When to start my small appetitie baby on solids?

[binxyboo]

Riley was slow to warm to solids. It was really well after he turned one that he started to eat more consistently, and only in the last month or two that I feel like we have really turned a corner so to speak in the amounts of food he will eat. And we still have days like today, when after two or three bites, he is done! He is healthy,happy and growing well.

[samijoe]

Lauren,

I really would take Stacy's advice on trying not to worry about things that are far away.  Live in the moment...thinking about all this other stuff might mean you miss what is happening right now.  And, to be honest, night feeds and naps is ENOUGH to worry about.

Teething sucks.  I am a very professed hater of teething.  The three day rule also does not apply here....and it is definitely an on and off thing.  OMG, poor Zoey...Owen is already at 11 teeth!!  You must need a straightjacket by now!!  hee hee!    My dd has only 4 teeth, but has easily been teething since 5m.  It took 2 months for her to get the first ones, and another 2mths for the next two (apparently they come in pairs and do in our case).  I have decided that while teething sucks all i can do about it is try to understand that she has no idea what the heck is happening!  I don't medicate often, but on bad days she definitely needs tylenol and motrin (not all at once, though tempting!!).  We also have a 30minute screamer, usually the p.m nap (like stacy)....wakes crying and doesn't stop.  We just try our best to offer extra cuddles on these days (who cuddles me?).  Binxyboo is right, there is a teething thread for some support or questions in the Health section.

This website is full of great information and moms with loads of experience, or even just different experience.  Venture out to other boards, read what others have to say....who knows how you'll be able to help someone else out!

Oh, one thing i was gonna mention about the drooling....while it is mostly caused by teething, it is also a starter symptom in preparing for solids.  It does NOT mean that lo needs solids now or yet, but it is necessary to have all of this extra saliva for the swallowing process.

Hang in there...some days that is all any of us can do!
hth
sami

[shimzy]

And we still have days like today, when after two or three bites, he is done! He is healthy,happy and growing well.

sounds like madison but with her bottles. during growth spurts she will take 6 or 7 oz consistently every 4 hours. when she is not doing a growth spurt, such as now, she is back down to 4.5 oz per bottle (for the last month been like that) and she gained 1 whole lb this month!

[laurencopenhaver]

I'm starting Kyler on cereal this morning.  He's been taking 7-8 oz every 3.5-4 hours.  I know I'm not supposed to let him drop in formula right now, Stacy said.  So he's taking about 28-30 oz a day and sleeping good until 5, then fitful until 6:30-7.  I usually feed about 7:30.  What if he takes a couple bites here and then doesn't take much for his 11:00 feed?  How does this work?  When is he supposed to drop in formula and start eating greater amounts?

[laurencopenhaver]

He's happy and sleeping fairly well w/ just the four 7-8 oz bottles a day.  (Still waking around 5, and can't usually go back into deep sleep.  He sleeps real fitful after he wakes at 5.  Is this still developmental or do you think it might have something to do w/ food or sleep problems?  B/c he's fine not getting his morning bottle till 7:15-7:30). 

So anyway, as long as he doesn't NEED the solid food and he's happy w/ formula, it's just for practice right, and I don't need to worry about how much he's eating of it?  And when he's good and hungry in b/t feeds, he'll start eating the solids?

[binxyboo]

So anyway, as long as he doesn't NEED the solid food and he's happy w/ formula, it's just for practice right, and I don't need to worry about how much he's eating of it?  And when he's good and hungry in b/t feeds, he'll start eating the solids?

That's it in a nutshell, Lauren!

[laurencopenhaver]

I've been offering the cereal all week now and he hasn't really taken to it yet.  He'll open his mouth a couple times for the spoon but that's about it. I don't even know if he's swallowing it sometimes or if he's just letting it run out his mouth.  On monday it'll be a week, should i start offering the fruits and vegetables, or do I need to wait until he's eating the cereal?  Some moms have told me their babies wouldn't eat the cereal, but once they put fruit in it they loved it.  Should I try that?

Also, when do I drop the formula, how much cereal does he need to be eating?  Or don't I drop the morning bottle at all?  I've read that once they start taking solids, for every oz. of solids, you drop the bottle an ounce or something like that.  How does this work?  (Who ever thought baby food would be this complicated?)

[mom-2-3]

Hey Lauren,

I would stick with the cereal for another week, before trying anything else.  After another week with the rice cereal you may want to try a different grain, oat, barley etc.  I wouldn't go to fruits or veggies yet.  As for the formula, I would keep giving him the same amount for now.

[binxyboo]

As the others have said, it is not unusual for them to do this for weeks, as they are getting the hang of it, and if he is just content for now on the formula, he is in no rush to eat spoonfuls of it. Just keep doing what you are doing. Regarding the ounce for ounce switch of formula for solids, I feel Tracy meant that over time you will see babies do this, that they replace formula with solids, but it happens naturally over time. You don't just drop 2 ounces out of a bottle because you give 2 ounces of solids. Over time, your baby will naturally lessen his forula intake. They really have an innate way of regulating their appetites if we allow them to follow their own body cues.

[laurencopenhaver]

Sounds good; should I try some fruit in his cereal at all, or fruit instead of cereal?  And I'm doing this just at breakfast right, not at lunch or dinner?

[laurencopenhaver]

No rush, I just want to make sure I'm offering the right stuff at the right time.  For all I know he'll be ready to eat a five course meal and I won't know when  to give it to him.

I guess today he ate all the cereal my mom fed him. (Lots would run out his mouth and she shoved it back in, but she said he finished it all).

[binxyboo]

Lauren, when we started solids, we did cereal mined with ebm, fruits and veggies all within a few weeks of each other. So, whenever you are ready to try something new, I would say go for it. Just leave a few days go by between introducing each new one.

[laurencopenhaver]

After his 3 or 3:30 feed he's usually asking for food by 6 or 6:30.  Should I offer dinner at 5 or 5:30 or wait until he gets hungrier even sooner?

[laurencopenhaver]

I didn't add dinner, I asked if I should.  I've have been just giving a bottle at 6 or so then giving more at 7.  He'll usually take another 3+ oz.

[binxyboo]

I think what you are already doing with the two bottles sounds fine, Lauren.

So right now, you are just doing breakfast, is that right? How is he getting on, did you find something he enjoys eating?