upping intake in 5mo during the day

[chicagomom]

so DS is 5mo and 19lbs and i weaned him to bottle a couple of weeks ago.  he takes 4 7-8oz bottles a day and up until the past couple of nights takes 1 4-6oz bottle at night.  last night he woke 2x and took 6oz both times!     this after a normal day of eating.  we had given him solids at 4mo but got consitpated and stopped, and he is not at all interested in solids again (been trying every few days).

to up his milk intake during the day so we can get back down to eating less at night, should i give him 7-8oz at his usual E times and then offer 2oz before naps?  would that work?  thought i'd try it today and see...thx.

[*Kara*]

WOW!  That's a lot of formula   But he does weigh almost 20 lbs and most babies will drink 2 - 2.5 ozs per pound of weight   So really, he is right on course!

A good option for encouraging solids is to offer them before a bottle feed when he is most hungry... don't push it though   What are you trying to feed him?  I found that DD was actually most receptive to a bit of banana mashed with a fork with a bit of formula in it for moisture (and it makes the taste a little more familiar). A couple other popular ones with babies are carrots and yams... steam some carrots and whiz them in the blender until smooth... use formula for moisture or water (just not the cooking water - nitrates from carrots).  Yams can be steamed or baked then blended as well... same thing, add formula or water for moisture.  Babies have a natural sweet tooth   All of these are low on the allergy risk scale as well

I would try to avoid a small bottle before a nap - it could lead to a feed-to-sleep problem

[chicagomom]

thanks for your input.  i do think physically he needs some solids but he is just not ready!  i've tried before and after bottle, and in between bottles, i've tried cereal, banana, avocado, pear, peach...all he does is gag and look at me like i am torturing him.  he has also projectile vomited 2x when i've tried to feed him.  we started giving him cereal at 4 months and he LOVED it then, but got constipated so we backed off until now.   

i will keep trying...DD didn't like solids until she hit 6 months...then she loved it and she was just ready. 

thx again!