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Multiples
When did you decide to start cereal?
The babies 3 mos check will be coming up and they will be telling me i can start cereal at 4mos which will be in the next few weeks.
- what age did you start and why?
- did it help them sleep better?
- did it make them drop a feed but increase their other bottles?
Thanks!
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Re: When did you decide to start cereal?
Our doctor said we could start feeding cereal at 4 months if they seemed like they were interested in our food or if we could tell that they wanted more food besides the bottle. Otherwise if they were satisfied with their formula, we could wait until 6 months. Since they seemed to be eating ok, we waited. I think we started cereal a week or two before they turned 6 months. I wouldn't say that it helped them to sleep any better. One of mine was STTN at 12 weeks and the other started around 4 months and was kind of off and on with STTN until 8 months. Even when we started cereal, they still ate every 3-4 hours and they didn't drop any feeds.
This may be a little strange to say, but I kind of miss the days of them not being on solids! I could sit on the couch and catch up on some TV while I fed one a bottle. Now I have to sit them in high chairs and take turns feeding them spoonfuls - it's a little more time consuming.. especially at the beginning when one of mine refused to eat any solids. She would keep her mouth shut so tight, the only way we could trick her into eating solids was to pretend like we were about to give her the bottle - she'd open her mouth and we'd sneak a spoonful in. Luckily she eats fine now though
We started with ground up steel cut oats at 4.5 months. (DS1 has constipation issues.) They didn't sit up well at 4 months, and I didn't think they were quite ready.
They didn't like oatmeal much, so we only did it for a few days. I made sweet potatoes shortly afterwards, and they loved it! So far, the only things they don't like are green beans.
Both were sttn by then, so I didn't see it make a difference.
They haven't dropped a feed, but they do eat less. We still do 5 bottles a day with about an ounce less at each. They should still get all their nutrients from bm/formula from 4-6 months. Any solid food up until 6 months is really just practice.
Ours would get their last daycare bottle around 4 and have solids with me at 5 when we got home. We added a second feed right before 6 months, so now we do a morning bottle at 7 and solids at 7:45 before we leave.
They do look pretty cute in their high chairs though!
What age did you start and why? We started at 5.5 months per our pedi. She liked waiting until closer to 6 months to let their digestive systems get a little more mature. My son took to it right away, my daughter had no interest so we would just try 2-3 times a week. She finally became interested around 9 months.
Did it help them sleep better? Pretty sure that's a myth and no it didn't. They started STTN around 5 months, solids never made a difference.
Did it make them drop a feed but increase their other bottles? No, their intake of formula never changed until just recently when we got up to 3 meals/day plus a snack or two. BM/formula should be the primary source of nutrition for the first year. Even now with 3 meals/day, mine are still taking 4-5 sippies a day totalling around 18-20oz. At 9 months, our pedi said she would expect them to be in the 20-32oz range, tapering down to 16-20oz by a year as they transition to milk.
What age did you start and why? We started just this past Sunday, just a few days after their 6 month birthday. My guys were not sitting up well before that & I wanted to get through the holidays before adding the added complication of solids. We started with just rice cereal so far and they are both doing great! We had our check up today and have the go ahead to advance to oatmeal, fruits & veggies at anytime!
Did it help them sleep better? No big change in sleep - my guys STTN and have actually gotten worse this week but I think we're dealing with some teething & colds at the same time that's contributing to that.
Did it make them drop a feed but increase their other bottles? We have kept the same amout of feedings & amout in their bottles - no change yet.
I started oatmeal cereal at almost 4 months, but only to combat their reflux. I would not have started it this early otherwise. I plan to start it for real (with a spoon) at 6 months. I hope at that point their adjusted age has caught up to their actual age.
They do sleep better but they the trend started just before the cereal so I can't give the cereal all the credit. Plus they're older. It could just be coincidence. I dropped a feeding the day before starting cereal b/c it was obvious they didn't need it. I haven't dropped another since starting it but I will in the next 2-3 weeks b/c they're approaching the maximum formula intake my pedi told me about. I don't think this is related to cereal though. I only put in 1.5 tsps per bottle (6oz) which is hardly anything.
What age did you start and why? we started at 5 months per the pediatrician. We are only doing cereal once a day so far in the evening. Might start twice a day tomorrow.
Did it help them sleep better? Made no difference for us. They have been STTN for quite some time now.
Did it make them drop a feed but increase their other bottles? My girls dropped their 5th bottle about a month ago. Unrelated to solids. I realized they were spitting up very frequently and never seemed hungry, so we dropped one of the bottles and revamped their schedule. They drink 4 large bottles a day
We started a week before they were 4 months- the first week they just got it all over their face, which is what I expected, now they open their mouth and I can't shovel it in fast enough. They are doing really well. We started cereal cause they were drinking 40+ oz of formula a day, and our doctor said we can start at 4 months.
I give them cereal in the morning & just started veggies at night.
No, they sleep the same. Still wake up between 3 & 4 for a bottle then back to bed til 8.
They are still eating the same amount of formula at the same times.. BUT it does seem like they are starting to space out their feedings to 3.5-4 hours now. (instead of 3-3.5)