIE10: click here to shop.
Branch Basics Non-Toxic Cleaning Supplies
Another key for minimizing the baby feeding mess is to make sure to clean the food mess up RIGHT after mealtime. There’s nothing worse than hardened food that you let sit around for too long!
I use Branch Basics non-toxic All Purpose cleaner for tackling those tough post-BLW food mess situations.
All of the Branch Basics products are non-toxic...but they smell GOOD and they ACTUALLY CLEAN the food mess.
You can get 15% off the Branch Basics Starter Kits with code KATIE15. Click here to shop.
(...and there are 2 Branch Basics Starter Kits but I highly suggest the “Premium” that has the laundry add on & Oxygen Boost. I use that Oxygen Boost for everything - including getting food stains out of anything and it’s totally worth the extra $10)
SHOP BRANCH BASICS: CODE KATIE15
12 months+
What changes in feeding when your baby turns 1?
Well basically you move to cow’s milk and it’s time to size up on the cup and spoon and add the fork. (Babies under age 12 months do not need a fork).
ezpz Mini Cup and Mini Utensils
Once your baby hits about 12 months it’s time to size up to the bigger ezpz cup called the Mini Cup.
Whereas the Tiny Cup is 2 oz and designed for 6-12 months, the ezpz Mini Cup is a 4 oz silicone cup ideal for babies 12 months+.
Code KATIE10 works for 10% off the Mini Cup + Straw System and click here to shop.
Another milestone that happens when baby turns 1 is we start to introduce the fork. Spoon use starts at 6 months but by age 1 I switch baby to the ezpz Mini Utensils.
These were designed by their feeding expert with all sorts of features intended to support independent feeding and age-appropriate feeding milestones as the baby moves into the 2nd year of life.
There’s no need to start the Mini Utensils until baby turns 1, but use code KATIE10 for 10% off at ezpzfun.com when you’re ready to size up to the Mini Utensils.
24 months+
When your baby hits the 2 year mark, there are still a few feeding gear upgrades you might want to consider.
Ezpz makes a new “Happy” line of their feeding gear for 24 months+.
They’ll love the familiar, safe design of the earlier lines (Tiny and Mini) but everything Happy from ezpz is for 2 years and up.
Non-Toxic Skincare for Babies
What you put ON your baby’s body is as important as what you put IN it.
If your baby has eczema, getting that eczema under control asap is important for lowering baby’s risk of peanut allergy.
New research links severe eczema with food allergy risk and while many babies have eczema, eczema is treatable.
The brand of non-toxic skincare I use and recommend is from the company Evereden.
Evereden makes a non-toxic non-steroidal eczema treatment cream that works AMAZINGLY on babies with eczema.
You can get 15% off everything at Evereden with my affiliate discount code KATIE15. Click here to shop…I’ve linked up a few of my favorites and the Nourishing Baby Face Cream is to die for - you will never go back to overpriced adult face cream after you try this product!!
Books About Baby-Led Weaning
If you’re not into buying gear yet and just want to familiarize yourself with starting solids using baby-led weaning, I’ll link to a few of my favorite books that I highly recommend here:
- The ORIGINAL Baby-Led Weaning Book by Gil Rapley was recently overhauled for its 10th anniversary, is a must-read written by the founder of this philosophy and is available on Amazon here
- Baby-Led Weaning researcher Amy Brown has a fabulous pocket guide called Why Starting Solids Matters and you can find it on Amazon here
- Jenna Helwig is a BLW author and the food editor at Real Simple Magazine. Her newest book The Multi-Cooker Baby Food Cookbook is available on Amazon here & is a great excuse to bust out your InstantPot to start feeding your baby!
- My Irish friend & colleague Aileen Cox Blundell’s books The Baby-Led Feeding Cookbook and The Baby-Friendly Family Cookbook are both fabulous for BLW recipes and are on Amazon here and here
- If you’re curious about the latest research and evidence supporting early introduction of potentially allergenic foods, be sure to check out pediatrician & food allergy expert Ron Sunog, MD’s book called Eat the Eight: Preventing Food Allergy with Food and the Imperfect Art of Medicine available on Amazon here
BLW Foods to Buy & Try
I’m not a big fan of packaged foods for baby-led weaning, but there are a few that are fine by me and can help make your life easier plus offer a safe alternative for feeding your baby.
Puffworks Baby Peanut Butter Puffs
When it comes to introducing peanut protein, research shows us that early introduction helps prevent peanut allergy down the road.
But because intact nuts and globs of peanut butter can be a choking hazard, I like to use peanut butter puffs formulated for babies and my favorite brand are called Puffworks.
These are organic peanut butter puffs, they’re softer than any other puffs on the market so they dissolve on baby’s tongue and they have no added sugar and just a smidge of salt.
Plus the Puffworks Baby Peanut Butter Puffs are the perfect size for your baby to pick up and self-feed.
Puffworks Baby Almond Puffs
Puffworks also makes baby almond puffs now for safely introducing the potentially allergenic food treenut to your baby.
I recommend getting 1 case of Puffworks Baby Peanut and 1 case of Puffworks Baby Almond to start. Use code BABYLED for a discount and click here to shop.
Family Feeding Gift Guide Roundup
Well, hopefully this gift list gives you some ideas of feeding present ideas for babies and kids of different ages and stages who need to eat!
Here’s a quick rundown of the links with affiliate discount codes if you want to check any of the items in this FAMILY FEEDING GIFT GUIDE out:
- ezpz code KATIE10 for 10% off - shop here
- Online CPR refresher course and Choking Prevention and Response course code KATIE10 for $10 off register here
- Bapron Baby code KATIE10 for 10% off - shop here
- Branch Basics non-toxic cleaners code KATIE15 for 15% off starter kits - shop here
- Evereden non-toxic skincare code KATIE15 for 15% off - shop here
- Puffworks Baby Peanut Butter puffs code BABYLED - shop here
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Katie Ferraro, MPH, RDN is a registered dietitian, college nutrition professor and mom of 7. She specializes in baby-led weaning and is the creator of the original 100 FIRST FOODS™ program. Katie hosts the top-rated parenting podcast BABY-LED WEANING MADE EASY and runs the baby-led weaning YouTube channel and @babyledweanteam Instagram account. Her BABY-LED WEANING with Katie Ferrao digital program is the go to resource for exactly how to start solid foods safely with baby-led weaning and to help your baby eat 100 safe, baby-led weaning foods before turning one.
