not sure where to post - not taking full formula feed

[*Amy*]

I am weaning lo from BF to bottle.
Today went
5.30am - fed one side and back asleep
7am - I woke her for the day
7.40am - fed the other side but only for maybe 2/3mins
9.15am - BF again for another 2/3 mins
11am - BLW - cucumber, cheese and pear
11.30am - bottle - 3.5oz
1pm - 2oz

As you can see she is all over the place with her milk feeding I think maybe cause that 5.30am feed is messing things up???
But what I need to know is if she only takes 3.5oz of a feed do I continue to offer the remainder of the bottle until sleep time?

thanks - please move if in wrong place!

She will be BF at 2.30pm3pm  and
then she will have a bottle of formula at 7pm

any nw before 12pm will be formula and all after will be water. 

[*Liz*]

That is really common and it will take a few days for her to take a full bottle feed - A's you cut out the BFs the bottle feeds will become easier and more complete.

I would hold her to her usual feed times as best as you can otherwise all you will have is a LO who is snacking all day (especially at this age where she gets solids as well).

She needs to experience some hunger to have the motivation to take a full feed.

I know you have been struggling but haven't been following your issues. It does sound A's though you are doing a lot of things all at once here - which is FINE - but it will make for some very messy routine days. Probably all over faster overall though.

I'm currently weaning DD myself and she won't even take a full bottle of EBM unless she is very hungry. I'm doing a very rapid thing though due to circumstances.

[Lolly]

Looks like you could have a bit of snacking going on. She is having around 2 hours or less between milk feeds which is probably why she isn't taking much. I would try and space feeds out a bit more, you may have to stretch her slowly if she always feeds this frequently. Don't forget formula takes longer to digest than BM so she won't be hungry as quickly on a formula bottle. She should be going 4 hours between milk feeds at this age, I know BF babies take longer to go 4 hours but most are by 5.5/6 months, and formula fed babies certainly are.

A baby should be able to take a bottle feed in around 20 mins really so I wouldn't keep offering through A time, feed and end it so she has time to get hungry for the next feed. If you offer all through A time, or too soon she will just keep taking small amounts and then be looking sooner and so it goes on!

What do you think?

Laura

Posted same time as Liz!

[*Amy*]

I think the problem is this 5.30am feed - if she doesn't feed there and wakes for the day at say 6/6.30am then our day is 4 hourly feeds!
But if she does feed there forget it! - I was trying to latch her on and top up the feeds during the A time so that she won't look for the food in the night time!
Today finished out like
2.45pm BF - maybe 5mins tops wouldn't go back on
5.45pm (bedtime) 5oz.
Will try and get her over the 5.30am feed to start the day out right!

Liz, just so you know, I can't stop thinking about you..............you, your husband and beautiful children are in my thoughts all day longxxx

thank you guys for replying!
will keep you posted how tomorrow goes - Think she is asleep now 6.20pm - now for the glass of wine

[*Amy*]

Ugh ugh ugh - 9.35pm and she has been awake about 6 times since 8pm
I have just resettled her with water. I think she might be too hot. It was 35degrees today and I think it is quite hot in her room - I just turned the A/c on so hopefully she will go back asleep until at least midnight!

[*Liz*]

Wow that is a LOT of wake ups!! Hope the AC works for you.

((hugs))

Thank-you for your thoughts as well 

[*Amy*]

Well the night improved
So I settled her with water at 9.30pm and she drank about 4oz of it (I heated it first - not sure if it is a bad habit but.......)
Then she woke at 12.25am so I gave her a bottle and she took 5oz.
she then woke at 3am - I knew there is no way she could be hungry, she wanted to be BF
So I offered water, after about 30mins I heated the water bottle and she took another 4oz and slept until 6.35am whoo hoo!!! - could have slept longer but DH was making noise and the Ipod in her room stopped working in the night cause it needed charged (white noise on ipod)
Do I fed her straight away and she only took one side, waited 5mins she took the other side but vomited it up straight away......guess she only needed one side!

So Then gave her a bottle at 10.30am and she drank 6.5oz - THE MOST EVER!!!
She is just stirring now so going to BF now and then bottle for bed!

Hoping tonight is an improvement on last night - what do you think of the bottle of warm water?

[Lolly]

Glad your night improved!

Not sure about heating the bottle of water - I guess take care it doesn't become a prop. I wouldn't give her too much water over night either, if it is really hot she could be thirsty, but if she is drinking that much water in one go she could actually be genuinly hungry, 4oz is a lot of water for her age . We stopped DD's night feeds around 8.5 months (no DF so only 1 feed over night) and offered water after gradually cutting the bottle down but she would only take a few mouthfuls - maybe 1oz at the most.

What do you think?

Laura

[*Amy*]

Yeah - I too thought it was too much water - but today she has also been drinking a lot of water, do you think is the formula and the food making her thirsty? she has just started on both?