Feeding schedule for nearly 7m old - what do you do?

[fabulosa]

DS is nearly 7m old and seems to be doing quite well with solid food. We've been weaning for a few weeks now but in the last week he's started waking in the night for a bottle. The time that he wakes varies (anytime between 2 and 5.30am) and he wolfs down a 6oz bottle in about 10 minutes, which makes me think he is properly hungry. He then goes back down fine. As the problem seems to be hunger I was thinking that I'd like to get more into him during the day, but how? I don't know how to work out when to give him milk and when to give him solids. The HV has suggested giving him milk on waking, mid morning, mid afternoon and at bedtime. However, because of his naps, collecting his older brother from school, generally going out and doing things, that doesn't seem to be working and he ends up having little milk feeds about an hour before his meals, plus a bedtime bottle which he often doesn't finish. I think he's never proplerly hungry so doesn't have much, then it catches up with him in the night.

Please could you tell me what your schedule is for meals and how you fit milk feeds around them? Would it be OK to go down to 3 bottles per day yet? Is solid food the way to fill him up for longer? Or would it be OK to just continue as we are and wait for him to let me know what knd of routine he wants and to drop the night feed on his own (he's done that before when we've been moving onto a new feeding routine).

Sorry for the essay, thanks for reading this far!

bump - anyone?

hiya - just saw this - thought I would help to bump this up.

Our LO has been waking in the night too, so you have my sympathies. Our DS has just turned one, and weaning has not been going according to plan for us

He is our only child at the mo so the scedules will prob be miles off:

Wakes in the morning (depending on the time he woke during the night then depends on what time he wakes up I give him a bottle (FF) first thing, then an hour later he will have some porridge or creamy rice breakfast.

1.5 to 2 hours later he will have another bottle, which generally as a rule means he has a nap to follow the bottle, he can have 1.5 to 3 hours kip (atm) then when he wakes I try and feed him lunch (not going so well, but still giving a good go) then 1-2 hours after that he will have a bottle. we play or go out etc shopping or whatever, then we give him dinner (he still only likes jars atm so going with that!) then he will have a little play and then we bath, bottle and bed.

My mum suggested to me to perhaps give him porridge for tea, then perhaps he might sleep through, but we haven't tried that yet as he has been poorly of late, trouble is with me is I am finding it a struggle to fit everything in (imagine what I would be like with two kids, ahhhhh!)

Perhaps the porridge or breakfast for the last meal of the day is worth a go?

Our LO only ever has 6oz bottles now, but alot of the time now he wont finish a bottle unless we stretch it out between food and bottles.

What does your first instinct tell you to do?? He is only 7 months so he might end up guiding you. I found since I started weaning our LO that is when he has been waking in the night. I hear people say that milk has more calories, so it is totally up to you if you feel to bring bottles down to 3, I found with ours he was more content at that age after just having milk mainly, but it is down to the individual

Now I have probably created an essay too, best go so you can digest (no pun intended ) hope that helps in some way??

Do you feed him a dream feed before you go to bed? I used to give mine a feed at around 11pm before I went to bed. When I moved to bottles from breat I did not take them out of the cot,..they just fed whilst asleep or semi asleep. Did this up to about 12 months at which point the weaning was well established, including eg some porridge or weetabix for supper with milk.

IMHO 7 mths is a bit soon to drop to three feeds a day.

DS is 7.5m his 'routine' is

7am we try and get him to take some milk (formula), not fussed at all at the moment and can usually only get him to drink about 3oz, then he has 7 spoons of creamy porridge which makes quite a big bowlfull and 2oz of fruit puree which I have started mixing a bit of formula in sneakily! He will refuse the bottle if I offer it after breakfast but will take about 1.5oz water.

Nap from 8.30am til 9.30/10am

Has water until next feed.

10.230/11am try and get him to take a bottle again, sometimes 3oz, sometimes 5/6oz.

12 dinner, which is now 3.5oz of meat/veg puree and a pot of frommage frais. Will take about 2/3oz water.

Nap 12.30 til 2.30/3pm.

3/3.30pm try and get him to take a bottle again ! Usually about 5/6oz.

4pm tea, 2oz meat/veg puree and 2oz fruit puree. 2/3oz water.

Has water until bedtime.

6pm, bath, bottle 7/8oz and bed! (hopefully!)

HTH

Hmm, it does read a bit as if I am continually pouring water in him between meals! What I mean is that it is offered!

My ds is just 7m, started weaning at almost 6m. He has a fantastic appetite (is a big lad!) and has very much taken to food. Prior to weaning he was ebf, and once starting solids he has gradually been switched over to formula. I stopped bf 10 days ago ; he was having up to 5-6 bf a day before weaning. He has pretty quickly dropped to 3-4 large bottle feeds a day now eating too - routine is as follows:

Milk on waking (7am-ish) - takes 8-9oz!
9am Cereal and fruit
11.30-12 water and lunch (meat or fish, potato, veg, fromage frais)
2.30-3 6oz milk, would prob take more
5pm tea, usually rice pudding and fruit
6-6.30 6-8oz if will take it
11pm will give him a dreamfeed of 6-8oz if didn't drink much after his tea.

He gets plenty of milky foods, fromage frais and cheese/cream, so not concerned about the drop in number of milk feeds. Can't quite recall, but dd, whose appetite was always less than his, went down to 3 milk feeds a day by 8 months, I think.

Hope this helps

This thread i just what I was looking for

My DD is 6.5 and our routine is very similar to eeky but we give her a bottle between breakfast and luch so lunch is a bit later, around 2-2.30 and then she has a bottle again instead of dinner and a bottle before bed. I was wondering if we should start giving her dinner, but that will mean dropping one bottle feed and it is too early for that isn't it? When will it be ok? at around 8-9 months?

Thanks!