Is this normal for a 7.5MO?

[Mom2katiebug]

Just trying to get a feel for what's "normal" for a LO that's 7.5MO.  My DD doesn't sleep through the night.  She seems to wake 4hrs after her last bottle, but hasn't been eating.  We've offered a bottle, but she'll take maybe an ounce.  Then she'll wake a couple of hour later (so maybe 5-6hrs after the last bottle) and will take a full feed.  Then she'll usually sleep another 5-6 hours.  Except we do have to go in about 4 times to replug the paci.  We used to do a DF and an overnight feed (at about 4 hour intervals) but it seems like she's dropping one of these - likely the DF and bringing the ON feed earlier.  Oh, she's not eating well during the day.  She's down about 12 oz and doesn't like solids yet.

Should she be sleeping better?  Should we be up this much at night?
We haven't tried to elimate any night feedings.  Should we?
Should she be eating more or is there a normal drop in milk when solids should be adding to her diet? (I know milk is the main ingredient untill closer to a year)
We tried at 3MO to take away the paci and caved in when we traveled.  Is this why she's waking?  I don't mind her having it to fall asleep, but should we do pat/shh when she wakes instead of replugging?  PU/PD would be way too much...would WTS work?

[Gage and Sophie's Mom]

I am not sure about the 4hr waking without eating. Is the paci in her mouth? Maybe that is it. How much sleep is she getting during the day maybe it is too much and is not tired enough to sleep. If you post your routine, I will see if I can help. Our routine is posted under the post of 8.5 routine need advise or something like that. The routine has been preety much te same since I got rid of the night feeds.

Gage was waking every 4 hrs to eat because he was not getting enough during the day. I would say 12oz is too little and that is why she is waking. But this is a catch 22 because you need to stop the night feeds as they are affecting to the day time feeds. What I did was feed a full bottle (6oz) before 3am and then anything after that was waaaay watered down ( make sure you have a larger diaper ). Then I gradually lessened the 3am bottles by one oz every 3 or so days. I also tried a larger nipple during thhe day, 5-10 min break with the same bottle, sneaking in the food, and offering it in a tippy at lunch. Gage eats about 24-29 oz of formula. Add up the amounts both night and day and see how much the total is. This should be total during the day.

As far as the paci, I have no clue. I am working on getting rid of the Swaddle and wedge

For the solids, Gage is hard to feed too. I have just decided not too sweat it and offer formula as much as possible ( it is higher in calories). He has to come around some time for some reason he does seem to eat more when I give him a sip or 2 of water or formula between bites I try not give too much as he barely eats his food.

Oh you know I think I have seen your routine. Does she go to day care? Maybe we can somehow find some more patterns.

[Mia & Scarlett's Mummy]

Hiya Casey, it sounds like there's quite a few things going on here.

I can't really advise on the solids issue - have you tried the solid food board.  It does, however, sound like she is hungry at night and this is why she is waking.  The only answer is to up her solid and milk intake during the day, which is easier said than done I know.

I'm posting really to offer my perspective over the dummy issue.  DD had a dummy up until she was around 4 months to fall asleep for naps and at night.  I decided to dummy wean when I was having to replug at night.  I did it through PUPD and it was a great success.  It took around three nights, the first night was the longest but it only took around two hours (and the time went surprisingly quickly!) and then the following two nights it got shorter and shorter. 

I have to admit I found it very traumatic at the time but I'm so glad I did it as much for our sakes as hers and I was amazed at how she responded to this method.

IME there are no easier answers to dummy weaning

[Mom2katiebug]

Her schedule is in flux right now.  We just changed daycare centers and it's quite different (same company, but much more what I had originally expected).  So, I think I have an opportunity to give her a bit more structure during her day.  I'm going to try to re-work her days into a more structured EAS plan than she had at the other center. 

I try to limit her to 2-2.5hrs of naps during the day cuz any more and she has horrible nightttime sleep.  She also seems to be doing better since getting used to tummysleeping.  (Hopefully I don't jinx it...)

Her intake is down dramatically and last night I think I figured out why.  We have a tooth budding through and I think that may be mucking things up.  On top of the cold that she's getting over and the fact that the world is just to dang interesting to sit still and eat a bottle.   

Any thoughts on how to get her more interested in her daytime feeds?  She seems to just eat 1-2 oz. to take the edge off and think that's good enough for now.  Could be teething, I know, but we've struggled with this even before her cold hit.  We actually went about 6 nights with the DF and no other overnight feed and she never made the calories up.  We cut cold turkey and I wouldn't expect that all the calories would adjust right away, but I thought after 6 days something should have changed.  We were having fitful sleep, so we added it back.  I think once we get back from our trip next week, I'll do the dilution/reduction method to cut out the second feed.  I also need to stock up on diaper doublers before we do it!!!

Thanks for the feedback, ladies.  It's always appreciated!!

[lucasbbc1]

Hi there Mom2Katiebug.
This was my son exactly, and I just did a quick and dirty no nap thing with him and it has worked wonders. Well, it has only been a few days, so we'll see. If she is in daycare, you could try it on the weekend. I am no expert for sure but it worked so well that I highly recommend it. I also find that wearing him out makes him sleep better, especially swimming and lots of outdoors stuff.
She is a little spirited one like mine, if I remember correctly.
How much does she drink/eat during the day? How concerned are you about her intake? I may not be of much help there because Liam loves his food and bottle.
She's a cutie for sure

[Mom to M&M]

With the food issue, my DD takes her morning bottle OK but her other two we generally have to feed her in front of TV. She's VERY active and alert and to busy to sit and drink otherwise. We dont' mind because the bottles will be going away soon and she doesnt' eat solids in front of TV. She also eats her bottles better when sleepy so often we save those for closer to nap/bedtime - but still separate them out from the S of course so not feeding to sleep. As for solids, maybe Katie would do better with finger foods? Does she eat dairy? If so, at 8 months you can start trying small soft pieces of cheese she can feed herself with. Soft fruits and veggies are good and you can coat the fruits with crushed cheerios so she can hold them more easily. Try foods with lots of fat/calories like cheese, yogurt, avocado, banana, etc.

I do think the pacifier sounds like part of the problem too - she may be waking because she's missing it and then realizing when she wakes that she's hungry? IMO I'd work on weaning the paci ASAP - I'm sure the prop board can help out with that one.