Breastfeeding and Solid Food Eating Schedule Suggestions Wanted!!??!!

Hi M.! Relax...you sound like a GREAT Mom! Don't get caught up in all the hype about what you should & shouldn't be doing with your child...do what feel right to you. My son is now 17 months & I still nurse him 2-3x a day plus he gets all his meals & snacks. When he was 9 mo. I nursed him about 6-8x throughout the day & night (he was up every 2-3 hours at night until he turned 13 mo.)and started him on very small, soft pieces of fruit (very ripe banana, melons, grapes w/o the skin & cut up, yogurt (Stonyfield is great!), he loves steamed broccoli (I made this very soft for him). I just kinda fed him whenever I had a meal & if he was a little hungry he ate & if he wasn't he didn't. Every child is different...and I'm sure your little girl is getting everything she needs. That's so great that you're breastfeeding!! Good luck with your beautiful children! Warmest regards, G. PS - where are you located for daycare?

I have a just 2 year old and a nearly 3.5 year old and am expecting another little one in May. I also nursed mine. I think that around 9 months they were starting to eat meals around the time that the rest of the family was - so that would make 3 feedings of food. They also nursed in between rather than nursing at the same time of eating a meal. You do feel like you are feeding them all the time!! Meals at this age don't need to be too big as the breastmilk really should still be their primary source of nutrition until close to 1 year. If your current schedule works for you and your baby, then I'd say she's doing good. If she's acting like she needs more, you might add a third feeding to her schedule. I think feeding is individual and different schedules work for different babies/families. If the baby's happy, then there's no reason to change.

My son is also 9 months old and the majority of his nutrition comes from nursing. The first year of life they are supposed to have the majority of their nutrition come from breastmilk (or formula)- solids are for experimenting. Follow your daughter's cues...she will let you know when she's ready for more solids!

Up until one year breastmilk should be the primary food so I would say no she doesn't need anymore than 2 solids meals a day. Her nursing and eating schedule sounds great! My daughter also separated her nursing sessions and her solids meals, I just went with the flow and tried not to worry too much about how many solids she was getting. Sounds like your doing great, just keep doing what your doing!

I think what you're doing sounds great. I have a 10 month old daughter and I breastfeed her 4-5 times a day and feed her solids 3 times a day. I know how you feel about ALWAYS feeding them! I have no choice though, because my daughter eats like a bird. She consumes so little at every meal that I'm forced to feed her often. You're in good company. =)

Hi M.,
My daughter started this around 6 months, and my husband and I also just went with the flow. When they are this little and unlike us, they can better tell when they are and are not hungry. Most babies will stop eating when they have had enough. Try feeding her solids when you are eating. One thing I heard a while ago was that a baby's stomach is the size of her fist. So I give her that size portion, with a little reserve because so much misses her mouth. She likes to mimic me, so I usually feed her what I am eating if it is something that can dissolve in water or flake easily, and I feed her when I eat. This also makes me continue to eat healthy as nursing sessions are starting to fade away (my daughter is almost 11 months). Your schedule sounds good. If you still feel like you are feeding her too much after reading some of the advice here (the other moms before me gave GREAT advice!), then give your ped a call to see what they think. I don't know the size portions you are feeding her. Follow her cues for now as well, and she'll help guide you as well.

Hi M.,

What I find is best for my son, Liam, is that I feed him his breastmilk, then 1/2 hour later I give him his food. Depending on when he goes down for nap time, I may even give him a small snack as well between meals. Hope this helps. Good luck!
B.

My son is 9 1/2 months old. I nurse him 5 or 6 times a day. He won't eat much baby food anymore. He only wants what he can pick up and feed himself. He'll eat cheerios, cooked cut up veggies and fruit, and other finger stuff. Sometimes three times a day. Sometimes twice a day. I don't worry about it because the breastmilk is still his main source of nutrition anyway. He's a big guy--24 pounds--so hhe gets what he needs. Hope this helps!

Sounds like you're doing fine!! Does your daughter seem to be getting hungry?? If not I say she's fine!

Now, being 9 months old that will soon change... She should be going through a growth spurt here soon enough... And she'll probably want to nurse more, but make sure you include a bit more solids too!!

You seem to be doing fine, though!! Don't worry!

Breastmilk is plenty for the first year and sometimes beyond. My daughter nibbled and tried various solids from 7.5 months on, but didn't really start eating anything substantial until 13 months. She was nursing 6 or 7 times a day, plus several at night. But if yours does "marathon" sessions that's probably enough. ;)