Feeding your lo...accomplishments and concerns 8/25-8/31

DolphinLover2002

We haven't started a new thread in forever! So what's new with our feedings?

DolphinLover2002

My twins used to breastfeed for an hour and still seem hungry afterwards. So I had to top them off with pumped milk. Now I'm so excited to say they're much better eaters! I can't even remember the last time I had to feed them from breast and bottle. I'm so glad because I'm back to work and need all the pumped milk I can have.

Sammy K

So I'm on the most restricted diet ever, but it has made a difference. I was bored, so I ate some blueberries, maybe 1 cup over 24 hours. Harmless, right? Nope. Within 12 hours we were back to traumatic gas and poop. Turns out, berries are a food to avoid. Needless to say, I've done more research on "safe" foods to reintroduce. Unfortunately, coffee is not in my near future.

karaelaine1991

Sammy K said:

So I'm on the most restricted diet ever, but it has made a difference. I was bored, so I ate some blueberries, maybe 1 cup over 24 hours. Harmless, right? Nope. Within 12 hours we were back to traumatic gas and poop. Turns out, berries are a food to avoid. Needless to say, I've done more research on "safe" foods to reintroduce. Unfortunately, coffee is not in my near future.

I'm glad the diet is working! It stinks about the berries, but at least now you know for sure that you're on the right track!

mlindzz

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

I'm so happy that we're finally establishing a routine! LO is eating quite consistently now every 2 hours during the day. It's often, but a few weeks ago we were bouncing between 1-3 hrs with tummy aches so I'm quite happy!

@Sammy K I'm glad the diet change is helping, we're applauding you.

virginiaunicorn11

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

Aw, sorry Sammy K. My LO is fairly easy, but he doesn't handle berries very well, either. It really sucks because they are so yummy and "healthy." You're such a champ for all you're doing to continue BF

bethanne09

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

LO has officially pooped straight out of every single brand of diaper available in our area, including generics. I am going to call it effective feeding giving him superhuman poop abilities.

JessHeppell

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

these past few nights/days while in the side lying position, LO has been latching all by himself, i dont need to hold my boob "like a sandwich" or do flattening of any sort. im so proud of him. now hopefully the slight pain goes away from how ridiculously strong his suction is. like.. light bruising strong.
edit: skipped a few spaces

Sammy K

Here's a food article about feeding solids to babies I thought was interesting. I will admit, we fed LO cereal, bananas, sugar-free organic applesauce and avocado before the 6 month mark, but no where near 6 weeks. It's always interesting to see how research changes.

https://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/8038090?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000592

dancegurl1118

Very interesting. My pedi at her 12 week appointment today mentioned starting solids at 4 months and my eyes nearly bugged out of my head. I don't know why I have 6 months ingrained in my head and am not trusting my pedi...maybe I'm just trying to not break down at the thought of her eating solids and growing up and not just taking my boob and...sigh.

jessieR358

dancegurl1118 said:

Very interesting. My pedi at her 12 week appointment today mentioned starting solids at 4 months and my eyes nearly bugged out of my head. I don't know why I have 6 months ingrained in my head and am not trusting my pedi...maybe I'm just trying to not break down at the thought of her eating solids and growing up and not just taking my boob and...sigh.

The new recommendations are 6 months. So you are correct!

aj1327

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

JessHeppell said:

these past few nights/days while in the side lying position, LO has been latching all by himself, i dont need to hold my boob "like a sandwich" or do flattening of any sort. im so proud of him. now hopefully the slight pain goes away from how ridiculously strong his suction is. like.. light bruising strong.
edit: skipped a few spaces

Mine has started doing this too. He also has a ridiculously strong suction. It feels like it's gotten stronger in the past couple of days.

bethanne09

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

They recommend 6 months because that's when the swallow reflex is developed. Just like anything else, some babies catch on faster than others. There was a big problem with babies "eating" solid foods and choking on it (therefore spitting it back up), but feeling full so they wouldn't eat anything else. If you feel like your baby is ready, go for it, but I am thinking sweet potatoes in Christmas is our first food plan.

delujm0

bethanne09 said:

They recommend 6 months because that's when the swallow reflex is developed. Just like anything else, some babies catch on faster than others. There was a big problem with babies "eating" solid foods and choking on it (therefore spitting it back up), but feeling full so they wouldn't eat anything else. If you feel like your baby is ready, go for it, but I am thinking sweet potatoes in Christmas is our first food plan.

Yup. Also, I'll be honest, I'm not rushing into solid foods because it's going to be way more annoying and require so much more prep and cleanup work than breastfeeding does. Not looking forward to that.

mlindzz

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

It was taught in my prenatal class that an infants digestive track is immature prior to six months for anything aside from breast milk.

I also found this article online, it lists an infants digestive track and other reasons why it's recommends that parents wait at least 6-8 months before introducing anything aside from breast milk, and includes a list of organizations whose research have all concluded that a 6 months minimum be considered.

https://kellymom.com/ages/older-infant/delay-solids/

karaelaine1991

So, my philosophy thus far has been that if LO needs to eat she'll let me know. It's served me well so far and it's allowed both of us to get more sleep at night - she tends to eat pretty frequently during the day and then go for a pretty long stretch at night. But tonight's been long even for her so I'm kind of wondering if I should call the pediatrician. She ate less often than usual during the day yesterday (about every 3 hours rather than her regular 2), and when she did eat, she only wanted to eat from one side, and sometimes for only 5 minutes. Then, she slept from 9:45PM last night until just after 6 this morning, and only ate from one side for 10 minutes. Now she's asleep again.

She seems like she's in a decent mood and has been filling up the diapers at a normal rate, but this just seems like a bit much for a 12week old. What do you all think, should I call the pediatrician to check that she's getting enough? Or just continue assuming that she'll let me know if she's hungry, since that's been working well for us thus far? Btw, she's consistently been 70th percentile for weight, so I know that at least until this point she has most definitely been getting enough to eat.

YouAreMySunshine15

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

kes166 said:

So, my philosophy thus far has been that if LO needs to eat she'll let me know. It's served me well so far and it's allowed both of us to get more sleep at night - she tends to eat pretty frequently during the day and then go for a pretty long stretch at night. But tonight's been long even for her so I'm kind of wondering if I should call the pediatrician. She ate less often than usual during the day yesterday (about every 3 hours rather than her regular 2), and when she did eat, she only wanted to eat from one side, and sometimes for only 5 minutes. Then, she slept from 9:45PM last night until just after 6 this morning, and only ate from one side for 10 minutes. Now she's asleep again.

She seems like she's in a decent mood and has been filling up the diapers at a normal rate, but this just seems like a bit much for a 12week old. What do you all think, should I call the pediatrician to check that she's getting enough? Or just continue assuming that she'll let me know if she's hungry, since that's been working well for us thus far? Btw, she's consistently been 70th percentile for weight, so I know that at least until this point she has most definitely been getting enough to eat.

Mine is on pretty much the same schedule at 10 weeks and has been for a while. She also only nurses from one breast and for less than 10 minutes at night. I think they're just getting more efficient! How about your LO's diaper output? That should be a good indicator for you too!

lindsladle15

I'm not a doctor , but @kes166 that sounds normal for her age (the length of time between feedings and the stretch at night). Not sure about the eating from one side, but my 10-wk old LO has been sort of doing that the last couple days with the eating for a shorter amount of time and sleeping more....I chalked it up to a growth spurt where she is needing more sleep than food! Also, she has been doing 3hrs between feeds and sleeping from 9:45-6:45am for several weeks. She does 6 feeds per day.
I'd praise God that she's giving you more sleep! It seems like she's "growing up." *sigh*

On the solid foods topic, I started my DD at almost 4 months on rice cereal, but she was hungry all the time, didn't seem like my milk was cutting it, and soon after I learned I was pregnant with this LO.... What a supply kill that was! Sooo, we switched to formula at 5.5 months and stuck with the cereal. This time, I am not planning to start anything until 6mo! PP are right....it adds hassle!

karaelaine1991

Thanks for the feedback, @Sjeff0816 and @lindsladle15! Diapers are about the same, the jump just came kind of out of the blue (prior to this, she was pretty consistently sleeping from midnight to 6 and eating about every 2 hours during the day), so the sudden change threw me for a loop! It's reassuring to hear that she's not the only one going for longer stretches. Lol when I asked DH if thought I should be worried he gave me a look like I was crazy for questioning the 8 hours of sleep she gave me. Guess I'll tell the paranoid mom in me to chill and just enjoy it! Thanks again, ladies!

aj1327

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

@kes166 my LO has only ever eaten from one side but I produce a lot. He doesn't eat nearly as often during the day anymore and sleeps 6-7 hour stretches at night. He also has days where he sleeps a ton and days he barely sleeps. LO is on the 98th percentile for height and weight and he keeps growing like a weed, so I know he's eating enough. Like PPs have said, I wouldn't worry unless she really starts acting different or you notice a change in diapers. You could always call just to ease your mind, too. That's what the doctor is there for!

slr1229

Baby is 8 1/2 weeks old and prior to this week she consistently ate every 3 hours on the dot. Now she cries on the boob when I try to feed her and yesterday she was going 4+ hours at next feeding and even then she didn't eat a lot. We introduced the bottle last week to prep for my sister's wedding so I thought maybe she's confused but she eats fine in the middle of the night. This morning she ate at 5:30 so I thought okay she'll be hungry now at 4 hours later, and she just wails. Maybe a bad tummy ache?

Anyone else's did this around this age? We had such a good schedule going of eat, wake and sleep every 3 hrs and now it seems pretty unpredictable.

lindsladle15

Something you ate? Although, if she did ok in the night, I'm not sure...

cbrtncanadian

@slr1229 we are having the same thing except during the day when he does eat he seems to be spitting up at least a good portion of what he takes in... I don't understand the difference between day and night... If it was something I ate I would expect it to be consistent through all feedings ... I'm at a loss and going to call the Pediatrician tomorrow!

lovethatcolosun

Day two of EBF!! We've been supplementing with up to six ounces a day since we started so this is big for us. She had her biggest blow out yet today and plenty of wet diapers so I know she's eating plenty. We head to the doc tomorrow for her two month check up so we shall see where she lies percentile wise. I'm thinking my little butterball will be up in the 90's for weight at lease. This is her after a feeding session.

slr1229

^so cute! @christinabrtn please let me know what pedi says. Two feedings last night and she was a champ- wonder if it's because they're so relaxed in middle of night? I agree it's nothing in diet.

cbrtncanadian

^^ thats what I was kind of thinking is that the MOTN he isn't as aggressive and is more relaxed about feeding. I was some other boards and it seems there are others Mommas having the same experience but then it resolved fairly quickly.

Maybe just a phase. Will definitely let you know what ped says.

slr1229

She last ate at 5:20 and just now eating again so looks like her new daily norm is 4 hours. Killer! She won't play or nap for that length of time so schedule will be all off- and it's my sister's wedding weekend so great timing to have no schedule!

Edit: wanted to say she only took half a boob and then full on screams. I don't know what the hell this could be.

krystleshel

I have a friend with an EBF baby who's 4 months older than my LO. Per her pedi - she introduced a tablespoon of suggested fruits & veggies. She homemade a big batch & froze the things in ice cube things. She just pulls out one to try. She isn't fully introducing until 6months though.

virginiaunicorn11

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

@lovethatcolosun HOORAY!! Way to go, lady! I'm so thrilled for you!

ETA: what a cutie!!!

HayesRN13

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

lovethatcolosun said:

Day two of EBF!! We've been supplementing with up to six ounces a day since we started so this is big for us. She had her biggest blow out yet today and plenty of wet diapers so I know she's eating plenty. We head to the doc tomorrow for her two month check up so we shall see where she lies percentile wise. I'm thinking my little butterball will be up in the 90's for weight at lease. This is her after a feeding session.

This is awesome and such a great accomplishment. Just curious what did you do to increase your supply? Just pump extra? And/or did you take any supplements.. Good job mama!

lovethatcolosun

HayesRN13 said:

lovethatcolosun said:

Day two of EBF!! We've been supplementing with up to six ounces a day since we started so this is big for us. She had her biggest blow out yet today and plenty of wet diapers so I know she's eating plenty. We head to the doc tomorrow for her two month check up so we shall see where she lies percentile wise. I'm thinking my little butterball will be up in the 90's for weight at lease. This is her after a feeding session.

This is awesome and such a great accomplishment. Just curious what did you do to increase your supply? Just pump extra? And/or did you take any supplements.. Good job mama!

I'm not sure if I should give LO all the credit for nursing every 2 to 2 1/2 hours during the day or my lactation smoothie, maybe both! I stopped pumping to increase supply around six weeks, she nine weeks now. Whatever it was I'm so happy with this accomplishment. Thanks for all the love ladies! In case anyone wants to try the smoothie (I have it once a day), here's the recipe.

1-1 1/2 T. Flax seed meal
1T Brewers Yeast (low bitterness)
1/3 C. Oatmeal (uncooked)
1 T Honey
1/2 C yogurt
1 C Almond Milk (or cows)
1 frozen banana
1/2-1 C frozen fruit of your choice

slr1229

Do your dr brown bottles leak if they spill over?

AlwaysSunny1012

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

I am so excited. After several days of LO rejecting the bottle (would drink only about .5 oz and then cry until breastfed) he just ate 3 ounces again. We are making progress!

AMNDCHR2

After struggling with taking a bottle, we had success with a tommy tippee and Chicco slow flow today!! Husband fed LO while the oven fan was running and I left the house for awhile.

dancegurl1118

Still struggling on the bottle. Will eat 2oz if distracted and then when stopped to burp wants nothing to do with the rest. Still freaking out.

delujm0

slr1229 said:

She last ate at 5:20 and just now eating again so looks like her new daily norm is 4 hours. Killer! She won't play or nap for that length of time so schedule will be all off- and it's my sister's wedding weekend so great timing to have no schedule!

Edit: wanted to say she only took half a boob and then full on screams. I don't know what the hell this could be.

Is she arching away when she screams? Does she seem like she still wants to eat but won't? Could be reflux. That's what mine did before Zantac. She also will only snack during the day (eating every 60-90 minutes) because the more she has in her belly the worse the reflux would be. She also hates being flat on her back and would barf usually as soon as she was put down that way prior to the meds.

caitlincunn

https://forums.thebump.com/discussion/comment/12618032#Comment_12618032

Still no luck with bottles! We're supposed to be going to a wedding next Friday night 45 minutes away! Ugh!

AlyLynn07

AMNDCHR2 said:

After struggling with taking a bottle, we had success with a tommy tippee and Chicco slow flow today!! Husband fed LO while the oven fan was running and I left the house for awhile.

The oven fan is a magical thing in our house too.

dancegurl1118

On day 2 now of eating terribly. She will eat for about 8 min on one side and then scream if I try and put her on the other. And also spit up copious amounts (she rarely spits up). Worried about my supply etc since she's not really eating. No fever. Didn't eat anything outside of the normal realm. Ughhhhhh

slr1229

@delujm0 she sometimes arches but usually just straightens her back upright (she has good head/neck control) and holds arms up and screams. It could be reflux..she did so great this weekend eating from the bottle at the wedding- but started it up again at her 6:00 feed, so must be belly issues.

@dancegurl1118 that's what mine has been doing, last Thursday and Friday and a bit today. She eats super fast and I think she gets too full from one boob

karaelaine1991

dancegurl1118 said:

On day 2 now of eating terribly. She will eat for about 8 min on one side and then scream if I try and put her on the other. And also spit up copious amounts (she rarely spits up). Worried about my supply etc since she's not really eating. No fever. Didn't eat anything outside of the normal realm. Ughhhhhh

My LO has been doing shorter feeds, only eating on one side about half the time she eats, for about a week now. She has not been spitting up more than usual but she does freak if I try to do the other side and she doesn't want it. If I remember right, our LOs are very close in age - mine was born June 1. Makes me wonder if this is age/leap related.

Anyone else experiencing these issues around 12/13 weeks?