16 weeks old EBF

[Fresh01]

Just seeking reassurance here that I should stick to my guns and ignore those around me : )

DD3 is 16 weeks and feeding roughly as follows:

8am one side
midday both sides
4pm both sides
7pm both sides
somewhere midnight-1am one side
somewhere 3.30-4.30am one side

I reckon that is good. But my mum and DH are both on about her still being up twice overnight as I am shattered at the moment. I am saying that I am just shattered as this time round I have 4 kids 6 and under so get no respite from 6.45am till 7.30pm when the others are in bed. Out of the 4 kids two were sleeping through at this stage and one was up once a night so by comparison they say she is "a bad sleeper" I know compared to what many go through it is not bad.

Dh is suggesting formula in the evening and my mum is saying as she was 9lbs 12ozs at birth (bigger than the others) and she is still 95%ile I need to start weaning her onto solids. Both have me doubting myself. I want to do as I have done for the others hold out till a week before 6 months for solids and start weaning off BM at 10-11months.

How after 4 kids have I still not perfected the "nod and ignore trick"

You know you should just carry on don't you? DS didn't let go of the 4am feed til around 6 months and even then it was intermittent for a couple of months after. He always hovered around th 91st centile Ignore the mention of formula unless you really want to and 95th centile is no reason to wean early. She's just that size because she is.

Oh god. Assume punctuation and paragraphs are in there somewhere!

yes, ignore everyone else around you!

bad sleeper my arse.
like she understands the concept at 16weeks!

you do not need formula.

i think she is doing brilliantly to only want 2 night feeds at her age!
mine were all feeding about twice that at 16 weeks, so it sounds pretty good to me :)

there is no reason why she would need to be weaned early. milk is far more calorific than solids anyway.

dd feeds through the night, and she's 18 weeks.

If it's reassurance you are after then I'm happy to oblige!

It sounds like a perfectly normal feeding pattern for a 4-month old baby, my son is 5 months old and feeds at similar times. You know you are doing the best thing for your baby, so if you are prepared to continue in the knowledge that you'll be up in the night for a bit longer then of course you should stick to your guns!

Oh and kudos on the 4 under 6

My LO is 16 weeks and feeds at least twice during the night - do what is right for you and your baby and ignore everyone else! So much to consider at this age like growth spurts/regression etc, if she needs to feed, she needs to feed!

Thank you for your responses. Good to hear others are feeding on a similar pattern. I want to continue BF and know this is our last baby so know I will catch up on sleep eventually : ) DH knew I was shattered yesterday so took the other 3 out this morning and DD3 and I went back to bed for a 2 hour sleep which has helped a lot.

When mum mentioned solids on the phone today I was able to laugh and say "you do know I am ignoring you, don't you" and she laughed!

Eermmm... You're doing exceptionally well on that schedule at 16 weeks! Four hours between feeds is remarkable for an EBF baby.

DS is 7.5mo and feeds every 2 hours during the day (and that's with 3 meals a day) and several times at night (though we're gently reducing that now he's over 6mo and I'm on my knees with exhaustion) and is 91st centile so pretty much shoots your family's reasoning out the water!

Keep up the fantastic job you're doing raising your child, your way.

Sounds like you're doing a fab job! My 9 month old is still waking up a couple of times a night for feeds- great now I'm back full time at work! Anyway, stick to your guns and do it your way!