bf + solids+sttn

[3littlemen]

Hi, I've got  post running on EASY forum (6MO A TIME), but I think I need one here too!

I've got a very happy 7.5mo boy, 9kg+, we are doing 3 solids (about as much as he wants to eat @ each= tab or so) a day. A rough (and I mean rough) day looks like

wu6.30 (sometimes bf depends on nf)
solids 7.30
nap around 9.30 for about an hour or so
bf on wakeup
lunch around 12.30
possible bf before (but not to sleep) nap not a great meal though more of a snack
another nap around 2 (it gets messy in the afternoons)
bf around 5 (definitely not a meal, more of a sip)
solids 6-6.30
bfafter bath (usually best feed of the day)
bt 7ish
df 9.30-10 (ok feed)

I have spent the last two weeks trying to wean or work out the nf around 4. If I feed I get 2hr+ more out of him generally (this morn I fed for the first time in a fortnight at 3.15 and he woke at 5.45).if i don't feed, he often just stays awake I think for a good while. not crying just talking...I'm also battling some nap issues regarding avoiding ot but not to worry.

I'm just wondering, are my feeds right? At this stage with the other two boys, I was feeding at wakeup, bt and to sleep at naps. They've all been big into solids, but this is the only child I've bothered to make sure that bf always comes first.(apparently it has to?) I tend to keep the bt and wu feed til around 12mths and then I stop bfing.

I'd be happy to keep persevering with not feeding in the wee smalls if i knew he was getting enough during the day. am I wrong in trying to wean out the nf in favour of closer to the aM? or should I just go with the flow in favour of sleep? (which sounds good too).
Should I space out his feeds during the day so there's less snacks and more decent bfs? He is distractable so if he isn't super hungry it's not worth my time..

[*Ali*]

Yes you do want to keep breast milk as the main source of food until 12mo. If he is refusing BFs in if could be for a couple reasons. Either he is filling up on solids and not hungry enough for the milk in the day or perhaps he is distracted during the day times feeds. Or it could even be that there is just not enough time between feed for him to need a full feed each time. If you are happy with the small snacks before and after his second nap then there is nothing wrong with that. If however you would rather amalgamate them into one feed then maybe don't offer a BF before the nap and just offer one afterwards as soon as he wakes up.

I found feeding in the still dark bedroom immediately after he woke from a nap really helped with distraction.

You could also try limiting his solid food for a week or two to see if his milk intake increases.

I don't think it is uncommon to have a DF and a NF at this age. I'd try to wean it by increasing his milk intake in the day rather than actively weaning it at night by refusing to feed for example.

[Khalam's Mama]

I agree with what Ali has said. Also can you make the dr a little later so he takes a better feed and maybe lasts until the morning?

[3littlemen]

we had a good day of naps and feeds yesterday (well what I think is a good feed nowadays)
6.10wu and bf
7.30 solids
9.30-11.30 sleep WOW
11.30bf
12.30solids
2.55-4.05 sleep (WOW AGAIN)
4.10 bf
6.15 solids (would like to have done this earlier but didn't gethome in time)
7.30bf
7.45 bt
9.45 1/2 df

he woke this morning at 3.45-4.07 but not crying, I just kept my hands on him more to keep him still than to settle. with crawling and trying to stand up and walk, it's like he does it in his sleep! he then woke at 5.45 with DH"s alarm, and a poo, but hey = good enough for me!

[*Ali*]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. I was on holiday and didn't get on as much as I anticipated.

It is really common when learning a new skill to be compelled to practise. Lots of practising the skill during A times can help.

How are things now?