Still 2 feeds a night at 9 months??

[Susie-Q]

Hi ladies! I am new to this website and am considering purchasing the Baby Whisperer books to give me some guidance. I think I might have been in denial for the last several months, insisting my baby is hungry in the night but I'm not so sure anymore and I think he may be bamboozling me!   :oops:

He slept through the night somewhere between 5 and 6 months. Once we started fruits and vegetables, he began to wake up 1 - 2x a night to eat. I assumed the fruits and vegetables, which have no substance, were filling his belly and not holding him.

Well, now he's 9 months and I'm still using that excuse.

He's NOT a big babyfood eater. Maybe eating 12 ounces (roughly 3 jars a day). He's not loving table foods either, only wanting to eat puffs which are basically air and bits of banana. So there is no real substance there. He's also gotten 8 teeth since he was 4 months old and I see both upper canines and could swear he's working on his 1st molars the way he rubs his gums. So I don't know if that plays a part in his solid intake.

He goes to sleep between 8-8:30. Wakes up between 11-12 and again between 3-4. Sucks down a good 6-7 ounces each time. Maybe has about 30-33 ounces in a 24 hour period.

Do you think he could actually be hungry or am I just fooling myself??

[fidelma]

I was the same as you when ds was 9 months or so. He was a terrible sleeper and the only thing that worked was nursing at night. I'm sure he was using me as a paci. However as you are bottle feeding I would imagine he is not so much comforting himself as genuinely hungry. However the reason he is hungry at night is that he is feeling at night, and therefore not eating much during the day, and therefore is hungry at night... vicious circle. So you need to break the cycle by getting him to eat less at night and then he'll eat more during the day as he is actually hungry. Lots of people on this site recommend watering down the bottle over a few nights until it is just water. The idea being that he will not get satisfied during the night, so will eat during the day, so will stop waking to feed at night. I chose the cold turkey approach as I have limited sticking power so I'd prefer a few really tough nights rather than many gradually improving nights. It's up to you what works better for you and your lo, but trust me it will gradually get better and day time feeds will improve slowly but surely.
Good luck....
Fidelma