Please help with the routine for the 12 mo!!!

[anuta77]

My son just turned 1 and we relocated from NYC to London this week for dh's work  .  Things has been hectic to say the least so I'm a little late in adjusting ds's routine.  Here's his routine so far:

6:30 am - wake up and have a 4-6 oz bottle milk (just started to transition to whole milk 2 days ago so it's a combo of milk and formula)

7:30-8 am - breakfast (usually yogurt and cottage cheese+ pieces of cheddar + some bread), water out of the straw cup

9:30 am - nap (1-1.5 hrs), prior to the nap I give him milk out of the straw cup because I started weaning him from the bottle but he drinks v. little

11:30 am - lunch (usually stage 3 fruit jar from Earth's Best or Hipp Organic)


2:30 pm- 4-6 oz bottle of milk (combo of milk and formula), also started giving in a straw cup out of which he drinks much less

2:30 pm - nap (1-1.5 hrs)

4:30 pm - dinner

6:30 - 7pm - bath, massage

7 pm - 6 oz bottle of milk w/cereal mixed in, some more yogurt if he wants it

7:30 pm - bedtime


He falls asleep with the paci, other than that we try not to give it to him.  Unfortunately, most nights he still wakes up once, around 4-5 in the morning and I give him some milk.  He's always been low on the weight chart (though he's extremely active and physical, who knows where he gets the energy, definitely not from food), and he's always been a poor eater but the last couple of days have been extremely bad, he's practically refusing all the food out of the spoon, even what he always loved, like yogurt, doesn't even want to try it  .  Well, that's probably a topic for a different forum but if someone can comment on our routine,  there're probably things I can/should change, maybe it'll help with feeding as well.

Thank you very much!!!

[Isabella's Mummy (Lilab4)]

I don't really have any advice, but wanted to say that your routine looks very much like ours. Have you tried not feeding at 4-5 am? How much does he take?

Also, we have spoon refusal and it is very normal at this age. have you tried letting him help? or at least letting him think he's helping with his own spoon?

[*Mona*]

apart from this one night/early morning feeding which I think you'd better get rid of, your routine is one many would kill for!!! so would I!!! my dd is refusing to nap AT ALL now so be thankful for those two naps!!!

as for feeding- have you tried giving him his own spoon to try to feed himself while you're feeding him? works for us.

Monika

[anuta77]

I tried giving him the spoon the number of times but would juts chew on it and it would stop the feeding.  I'll give it another shot, I have nothing to loose now, he's not eating out of the spoon i give him anyway    It's just that I always worry about his weight, at 12 mo check up, he was only 20 lb.

As for the 4-5 am feeding, I would LOVE not to feed but that's the only way we can get additional hours of sleep, till at least 6 am.  What I do, if he wakes up before 4 am, I just give him water and if I feed at 4-5 am, I give that much less when he wakes up for the day. 

At what age do I cut out the afternoon bottle?  Also, he hasn't had his bowel movement today, maybe he's constipated and that causes poor appetite?  He usually has a bowel movement 1-2 x day. Any advise in that area?

Thank you!!!

[*Mona*]

if he's taking that afternoon bottle no problems and you're happy with it, I'd wait until he starts refusing it. we've been on two bottles for a long time now but there's no rule I believe.

with his daily food intake I don't really think he needs that bottle at 4am. he gets plenty of food. why don't you try just water instead of feeding him? how does he act when he wakes at 4?

re constipation- one day is not that bad, but if you're worried maybe try camomille tea. it does help

[anuta77]

Thanks, I'll try the cammomile tea!  With this move across the pond  my brain is on a freeze.

When he wakes up at 4 am, he's really crying and when he sees the bottle he even shakes a little, that's how much he wants it. It's the only time I ever see him this hungry 

[Grace's Mom]

BTW, your routine looks GREAT!  

Congrats on your relocation.  I hope you have a great time in London.  

Just a few questions for you....
When your lo wakes in the early am is he crying, fussing or playing?  
Does he really need food or is he eating out of habit?
-At around 6/7 months mine use to also wake at around 4 or 5 for a 'feed'.  She didn't need it but knew I would give it to her if she woke.  I got some great advice from this site and just left her in her crib until it was 'time' to get up (unless she was really crying of course).  After one early moring of fussying on and off she went back to sleep and we never had the problem again becuase she knew it wasn't worth waking up for.

Food and Toddler Random Info For You:  My daughter is like your lo and is very tiny (she's under the 30% in weight and was only 18 lbs at her 12 month check up).  She also doesn't eat much of anything anymore.   This is just something that comes along with having a toddler.   You are going to have good eating days and bad eating days.  I was told if they eat one good meal ever 2-3 days then you are good to go.  They know what there bodies need and will make sure to eat enough during the day to get them through the night (even when we think they haven't).  They are funny like that.  It drives me bonkers but since she started to put a strike out on food she hasn't woken up once at night so it only goes to show me that she does actually know what she's doing.  

As for the bowel movements.  Their bodies change up from time to time. He could be a bit constipated but it's nothing to worry about. 

Bottles: We stopped the 1st and 2nd one at around 11/12 months.  She kind of weined herself.  We still have a night time bottle but for the rest of the day she gets milk and juice from a sippy.

Have a great night!

[anuta77]

Thank you very much for your reply, it really brought me some comfort knowing that not every meal has to be a good meal with the toddler.  However, it does drive me INSANE, I'm worried about him not getting enough vitamins and nutrients and not growing big and strong 

About his 4-5 am feeding, unfortunately, he's not just fussing, he's REALLY CRYING and he rarely cries...This morning, he woke up at 5 am, crying inconsolably until I warmed his milk, then drank 6 oz in 3 min.  Then I put him back to crib and he fussed for a while but fell asleep and stayed asleep till 7:30am.  When he woke up at 7:30am I decided to not give him another bottle hoping that maybe he'll eat more at breakfast but he again refused the spoon but ate some french toast and 3 strawberries.  This is a far cry from the breakfast he used to have but oh well 

I have a question about weaning from the bottle.  How long does it take?  My NY ped told us he should be off the bottle completely by 18 mo.  Ds has been drinking water out of the straw cup for month so I decided not to go to sippy, just continue with the straw cup.  I started with his mid day bottles but like I mentioned in my routine, he drinks very little from the straw cup.  Do I just let it go or give him the rest in the bottle?  At which point should I start giving him his morning milk from the straw cup?  And am I right that the evening feed should be the last to transition to the straw cup?

Another question is about snacks.  I never give him any food between his meals, only water because I'm afraid it might spoil whatever appetite he might have for his next meal.  Am I wrong?  Should I incorporate some snacks into our routine?


Thank you!!!

[Grace's Mom]

Snack: We give a small snack at around 10:30ish and then at around 3:30ish (fruit, cereal bar, Gerber Veggie puffs, etc.) I think it's up to you and your lo.  We give her some because we know she can't go 5 hours with out a feed and it ensures me that she is a least a few small meals through out the day to sustain her. 

Weaning:  We started with the morning feed.  We decided, because she was only drinking a little bit from her bottle, to take it away and only offer whole milk in a sippy.  At first (for like a month) she only drank one or two sips but didn't give in and give her a bottle.  Eventually she started to really like her milk and now between 7-9am drinks about 6oz which is a HUGE improvement.  We also took away the 2nd bottle kind of the same way.  We were tired of waisting formula and knew she didn't need it anymore and she wasn't fond of drinking whole milk in a bottle either.  The only bottle we still have is right before bed and we give her about 7oz of water mixed with 3 scoops of formula.  We are only doing this to ensure she gets some good nutrients and vitamins, etc. that she may have missed through out the day and to get her through the night.

[anuta77]

Again, thank you very much for your help.  Unfortunately, Ben started also to wake up at 10-11pm.  The first 2 days it happened I dismissed it as a jet lag but it seems to continue, he woke up last night as well.  He wakes up crying really hard so I can't ignore it.  I don't feed him but I give him water (out of the bottle)  He seems to drink a lot of it, at least 4 oz which makes me think that he's hungry    Once he's drank his water he goes back to sleep till 5 am when he wakes up and I give him milk.  Then he dozes off for another hour or two. 
This cannot be considered sleeping through the night, right?  At least to me it doesn't seem right but I don't know what to do about it.  I also can't help but worry that he might be hungry since he's not eating much later.