Is this an okay pattern for a 3mo?

[ardenbird]

So, after battling all sorts of early problems and finally getting a posterior tongue-tie snipped a month ago, I've been feeling like I'm finally getting the hang of this breastfeeding thing. But suddenly I'm having a crisis of confidence, reading all this about feeding both sides all the time, etc., and wonder if what I'm doing is right.

This is a "typical" (as if one of those exists) day for us:
Up 5:30-7am, feed ~15min one side, 10min the other
Sleep 2-3hr (DD and me, too, after chores :) )
Feed ~10min one side, 5min the other
Then feed one side for 5-10min every 1.5-2hr until around 3-4pm
Sleep another 2-3hr, sometimes after an hour of play, so up to a 4hr gap
Feed one side side ~10-15min, 5-10min the other
Then feed one side ~10-15 every 1-2hrs until around 11pm-midnight, with gaps getting shorter as the night goes on
I usually offer the other side right after what I think is the "last" feed, although she doesn't always eat much, sometimes less than 1min
Sleep 5-7hrs and we're back to the morning

I just sort of fell into this, not really keep track and more going with the flow. She doesn't really do much of "feeding cues", so I just tend to offer a feed if she seems a bit unsettled and it's been a while. She will almost always take a boob, although sometimes only sucks for a few seconds before pulling to just the nipple. If she does this repeatedly I conclude she isn't actually hungry, which is how I think I stopped doing both sides during the main part of the day, as it always seemed just a pop-on, pop-off on the second boob.

Is this okay? She can, if we're going somewhere or doing something, nearly always be delayed for a 3 or even 4hr gap when we would normally do a 1.5-2hr gap, just by smiling at her and/or having a different, stimulating environment. After such a gap she will take both sides. Should I be offering both sides more regularly, and then she'd fall into longer gaps? But I'm fine with shorter, more frequent feeds and in fact sort of prefer it, as I can go off and start doing something while burping her and such. But I don't want to be imperiling my supply, especially as I had trouble with that in the past.

This sounds fine to me. If she was wanting more, she would ask for it, it sounds like you are being responsive to her needs, and you've found a way of doing it all that works for you both.

Of course it's OK! So long as baby is growing and you're both happy with things as they are, there is no 'right pattern'.

Trust your instincts and go with the flow, OP - no-one knows your DD better than you do.

My lo sometimes has both boobs, sometimes only one (especially in the morning) and he's fine - he too feeds around every 2.5 - 3 hrs but can go up to 4.5 if we're out or he's had play and then a long sleep. And he too is 3 mths.

But I think the most important thing is that none of this matters as long as they're producing enough wet and dirty nappies, are alert and aren't losing weight!

Thanks! I feel better now :)

Just one of those "oh no" moments... Definitely plenty of nappies, and she looks nice and chubby and has been outgrowing things, so I assume the weight is being put on. We'll get weighed in a week or so, and I'm still nervous about that as we had early problems, but last weigh in three weeks ago made for an average of 11oz/week (!), although I think she was doing some of making up for lost time after the early problems.