Almost 1 - dropping milk feeds :-S

[stardust599]

I'm a bit confused about what to do.

My LO is 11 and a bit months.  She was fed on expressed breastmilk (we never managed successful breastfeeding) until she was around 6 weeks then switched to formula.

She has never been a great milk drinker, generally taking 1/2 to 2/3 of the amount she should be taking.  This is because she was born with severe reflux and a milk intolerance.

We weaned under a paediatric dietitian and a consultant paediatrician at 11 weeks (due to weight gain and a feeding aversion) and slowly food started to replace formula.

Now she eats a fantastic, very healthy diet full of everything she needs - fruit, veg, meat, carbs, dairy etc. and eats good size portions of everything.

Milk wise she only takes around 4-5oz at 7am, 3pm and then 3-4oz at bedtime.  I make up the missed milk with milk in breakfast and dairy at both lunch and dinner time.

Morning and afternoon bottles are okay but she really isn't interested in the bedtime one and it's a huge fight and makes bedtime take ages!  Especially as she is quite tired at bedtime and full from her dinner she really fights it and I don't want to stress her before bed.

I really want to drop the bottle and replace it with a small supper - a small portion of porridge and milk and a sippy cup of milk/water about 30mins before bed.  Do you think this is a good idea?

I know the daytime bottles are usually dropped first but this seems to make more sense to me as this is the one she's least interested in?

[Lolly]

If that is the bottle she is least interested in then it's probably a good one to drop. If she is too tired/ full from tea to have her bottle though would she eat any more by bedtime? If she will take milk in a sippy cup why not just give the bedtime milk in the cup instead of a bottle 30 mins before bedtime?

Laura

[stardust599]

It's more the tiredness rather than the hunger I think.  When she gets the slightest bit tired she absolutely refuses to relax and drink her milk and it's a fight from a few minutes after it's gone into her mouth!  Morning and afternoon are fine and she will happily cuddle in and drink them.

I could give her milk in a sippy cup but I doubt very much of it would be drank!  The only time she will take a sippy cup is with her meal and she's strapped into the highchair.  The rest of the time she's far too busy to sit down and drink!

The reason I wanted to give a supper is because I wasn't sure she could last from dinnertime (5pm usually) until she wakes around 7am or later.  I know I can't last that long! I thought she might wake hungry in the night without the top up of milk?

[Lolly]

You'll just have to try it and see if it works. If she has eaten plenty through the day she may well not need it really, by the time they get to about 1 they don't usually wake because of hunger in the night. My DD is having a no evening meal phase, she eats well in the day but will not eat anything for tea or drink bedtime milk now and she never wakes from hunger.

Laura