<sigh> How do I not stress about what my LO is eating?

[TribbleWithoutACause]

Hi,

DS is seven months and we do a mix of BLW and a bit of purees when we're out for convenience.

I find myself getting stressed if my baby doesn't eat a certain amount of food, I know at this stage of the game it doesn't really matter how much he eats as he's getting most of what he needs from breastmilk.

I suppose it doesn't help that when I go to babygroup I get told about all the similar aged babies who are three meals a day and on two to three milk feeds.

DS is still on six to seven milk feeds a day at the moment, he seems happy enough.

I just don't want to get stressed about what he's eating. How do I do this?

i would be worried if any of my lot had been on 3 meals and only 2 or 3 milk feeds by 7 months!

you just need to remember that you're letting him take his time, and that is a GOOD thing.

is he happy? healthy? meeting milestones? if so then you have absolutely nothing to worry about!

thisis Thats what I thought tbh, but when others around you are doing one thing and you're doing another you begin to doubt your thinking.

He's a very bright happy solid weight of a boy fwiw.

My first 2 dc were puree gobblers and ate A LOT at 7m. Dc3 ate literally nothing at 7m (and 8m) and I was surprised that when she had her 10m check with the HV she weighed exactly the same as dc2 did at that age.She must have been getting a lot from bf and simply didn't need the puree. She now gobbles food ,but with her fingers and doesn't really like to be fed. They are all different.

I am very, very good at not worrying about this, but there's no denying that there's a certain "job done" feeling you get in your mothering gut when it looks like a lot has gone in. I just read in the River Cottage Baby and Toddler Book the advice - "I wish I had worried less about how much eaten and more about what mealtimes were like." Could you focus on this?

It is SO hard not to worry abut it. It is so hard not to compare when baby X is having this and this and this and just loves their food. Because we want them to eat well for the rest of their life and feel its our responsibility to get them doing that.

I find eating at the same time (something nice or atleast something new and 'interesting') distracts me. But also I can tell myself he's getting a good example.

And those mothers with the munching babies are probably worrying over something your baby does that theirs doesn't - rolling over or sleeping well or whatever.