Will eat and nurse OK after illness, but....

[deb]

she won't take even the bedtime bottle any more. Yes, I know it's a bottle question, but since we mainly breastfeed here I am.

Before Natalie got her horrible cold a couple weeks ago, she would take a bottle occasionally at bedtime, even if she wouldn't let DH give it to her. I was just about to embark on a program of combined mom and dad bedtime when she got sick, so it was nursing or nothing for over a week. We finally got her back on solids (we'd just started 2 weeks before but suspended them in favor of exclusive nursing while she was sick), and that was no problem, but now as far as she's concerned, the bottle seems to be something for teething and that's it.

Josie did this to us at 8 months THE WEEK BEFORE we were going to start alternating date night with another family and watching each other's kids :x, and I was looking forward to leaving the kids with a sitter, or at least with DH, once in a while for ME or US time. I also wanted to have the option of leaving her with a caregiver for a couple hours a week while I started back to part-time work, since we could REALLY REALLY use the extra income. (and I could use the break, to be honest....)

Are we stuck at home for bedtimes forever? OK, not forever, but for how long? And given that she keeps waking at 3 hours looking for more food (despite a heavy solids meal AND a good bedtime nursing session - I think it's because she's so gosh-darn active during the day, but I don't see how to stuff any more into her during the day!), we're stuck at home even AFTER she goes to bed.

HEEEEEEEEELLLLLP!!!!!!        

[Erin (redstarfalling)]

Oh, Deb!  I'm SO sorry to hear this!! I really have no suggestions, unfortunately.  Megan never took a bottle and we were stuck at home...well, still mostly.  Although once we started with the Nuby sippy cup, she was better at taking more from it. Have you tried a different kind of bottle, so the associations are different?  I did find that once when we went out and left her with my parents, she took enough from the bottle to settle at night...could you try leaving the house (not going far) and see if it works with you out of the picture for a while before bottle time?  So that she won't expect you to come by right then...?  I dunno!  I have no real helpful ideas.  I hope someone else does, though and it works out - the date night idea sounds awesome!

[jaxnp]

Don't give up yet!  Kaitlin absolutely refused the bottle for 2 or 3 months, somewhere between 3 and 7 months, I think, but we kept offering every so often, and eventually she went right back on it like nothing had ever happened.  I wouldn't force the issue, just try every now and again, and hopefully she'll just up and take it again!