Help with feeding schedule

[Lucysmom]

Hi -

I have been looking everywhere on this site to find out how to get my dd on a good feeding schedule and I think my head may explode!  So I thought I would post here and see if anyone has any advice!

I have to feed her solids first or else she will not eat them at all.  She is not a huge fan of solids and she usually does not finish a 4 oz. jar of baby food at each meal.  More like 3-3.5 oz of baby food and a bunch of cheerios or crackers.  I have not had any luck yet introducing protein and she is quite possibly lactose intolerant so I have not introduced yogurt or cheese (soy yogurt and cheese were not well received at all).  I am afraid to drop a bottle at this point considering her low intake of solids and lack of dairy and protein.

So here is what I have worked out so far:

7 Solids
8:30/9 Bottle (later if she ate a lot of solids, earlier if not)
10 Nap
11/11:30 Solids
12:30/1 Bottle (see above)
2:30 Nap
3  Should really be a bottle but most days she is not awake from her nap yet.  So she is up around 4. Should I just do dinner then?  But then what do I do about getting in another bottle?
5  Should really be solids  ?   
7 Bottle

Any input would be appreciated!  Things go all pear-shaped in the afternoon and I just can't seem to figure it out!  Thanks!

[datallan]

Hi Lucymom

Is there a reason why protein has not been introduced? Is it protein as in meat? Does she at lentils which are also protein?
How much milk is she on in a day? Around same age as Phoebe and min milk is 12oz ,Max is about 20oz.
I see she is good with finger food as eats cheerios, Phoebe fav on the  morning with strawberries.

This is Phoebe day, food wise.

0700 - up has 5oz milk from beaker
0730 - brekfast with 2/3oz milk (weetbix,ready brek with fruit) or yoghut, fruit and slice toast. Dry cheerios as finger food/toast/strawberries/banana

1130-1200
8 tablespoons of chicken & veggie cassarole,fish pie, chicken&apple nuggets ( I give meat at lunch time, this is more or less her main meal) rice cake, no yoghurt in morning she will have some afeter lunch. natural youghurt with fresh fruit puree

She will have water when 3/4 way thru meals, and some during day.
She will feed her self nuggets as FF. I make the nuggets (very easy if want recipe)

1630-1700
Tea/supper

Corn chowder (made with milk)
Leek & potato soup (made milk)
tomato&veggie sauce with pasta
Baked sweet pot with beans (U.K baked beans)
I give carbs and veggies at night as it fill LO up for night ahead.
NO FRUIT so no nappy waking her in morning.

FINGER FOODS- veggie fingers-risotto fingers- chicken nuggets 
I give FF with all meals and also

1830- 7oz bottle/beaker, stories before bed and bed at 1845.

Her naps are a bit crazy at mo, she sleeps no more than 2.5hrs any more and she wakes early in  morning.

Sorry about questions, hope this helped.

Debs

[Lucysmom]

Hi Debs!

Your dd is soooo cute!  Thanks for your reply.  So for your questions:

Is there a reason why protein has not been introduced? Is it protein as in meat? Does she at lentils which are also protein?

It is not that I have not tried to introduce proteins it is just that she is so very hesitant to try new things.  She is a super picky eater it is quite amazing.  I had some success with some tofu today by sauteeing it with a bit of salt and garlic powder and sneaking it onto crackers.  I have not tried lentils or beans yet.  I would love your recipe for chicken nuggets.  If she does not eat them, then I will!   

How much milk is she on in a day? Around same age as Phoebe and min milk is 12oz ,Max is about 20oz.

Bear in mind solids have never gone well here, so I would say that she has more like 24  oz. a day if she gets 4 bottles a day.  If, like today, I only managed to get in 3 bottles because of timing, she will have a total of about 18-20 oz.  I did not realize that there was a maximum amount of milk. 

My issue is that dd needs her bottles and solids staggered as she does not seem capable of consuming a lot at one sitting.  Working out the timing for this is mind-boggling! 

Thanks for your input and I look forward to any recipes you'd like to pass along!

[*Natasha*]

At this age you are moving into dropping those bottles and increasing the solid intake. I would stick to the 3 bottles if she is happy with only 3.
Does she prefer finger food than to you feeding her? What do you give her for her meals and quanties?

[Mom2X&F&V]

Hi Melissa, I agree with Natasha, she should have 3 bottles, and if you are worried about milk maybe you should try veggies soup with her own formula at lunch instead of her bottle this way she  may be hungrier too. I 'll try to help you as I can... But as I told you this is an essay/mistake issue until you finally get her perfect schedule. As you know Ximena is a picky eater too, she eats the same stuff over and over again no matter how I prepare it. But I have to say that I season her food too with some species.
This is just a suggestion...

7    Solids (do not worry about the amount) At this moment Ximena is having only 5 oz of formula and that is it until 11, and she is happy. You can add formula to her fruit and cereal. Are you sure she is lactose intolerant? Have you done any tests? Have you tried cheese?
9     Milk (Have you tried the other way around?)
Nap
12    Solids. Try soup with milk, if you wanna recipe I will give it immediately...hidden chicken or meat  (I can give the recipe too), and veggies + whatever she takes (dessert or fruit). Try to take it till 12 so she can be a little bit hungrier, if she wants a snack give her some cheerios. Again do not mind the amount.
She is healthy and strong and happy and in her weight.
2 Milk
Nap Whenever she wakes up a small snack... maybe some peas as FF if you see she is hungry.
4:30 or 5 (Again extend for her to be hungry) Dinner, yes, solids again.   Try veggies and again protein. I usually give swiss cheese or yougurt and veggies, or  veggies/beans or lentils and cookie.
7 Milk.
Usually when a bottle is out they get used of eating more solids... plus her amount of milk in the other bottles may increase . Why not try it for a day or two?
Is she accepting the spoon?
Ok weŽll be in touch and please pm me if you need any recipe, with picky eaters you have to do magic... IYKWIM
Kisses to both and try not to stress about milk... tell me about it!!!
HTH!
Tell me how it goes and good luck!!!!

[Lucysmom]

Natasha and Daniela -

Thanks for your replies.  I knew you would reply Daniela!  Sorry I have not replied to your pm yet.  I was velcro mom today - you know what I mean.

Anyway, to answer your questions Natasha, she does like finger food but she is taking food off a spoon from me much better these days.  Meal time is like a dance - I have to judge from moment to moment what she is in the mood for.  So it is not unsual to go from puree baby food, to Cheerios, to water from a sippy, to Cheerios again, to puree, etc. etc. etc. She seems to get bored with one thing for too long a time.  But if I switch things up and offer something else for a bit she will often eat the item she refused just a few minutes ago.  Hope that makes sense. 

She is into fruit purees mostly.  Like pear/pineapple, plain pear, plain apple, apple/sweet potato, apple/strawberry.  At the most, she will eat 4 oz. of a puree during any single meal.  She will eat at the most 3 crackers per meal.  And I don't know how to estimate the number of Cheerios.  It is not a lot...maybe a quarter cup?  Every meal is a puree and crackers or cheerios with a sippy of water.  Like I mentioned in the previous post, I did manage to sneak in some tofu today but the amount was nothing big.

Daniela - Yes, any recipes you have I am more than willing to try.  I can't believe how clueless I am and how hard this is!  I think she is lactose intolerant because two times she was given milk products she vomitted and had diarrhea but recovered within hours.  It would have had to have been the fastest stomach virus in the world to have cleared up that quickly.  Both times she was sick around 9 am and then by 3 pm she was fine. 

She rarely seems hungry to me although she sometimes gets super excited when she sees me getting a bottle ready for her and almost cannot wait to start drinking it.  The only time I know that she is not getting enough food is when she either wakes up hungry in the night or wakes up early in the morning.  I will stick with this schedule for a while and see how it goes.  I just hope that her nights do not deteroriate. 

OK, I should stop blabbing here.  Thanks so much Natasha and Daniela!!!! 

[datallan]

Looks like she likes sweet things (like myself). Thank you for the lovely comment about Phoebe.
I would try cutting milk down as she is using this to fill herself. Phoebe was terrible at breekie, it was bottle or solids , one or other not both together. I would give break but even then she would not be that interested.

I have today started Phoebe on new plan for 3 days as she is eating brekkie only. She had morning bottle and nothing else until 1030am when I gave her lunch!!! I know early but guess what, she ate the lot, chicken & peach veggie cassorole, slice bread, half banana. It killed me to not give her any thing until then but is shows how much brekkie kept her going. Today I'm so chilled as I know she got a proper meal.
As LO has a bit sweet tooth add some fruit to meals and gradually reduce, sweeten it for her.
I'll PM nuggets to you.

You are not stupid you just have a DD who knows her own mind!!!!! typical woman.
DEbs

[Mom to M&M]

I'd love the nuggets recipe too - but only if dairy free! Thx.

[datallan]

yep dairy free and egg free as she is allergic to eggs.

will cut and paste it to you.

debs

[Mom to M&M]

Great, thanks!

[artemis68]

Hi,
you mentioned that you thought your daughter was lactose intolerant.  I recently discovered raw goat's milk as an excellent choice over cow and soy, because it is the closest thing to mother's milk, is highly nutritious and is very easily digested so that the lactose does not stay in their body long enough to upset them...I gave it to my 9 month old as a transition to breastmilk and he gobbled it up with no reactions.  You would have to find a goat farm in your area that can deliver to you fresh milk as it is illegal to buy it in stores, I usually buy a quart and freeze a quart for the week because it only has a shelf life of 3 to 4 days.  If your interested to read more, go to White Egret Farm website and also http://www.nacd.org (nutritional association for child development)  and they have a national directory for reliable raw goat milk sources.
good luck,
alyssa