I need a plan for weaning

[michaeljacknnugg]

DS2 is 9mo and will be starting nursery for 1 day a week at 10mo ( nearly 11mo) as a practice for when I go back to work. I can do short days for him, so we don't have to drop lots of feeds at once.

I'm not sure how and when to drop daytime feeds for when I go back, though? He will be 1 that week and I can still feed morning and evening if we wish, although moving to a cup is an option I'd like to keep open. His teeth are not making feeding comfortable and I'm frequently taking him off and getting him to latch again.

I don't want to express, and I'd love to get to 12 months without using formula. Kinda like a badge of honour, if you will, but possibly one I have to give up on if feeding is really painful.

Thoughts? We are currently feeding at around these times:
Wake up (6.30 ish)
8.30/9ish as he gets fussy around this time
After first nap
Around 3/4pm, depending on wake from second nap (if there is one, we are in the 2-1)
Bedtime
Possibly one night feed, mostly not

[becj86]

At that age, you can probably just replace with a snack and water in a sippy - dropping milk intake slightly is usually fine at that point. You could probably start to drop the morning and/or afternoon ones around 11 months and keep that one after his nap plus morning and BT and be fine. I would probably just do it when he goes to daycare - He would then be eating around other kids also eating and that should help with the intake. Might just be worth finding out when they do snacks, etc. to see if it lines up reasonably.

[michaeljacknnugg]

He's eating me out of house and home when it comes to solids! Two breakfasts, two snacks, lunch and dinner today, AND five feeds!!! He's very active, and I think we must be in a growth spurt too.

[becj86]

GS only lasts so long. He's eating lots already - do you reckon the change of not BFing at that time of day will just be accepted as part of the change to daycare?

[michaeljacknnugg]

Possibly. Likely he will be too busy to think about it, and then want to feed as soon as he sees me. I feel like we will drop one of the daytime feeds soon, though, as he's often not that interested.

[becj86]

Yeah, its still a month or so away, so things will have changed again by then - you might not even need to drop the feed, it might already be gone. I think that this might be a case of winging it, hard as that is. I don't know if you can really plan it this far out. 

Likely he will be too busy to think about it, and then want to feed as soon as he sees me.

This sounds like a pretty reasonable thought as to what might happen, so perhaps think about how feasible it will be to feed immediately on pickup when you are working (maybe having to pick up your older boy) and work out what you can do and start as you mean to go on in that way.