Feeding older babies - feeding cues?

[redandyellowandpinkandgreen]

How do you know when your bf baby wants feeding? I feel a bit daft even asking this! DS is 8 months and I haven't a clue. I tend to feed him at sort of set times now, he has three feeds a day. I am not stopping him feeding any more but he doesn't ask either and it doesn't feel like much. I worry a bit I am cutting down feeds too fast as I'm going back to work in about 8 weeks and would ideally like him weaned in the day by then.

He eats solid food well and has three meals a day and still bf in the night.

Any ideas?

i just fed mine when they asked, although there's nothing wrong with set times per se.
if he wanted more he would ask...

are you replacing the feeds you drop with formula feeds?

Mine pulls my top down and pulls a kind of sucky face but he is seven months older than yours.

DD (8mths) will do the sucky face too, or let out a cry but most often just shoves her face into the boob area.

I lose count of how much she feeds in a day, but is only just starting to eat a decent amount of solids.

DS1 would just shove his arms inside my top, or he would do this kind of head shaking that reminded us all of an animal worrying it's prey!

I know what you mean, since around that age I've never really known when my DS wants feeding (he's 12 months now). Generally it's when he gets grumpy. He has kind of taken to climbing on me and headbutting my arm/chest now, so that's a bit clearer!

I got to the point of doing it at set times really, first thing and bedtime, and whenever ds was tired, so before morning and afternoon nap. He doesn't really ask anymore.

I had no idea when DS wanted feeding once he stopped doing the newborn rooting. At 16 months he started saying 'muh' (milk) and pulling at the neckline of my top.

Before then, I always offered a feed when he woke up (naps & night), before he went to sleep (naps & night), any time he woke at night (often!), an hour before offering solid foods and any time he was grumpy or crying.

DD 9mo doesn't really demand either, not in the day anyway.

Sometimes she sucks her thumb, that's the only clue. But she does that when she's tired as well.

So at the moment we do roughly 4 hourly feeds in the day plus 3 meals of solids. She wakes for at least one night feed too. So about 5 bf in 24 hours.

OP I personally would be worried that cutting out day feeds at this age would lead to increased night waking/feeding. But that's probably because I know my dd would be up all night feeding if I gave her half a chance! I know another mum who's baby has been down to 2 bf since around 9mo, one in the morning and one at bedtime. Her other little friend has been on 3 bf a day for a month or so as well.

Seems to be a massive variation in the amount of bf p/day from 8mo+, don't you think? I don't think it's something you can really influence, it just is what it is.

Could your ds not have ebm or formula from a cup during the day when you go back to work?

My offer to feed my 11 month old in the morning, lunchtime and evening, and she also has a couple of night feeds. Her cues are irritability and not wanting me to put her down.
If she is happy and full she will play quite happily on the floor, but if she needs a feed she will start whinging and crawling over to me and tried to climb up on me.

By about six months onwards we had sort of progressed to good morning feed, morning coffee, lunch, afternoon tea, teatime and bedtime as this worked for me and the baby and nap times. When weaning I dropped the mealtime feeds first to avoid the feeling of constanting either offering BF or solids.

With my first I got in a real pickle at about 8 months as due to teething she started refusing all daytime feeds and then of course started waking all night to be BF. So from a purely personal perspective I wouldn't leave it up to the baby by this stage.

He is feeding more at night, I had just thought it was some sort of blip and not really linked it to the decrease in bf. Duh. Today I tried offering more often and he will always happily feed, will see how that affects his sleep tonight. I am trying to get him to have some formula out of a cup but losing the battle at the moment. It just ends up being a waste as I bought cartons of formula, rather than powder, and he will take maybe an ounce and then it has to be thrown after 24 hours. I will perservere! I would like to get him weaned in the day really.