Dropping 10.30 pm feed and increasing daytime solids

[Flossie69]

Hi there - have posted this in Weaning, also, but thought I may get more responses here.

My DD is just over 9 months, and 7.5 kg, so not massive. After a slow start, she is now going great guns with weaning, she loves her food, and has a mixture of spoonfed meals and finger foods - mainly bread and toast at the mo.

What she has looks like this:-
7am 6oz bottle
8am toast followed by fromage frais
11.30 am lunch - spoon fed meal
2.30 pm 6oz bottle
5pm tea - mixture of spoon fed and finger foods eg scrambled egg and toast
6.45pm 6oz bottle
10.30pm 6oz bottle.

So my question is this - should I be dropping the 10.30pm bottle? I took her to be weighed yesterday, and the HV said it wouldn't be doing her any good, having the milk at that time of night - like us having a meal at 2am. She said she should be getting all of her calories during the day now.

Trouble is, DD has recently started waking for this bottle (rather than me waking her), and seems to really want it. She is still having her morning bottle. So do I wean her off it, and increase her daytime calories, perhaps by introducing snacks, or leave things be until she drops that feed natiurally? I am also really unsure about what the HV said.

Also, I think she is going through some sort of sleep regression, as she is currently waking at 2.30am, and is then very difficult to settle for the rest of the night.

Many Thanks

IMO, your HV is not necessarily correct, it is not unusual or strange or abnormal for a 9 mth old to want a milk feed late evening or in the night

if she is still a bit on the wee side, then milk is filling, calorific and nutritious, more so than some finger foods or a bit of yoghurt etc

if she is hungry, and waking for it, you'll gain nothing by not giving it to her

also, milk is her drink too, so it's for thirst, also the comfrot of being held and fed is nice too !

you could possibly introduce a bottle during the late morning, as she's going 7am to 2.30 pm with no bottle...

at this age food is a compliment to milk not neccesarily a replacement

I agree with lulu. I see no reason to force more solids on her or why she shouldn't be having a evening bottle.

We've always given DD one/two snacks in addition to 3 meals.

So she has toast throughout the morning (and porridge/weetabix for breakfast) and normally fruit in the afternoons. However we were trying to cut down her milk in the day (as I expressed at work) and so am happy to feed her in the night.

I think add more solids but only in a casual way. =Just do what works for you. Contrary to your HV there is no right or wrong here (barring extreme cases)

Hi

I have 3 Kiddies and found routine is the key.

Your routine sounds fab but maybe try with your 11.30 meal milk after that instead of 2.30 and then milk after dinner too. Then a top up just before bed so a nice warm bath warm milk then bed??

That was kinda my routine and worked well with mine. But I also know all babies are diffrent hope something works for you