Starting solids, lots of questions, need advice

[ChasMom]

Hi Ladies,
I normally hang out on the nap boards since my 6 month old is a terrible napper but we've been given the go ahead to start solids this week and I'm a bit confused so I'm hoping some of you ladies who've BTDT can give me some guidance.
My Ped told me to start with cereal for 4 days, then add an orange veggie for 4 days, then either fruit or a green veggie for 4 days and so on and monitor DS for any reactions, tolerance, etc.  Well, we started rice cereal yesterday with one Tbsp. and he absolutely LOVED it.  Gobbled it right up!    He was actually upset when it was all done .  So that went well but I have some questions:
1. Can I give him more than 1 tbsp. at today's feeding since he seemed to want more or should I continue with just the 1 for 3 more days?
2. Once I add the next food (orange veggie) do I give it to him with the cereal or at a different time? For example, cereal in the am, veggie at lunch? In other words when do I start giving him more than one "meal" a day?  Once I'm done "testing" all the foods or can I start now?
3. How do I work this all in with his Bfing?  Because he's such an inconsistent napper he basically isn't on a set schedule which makes it harder to work all these feedings in.  He nurses about every 3 hours right now and I know he shoud nurse first and then have solids.  Can he have them right after?  Should I wait in between?
Sorry for all the questions but this is so confusing. :?  :?
I appreciate any help.
Pat

[ktmum]

Im no expert just a Mummy but this is what i did
I started with baby rice for one meal ( Lunchtime ) and after a few days I added in a bit of puree carrot or apple etc etc. I then started to offer breakfast as well ( baby breakfast cereal ). I kept solids to two meals until i was confident that she was happy on them and then added an evening meal as well. ( I added this one last as if any foods did upset her tummy i didnt want her to have tummy ache at night!! ) It wasent long before she was eating mixed puree veggies etc etc
As for amounts tbh your lo is 6 months and mine was 4 but i would offer a little more if you think your lo wants it.
As for the Bf I hope some one else can answer that one as DD was formula fed.
As i said that what i did hope that sort of helps
I would listen to your baby and go with that.

[Joey'sMom]

My lo is 3 months, but he is already on solids.  When he still seems hungry, instead of giving him more cereal/food, I offer him some BM.  He's used to it, and it kind of "washes down" the meal.

Mine is a terrible napper, too, but since starting the solids and using that topoff of BM, he actually naps better.  His belly is full and he wakes up with a smile.

Just a bit of advice, too: if you give him a "meal" before bedtime (even just cereal in a bowl with some EBM or formula), he sleeps longer.  The cereal really holds them over better!

[tylersmommy]

Hi Pat!

Glad to hear your DS loved his first solid meal! Let me see if I can help...

1. Can I give him more than 1 tbsp. at today's feeding since he seemed to want more or should I continue with just the 1 for 3 more days?

It's hard to gauge amounts for bf babies, so your best bet is to keep an eye on his interest in bfing. If he'd like more solids, you can give him a bit more, but watch his bfs to make sure he's still nursing as long as he should.

2. Once I add the next food (orange veggie) do I give it to him with the cereal or at a different time? For example, cereal in the am, veggie at lunch? In other words when do I start giving him more than one "meal" a day?  Once I'm done "testing" all the foods or can I start now?

For his next food, you can offer it with or instead of his cereal. Since he's 6 mo, you'll probably move up to 3 meals a day pretty quickly. I started solids with Tyler at 6 mo, and once I had offered a few foods, I added another meal (I think it was about 3 wks or 1 mo before he was having 3 meals a day). After he's finished his trial run of cereal, you can certainly add another meal in if you feel like he's ready for it.

3. How do I work this all in with his Bfing?  Because he's such an inconsistent napper he basically isn't on a set schedule which makes it harder to work all these feedings in.  He nurses about every 3 hours right now and I know he shoud nurse first and then have solids.  Can he have them right after?  Should I wait in between?

He can have solids whenever you want to offer them...either right after or you can wait. Some folks wait 30 min, some 1 hr, some more than that. It depends on what his routine looks like that day and what works best for him. I always had to wait an hr or so, any less than that and Tyler had zero interest!

One other thing, make sure you offer new foods early in the day so you'll have the whole day to watch for reactions or tummy troubles. HTH!

[emmakate'smom]

Hi Pat,
My lo is 6 1/2 months, and we introduced rice cereal at 5 mos just once a day for breakfast. At 6 months, I added cereal in the evening, along with fruit (she LOVES her pears!), and then after about a week, I added veggies for lunch. So, she eats 3 meals a day-cereal and fruit in the morning, veggies for lunch, and cereal and fruit for supper. We are on a 4 hour eating schedule, so this is how our day usually looks:

7:00-bf
8:45-cereal/fruit
11:00-ebm (she goes to a sitter during the day)
12:00 veggies
3:00ebm
5:30 cereal/fruit
7:00 bf

Since she eats every four hours, it really has worked out well, because she can have her solids almost halfway through, so she's hungry enough to eat, but also has time to get hungry for her breastmilk. She has been cutting back on the amount that she is wanting to eat at her 11:00 milk feeding, and I have read from lots of others on this site, that the 11:00 feeding is usually the next feeding to go. So, I think in the next month or so, she will probably be down to only 3 milk feedings a day, maybe. I hope this helps!

[ChasMom]

Thanks ladies for the great tips. It helps to have some guidelines to go by. We've been working on it day by day.  I've now introuced carrots and he seems to be tolerating those well.  Now if I could only get this kid to nap better .  He usually isn't hungry enough for solids right after nursing so I have to wait a while but because he doesn't nap long, he's usually tired and ready for another nap by then.  Ugh!