Dinner time

[TheAquaMoose]

9 month old baby in nursery a few days a week. In nursery she gets breakfast, lunch and healthy snack at 3pm so 3 solid feeds (plus formula). When she comes home around 5.30 she's also hungry and I had been giving her another meal, usually a bit of what we have if suitable or a pouch. Then last bottle before bed.

I was worried 4 solid feeds might be a lot for her and was I giving her too much on top of big lunch and snack? She eats it all however and loves her food

Last night she was tired when she came in but I didn't want to send her to bed with empty tummy so just did mushy Weetabix then last bottle. Does anyone else ever do cereal at dinner like this for baby of similar age?

She has slept very well after Weetabix and I'm wondering if it's a better option after nursery especially when shes a bit tired rather than giving her another big meal?

Would love to hear about other 9 month feeding schedules

Mine are now 2&3 but have been going to nursery since 7 months old.

We found early on that another full meal at 5/6pm was too much, both in terms of them being tired & over stimulated and in wanting to eat.

Even now they both just have cereal/toast and fruit and that seems to be enough for them.

I think cereal sounds perfect. They usually have a big cooked lunch at nursery.

My daughter didn't eat anything at all after nursery until 3 and now's it's 50:50 she gets a choice of pasta, what we are having if it's suitable for her to eat or toast/crumpets/cereal. She's a very poor eater and at 9 months her daily intake was 2-3 spoons of Weetabix and about 6 peas. She mostly was sustained on formula

My nearly 8 month old loves her food and will refuse bottles for food. Has done since 4-6months old.
She typically has a 7oz bottle in morning - has half before school run and the rest when we return. Normally leaves 2oz to mix with her porridge and will have a big bowl full. She then has lunch - 2 ice cube blocks of veg or fruit and 2 fromage frais or a rice pudding ect. Will have a snack such as a biscuit or wafer. Then i offer another bottle 4pm ish. May or may not drink it. Usually end up mixing it into her tea. Again has the same as lunch time option or a bit of what were having. Then has 7oz before bed at 8pm. Is offered juice/water throughout the day. She is on the 50th centile. Ive often worried i feed her too much, but if shes full she wont open her mouth so i no i cant force feed her and i think aslong as she is happy/healthy then i will continue. Shes typically a good sleeper (i say at 2am in the morning - were teething) and now on the move. Each baby is different and i personally think let baby lead you and dont worry aslong as they happy/healthy

From memory ours was on

• breakfast at home (toast, fruit). No morning bottle.
• mid morning snack (fruit)
• lunch
• afternoon snack (yoghurt or banana bread or something like that). Also some milk
• teatime at about 5:30 (gnocchi and peas or similar).
• then bedtime milk

The amount she eats at each meal varies quite a bit. I don't think there's anything wrong with offering an evening meal: she won't eat it unless she wants to / is hungry?

PS I can't see why cereal would be any less appropriate than, say, pasta. Seems a good idea!

My ds is 2 and has been in nursery since he was 1 we’ve always given him a meal when he comes home otherwise he wakes up hungry in the night, he’s not over weight, he sits right at the 50th centile for his age, a friend of mine also gives her ds supper before bed ( he’s in the same nursery) if it’s helping your dd to sleep during the night better I can’t see a problem with it.

It totally depends on the baby, my daughter was always hungry after nurses despite having 3x meals and 2x bottles during the day at 13 months old. We used to give high calorie snacks such as avocado on toast with a banana, porridge with peanut butter etc then when she was around 18 months she started having a full meal after nursery.

she’s 4 now and still needs a full meal after nursery despite eating huge portions there!!

My daughter started nursery at 9 months and is 16 months now. As soon as she started weaning at 6 months she refused boob in the day and only wanted solids! This is what she would eat at 9months and has the same meals now just bigger portions and no boob.

morning boob when she woke up (7:30)
2 weetabix at nursery (8:30)
morning snack - yesterday pear and breadsticks (9:30)
cooked lunch - yesterday tuna and sardine cheesy pasta, followed by jelly and fruit (11:30) - yesterday she had 2 portions
afternoon snack - yesterday cheese, cucumber sticks and raisins. (2:00)
nursery dinner - yesterday beans on toast followed by cookies and milkshake (4:15)
a half sized portion of dinner with us in the evening - yesterday prawn casserole (6pm)
2 weetabix before bed (8pm)
bed time boob (8:30pm)

No one can believe how much she eats and how tiny she still is (6-9 clothes at 16months) but she is very active and obviously very hungry. (She won’t eat the same amount on days she’s at home)

the weetabix before bed we started at 8 months and was a life saver for us as it was the only reason she stopped waking through the night!

do what’s right for you mama, if baby is hungry let them eat. If mines anything to go by she won’t eat if she’s not hungry!

Thanks all for your advice, think we'll stick with Weetabix for now and see how we go as seems to work well

If the baby is happy, not got indigestion to sleep or is getting excessively chubby, sounds fine.

My little one is 11 months old and I’m still amazed at how much she seems to get through at nursery! I find she is hungry when she gets home so I’ve started batch cooking her something at the weekend. I roast some veg (usually sweet potato and a bit of broccoli or whatever we have in) blend it with some stock then put it in one of those ice cube looking trays and freeze it. Sounds like a lot of work but honestly it is so easy and means you don’t have to think too much during the week. I then microwave her a square or two when she gets back from nursery and give her that with some fruit which seems to be enough and gives her a bit of extra veg whilst filling her up. I’d say a smaller meal works best for her too but every little one is so different aren’t they!

My DS always had cereal for tea on nursery days. It was quick and filling and he didn't need a cooked dinner after the last meal that nursery provided (high tea they called it but usually wraps/sandwiches, breadsticks and fruit). Now 9 years later he still occasionally asks for 'breakfast dinner'! If it works for you and your DD then go for it.

My 3 year old sometimes has another dinner when he gets home from nursery or sometimes he’ll just have cereal or toast. He has breakfast, mid morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack and dinner a nursery. My 11 month old will be starting in a few weeks and we’ll offer him another meal or snack when we get home from nursery.

Ive given my daughter porridge a few times for tea. Shes a similar age to your daughter. She has 3 meals, snacks and can have 4-6 bottles over 24 hours (still wakes at night). If shes not hungry she just refuses it.

Wheetabix or porridge we find is a great option for a tired child who just needs something inside them before bed. It's easy to shovel in, it's familiar, it's predictable for them and it's got loads of energy. Also it takes minutes to get on the table.
I'd say lean in to a simple meal!
If you were saying frosties or Coco pops I might give a different answer.
Bread can also be a good option although maybe for older age.

I wouldn’t overthink it, do what works in the moment as you will have to adapt a lot as they change anyways.
My 3 year olds nursery (when she was the same age as yours) did breakfast, snack, lunch, dessert, light tea. She didn’t eat when she came home and was more into her milk.
My 11 month olds nursery do breakfast, snack, lunch, dessert, tea, dessert. So 3 proper meals and extras. She still eats again with us when she gets home! She’s more into food than milk. She’s also tall but really slim so no worries there. In fact although my eldest was never a big baby she didn’t eat 1/2 what my youngest eats but was sizeably bigger. Sometimes youngest is too tired to eat, will just cry in highchair or throw food on the floor so on those nights we just put her to bed. Always sleeps well regardless of if she’s had the extra meal.

I think ligjt, snacky meals are fine after nursery as they often just want to go to bed and have had a light tea in the afternoon, so things like cereal, eggs / beans on toast, a sandwich etc

Sounds lazy parenting. Breakfast lunch lunch a snack is normal.....dinner would be expected at night.