How can I wean EBF 6 month old? Its not working and I can't go to work!

[HalfMumHalfBiscuit]

I am feeling trapped and really want someone else to help feed DD who is EBF. I just need someone else to be able to feed her once or twice a day so I can go to work or just have a little time to myself. I've been trying to get her to take a bottle for a month or so but have had no success. I am supposed to be going back to work in 1 months time but if she stays like this I won't be able to go.

We have tried 2 different kinds of bottles with formula or ebm. She just will not suck. It pours into her mouth and she spits it out. DH has also tried feeding her with no success.

Also so far she will not eat any solids. After speaking to my health visitor after she showed signs of being hungry, in the last 2 weeks I have tried baby rice with formula, pear puree, sweet potato puree and apple puree on separate occasions and at different times of day. I put the spoon in, she makes a face, rolls it about in her mouth and spits it out.

I have also tried BLW with banana, carrot and broccoli which she put in her mouth and spat out.

She is 6 months this week. She does seem hungry and wants to feed more often now. Last night she fed at 10pm, 3am and 6.30am.

I am sooo tired and a bit fed up. I just want to be able to get someone else to feed her. I also have a DS aged 3 which makes things more complicated with the feeding etc. I would like to start to cut down the breastfeeding gradually over the next few months. I hope someone can help.

BunnyFrance - brilliant news about the EBM!
Probably not helpful given you are over the Channel but Rachel's Organic here do baby/toddler yoghurts that have no refined sugar in - just fruit puree. They are great and DS loves them - would eat only them all day if he could. I know it's a bit more hassle for your CM but could she maybe mix a simple fruit puree with natural yoghurt?

Ella's are popular round these parts too - they are so smooth and full of sweet apple it's not surprising! Trying to up DS's solids intake is my next task as he is waking up lots in the night too

HalfMum - promising about the toast tbh. If your DD likes to hold things, will she eat any fruit at all? Pear sticks? Banana?

Big hugs to you all.

DD ate/sucked lots of toast today hopefully she did swallow some. I have tried banana to no avail but will do again.

So the new strategy is working... slowly but hopefully, will get better.

My new strategy (inspired by a mum who told me of similar experience with her DS2) is to do nothing but jarred or pouched food for a week to get DS2 opening his mouth to eat. DS1 had less than 10 jars his whole life so you can imagine how against my being it is to go to the supermarket today to stock up on supplies! Then the plan is once he get seating the rubbish jarred stuff, I will start to mix some home-made purees with it to get him eating stronger flavours and more textures. AND THE PLAN IS NOT TO GET STRESSED!

So I tried one of the Ella breakfast pouches this morning and DS2 licked the spoon a few times. Then I tried an Organix sweet potato something for lunch and he only licked a few spoonfuls and refused any more. For dinner, I tried the breakfast pouch again and DS2 actually opened his mouth to eat a few spoonfuls! I then squirted almost a whole tube of fromage frais into his mouth, which he loved. God, I wished I could just wean on yoghurt tubes!

Good progress it sounds from you two HMHB and angel - fab. It doesn't seem like much but I reckon as long as some food passes their mouth each day and you keep going through the motions, that is enough.

HMHB, DS doesn't like banana too much either but have had most success when, instead of slicing or mashing, I peel it back as though I was going to eat it myself and then he sits on my lap while I hold the bottom, puts his hands round it and sucks it like a lolly.

We only succeeded in consuming 1/2 blueberry and 40 ml of special milk in a doidy yesterday.... hmm, hardly going to pile on the calories is it. Pouches and anything involving a spoon now entirely rejected.

Well done with your plan angel1976. I too am adverse to the jars and haven't opened one yet.

flying - DD seems to have gone off spoons too. She is happy with stuff on toast but I don't really want her to have bread at every single meal!

Today I am pondering whether to feed her at about 10.30am then give her solids at 11/11.30? or the other way about?? She has just woken from a nap.

Well she answered me herself as she demanded a bfeed at 10.30am. She sort of had some soup on bread at lunch then gummed some roasted sweet potato sticks later on. Not sure how much food she ate.

She is pushing the sippy cup away now so not taking any formula from it.

I guess we will start again tomorrow.

Well, I got another tip from another mum today. She said to add some Farley's rusk to the bottle. And once your DC gets a 'taste' for it, you can just give the rusk to them to suck on! And that will pile on the calories and weight! I have to say I read somewhere that rusks are full of sugar so never gave any to DS1. This mum's reply was 'oh well, it's marketed for babies so it can't be that bad!' I have to say I went and bought some today but remains to be seen if I can bring myself to give that crap biscuit to DS2.

Last night, DS2 had a bottle at 4am (I knew it was a mistake as experience in the past has shown that if he has a bottle at this time, he won't have a bottle in the morning and it will have a knock-on effect on the rest of the day!) because it was the quickest way to get him back to sleep. I can usually get him back to sleep by patting and shushing him but I was too tired! Sure enough, he refused his bottle at 7am and that pretty much set the tone for the day! He did have a few sucks of a breakfast pouch. Skipped lunch as he had his bottle too late. And dinner was about 2 spoonfuls as he had his afternoon bottle late. Mind you, it didn't stop him enjoying the squirty yoghurt! Oh well, tomorrow is another day...

Hi Angel. Yes, the traditional rusks do have quite a bit of sugar in them. You can get some good ones from Organix which are sweetened only with grape juice. They are very soft though so go everywhere! Can't see the harm of trying one or two though.

Identical issues on night feeding timing issues. DS rarely ends up wanting to eat alot at 7am. Lunch I always find the most difficult meal of the day. I sometimes try and give it after the lunchtime nap since he is more alert then - could try that?

I thought giving rusks in a bottle was a choking risk? Definitely not recommended any more.

Some success this morning. DS2 had about 1/3 of a jar of creamed rice porridge. I don't think he has lost his tongue thrust completely so quite a bit of it dribbled out. Also gave him a small bit of Farley's to suck on and he loved it. HalfMum It might be worth trying some jars? They are so runny and smooth so I am just guessing that DS2 isn't quite ready for the homemade stuff, which are lumpier and stronger. I know a very big and fat baby that was exclusively weaned on jars till fairly old! Last night's sleep was appalling though. Sigh It's one thing or the other isn't it?!

I know what you mean angel.
DD was up at 3.30 then 6am (when I ignored her and she went back to sleep). I fed her at 7.30am instead.
We'll try again today. ..

angel - thanks for the tip you could be onto something. Nearly 1/2 jar of creamed rice porridge consumed this morning. Couldn't believe it!!!

Yeah flyingfarfalla, isn't it amazing to see your child eat for a change!

Yes, it does seem as DS2 does prefer rubbish jarred/packet food. He had a 1/3 of of a jar of pasta bolognese yesterday for lunch and then another 1/3 of Ella's pouch for dinner (plus about a 1/3 of a squirty yoghurt!). You know, whenever Mums used to tell me that their DCs prefer jars, I always think that if you don't give them jarred food, how could they prefer it?

Guess I am eating my own words... After 3-4 weeks of persisting with home-made purees, looks like DS2 does indeed prefer jars. Oh well, I am going to keep this up for a week as originally planned and then will start mixing tiny amounts of home-made purees in... How did you go HalfMum?

OMG you are doing so well angel.

Right thats it am trying jars next.

DD didn't eat much again today bar bread really

I was thinking of getting one of those mesh feeders as she likes sucking stuff she is holding.

The thing is: since we started on the strictly jar diet, DS2 hasn't thrown up once. He used to gag and throw up pretty much once a day and it wasn't pretty... Taking that into consideration, I think he just wasn't ready for more textured food, so I am really going to take it easy... for now. I feel so much more relaxed too that he's not wasting my home-made purees! Onwards and forward...

Right, off to the supermarket for me as well today!

Even the old staple of avocado and rice cake was rejected yesterday and DS' weigh in was not encouraging.

I got one of those feeders HalfMum (sassy brand). DS isn't hugely interested but it provides a bit of variety and novelty (for me?). They aren't that expensive so worth a go although I would hold off on spending on extra bags until you know she likes it. Grapes, pineapple and blueberries attempted so far....

Have a good weekend all.

yes flyingfarfalla it does sound a bit of a gimmic and I bet its hard to clean too.

How did your weekend go? I left DS2 for the first time at my ILs as we had a posh do at The Dorchester hotel to go to (friend's surprise birthday party!). DS1 loves it at Grandma and Grandad's! Anyway, DS2 has never ate or drank very well for other people... They both did brilliantly. DS2 apparently loved some cheesy cauliflower jar that smelt terrible when it came out of the microwave oven. And he ate lots apparently. Tonight, I gave him some of DS1's Petit Filous chocolate dessert and he absolutely loved it. I'm hoping to mix in some home-made purees next week. Wish me luck!

flyingfarfalla I had one of those feeders for DS1 and never got on with it.

well done angel.
still not much progress here. DD is in nusery for a few hours today so hopefully they will get some food down her.

Yup, well done angel - definite progress and good luck with the puree.

Only regression here sadly. Finger foods, toast, rice cake etc. now all rejected and all DS will have is a petit filous (feel absolutely terrible for having bought these now).

Also BFs now up to 6 a day and he is no longer taking even a sip of milk from his cup.

AGG$%&%^%*!!!

So DS2 had some creamed porridge (jar) but I sneakily mixed in the tiniest amount of 'proper' baby cereal and he had probably about 1/3 of a jar. He then chomped on some rusk. Lunch was almost half a jar of beef with sweet potato (plan is now to sneak some fresh sweet pot mash into it tomorrow)! and a shared pot of fromage frais with DS1. Dinner was cheesy parsnip and apple (jar) and a couple of mouthfuls of Petit Filous vanilla dessert. Which he then threw up as I gave him some fresh pear to suck on and a small piece came loose and he gagged on it. So it's two steps forward and one step back today...

Hi all,

Am still reading this thread to find out how everyone's getting on. Glad to hear there's progress, even if it is with jars. I hope my case will be a message of hope to you - my DS now drinks EBM from a sippy cup and will willingly eat purées. Not vast amounts, but I'm trying not to expect too much. And the pumping at work is going well - I got 9 oz yesterday in one sitting!

My next challenge, which has little to do with this thread, is that my childminder is making nasty comments about me still breastfeeding and wants to know why I haven't weaned him. As if it's anything to do with her! Ho hum, have her to deal with now!

Hi bunnyfrance,

I am still here! Glad to hear you have made very good progress! Tell your CM to piss off mind her own business. We are kinda making progress but it is very much still two steps forward, one step back (sometimes the other way round!).

Good news: I started mixing the jar food with very little amounts of home-made purees and DS2 seems to not mind those. That little sod monkey had his first meal at nursery yesterday (he's settling in now with the view of doing one full day a week) and he ate their home-made spaghetti bolognese (his keyworker said they blended it till it was like a paste) and 3/4 of a fromage frais! . He seems more willing to open his mouth now to eat but he's still a little temperamental. Had literally 3 (small) spoonfuls of porridge this morning and he was done.

Bad news: He's been throwing up more the last two days, I am hoping it's just a temporary blip. Also, he was awake last night from 2-3.15am and did two poos! He never ever does that, hope it's not setting a pattern.

Hope everyone else is doing well.

That sounds awful with the hv bunnyfrance .

angel - hope your DS is ok and has stopped being sick.

DD hates the sippy cup now.

She had a couple of spoons of banana porrige this morning with a grimace

she didn't like the jarred stuff unfortunately

Sorry to hear about the sleep, angel, it's probably his tummy getting used to different food. My DS's sleep went downhill for a bit when I started solids, but he's back to normal now. In fact, he slept from 7pm to 6h30am last night, but that's more the exception than the rule...I'm not jumping with joy yet

I've started another thread on Living Abroad about my CM, and am getting good advice there.

halfmum, how is your DD's eating at nursery coming on?