Starting solids and nursery at the same time?

[Laura B]

Hi, not sure whether this is the right place for this, but here goes!

DS is 4 months old at the mo, but will be 6 months in February, when I have to go back to work full time and he is going into nursery full time (my guilt about that is another issue!). Since 6 months is the usual time to start solids (not to mention separation anxiety) I am wondering whether trying to do both at once will be too much for the little man!

I had thought about maybe starting solids when he's about 5 months so he's got time to get used to that before being abandoned by his mum in nursery. He's formula fed and is still on the first stage milk at the moment, showing no signs of being hungrier than 4hourly feeds, though he does have about 38-40oz a day including the dreamfeed. I guess it's too soon to tell, but do you think I should try weaning at about 5 months? Or just do nursery and solids at the same time and hope he copes - at least they would have to cope with most of the initial mess  :lol: He's pretty much a textbook baby so maybe I should just wait until 6months like the books say!!

Thanks,
Laura
x

[Rachel's Mum]

Hi there. 

Firstly don't feel guilty about going back to work full-time - it's something that many of us have to do just to pay the bills.  To be honest, after a rough first few weeks I am really enjoying being back at work, and Rachel LOVES nursery, and it makes the time we do spend together so much more special...

Anyway - onto the real question.  We had a visit from the health visitor last week, who said "She's not on solids yet?? You know we only really say the 6 month thing to stop people feeding their baby solids at 3 weeks..."!!

Needless to say, with Rachel waking up 3 times a night needing a feed, I have started her on solid food at 5.5 months, so I wouldn't worry about starting a little early, especially if you feel your DS is showing signs.

My gut feeling is that initial tastes of solids needs to be done with Mum.  Yes, the nursery are probably really good at it, and yes, they'll have to clean up the mess, but I think a familiar face, voice and surroundings are really important with such a major change.  Of course if your DS isn't ready then you don't have much of a choice!

HTH

[Nicola_G]

Hi there,

I am in exactly the same situation as you are, and I spoke to my maternal health nurse who agreed with my thoughts that Tyson should start solids at around 4 1/2 months. I actually started him at 4 months, as he was not putting on weight and my milk supply had tailed off (now I realise that I was feeding him too frequently and he was just snacking).

He has taken to solids amazingly well, he now has the whole tongue thing sorted out (initially they will frustrate you by pushing every spoonful out) and his appetite is nothing short of spectacular. He is now putting on about 250g per week (up from less than half that, some weeks no weight gain) and is sleeping brilliantly.

I started with rice cereal, but am not so keen on that as it seems to constipate him. I have moved towards oatmeal, which I mix with mashed sweet potato, pumpkin, apple, pear, prunes, and his favourites, banana and zucchini (but not all together of course!!!!).

I felt that as a breastfeeding mother who wishes to continue to feed for as long as possible, he needed to be on solids so that I only needed to send him to child care with one bottle of expressed milk (I have been expressing every day and have a stockpile in my freezer!!). My plan is to nurse when I drop him off, he has a bottle with lunch, and then I nurse when I pick him up. He may actually not need so much breast, but I think that's a good starting point.

As I said, he has taken to solids so well, and I am sure that is because Mum helped him start. At the present time, he is on only one solid meal per day, but over the next weeks until I return to work I intend to introduce him to 3 meals, but of course with breastmilk as the main nutrition those meals will simply be hunger-busters.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your return to work. I personally am looking forward to the grown-up company, but am not looking forward to leaving my ds with others to raise.  :cry: