Hmmm??? suggestions

[Frazzled]

2 weeks ago we started DS on formula and he is a new man! Good to see what happens when they aren't starving anymore! Anyway, he has started sleeping thru the night and we are finding it hard to get that 5th bottle into him (14 weeks)... He just isnt awake long enough, and im pushing the day feeds close together as it is...

what did u do when they started sleeping 12 hours???

[veve]

Hey hon

firstly - how the heck did you get him to sleep 12 hours!!!! the best Jack does is 10!!!!

ummm how much is he having in each bottle???

Jack has 4 feeds a day - approx 250mls each feed... and he has been having only 4 feeds for several weeks now (14 weeks old too :D) - he occasionally requests a top up if his evening sleep is broken.. but he is otherwise happy...

xxx

[Frazzled]

firstly - how the heck did you get him to sleep 12 hours!!!! the best Jack does is 10!!!!



lol! He just started all by himself once we put him on the bottle! he has been so much happier and more settled and is now sleeping from around 7.30pm till between 7 and 8am... I know i know!

He has 200mls at most feeds, i dont think he would take more, he seems pretty content at this??? But then cause i am squashing the afternoon feeds closer, he wont take as much at night and just falls asleep!

[veve]

hey :)

I"m still jealous.... an 8am wake up would be SO much better then 6am!

I honestly wouldn't worry too much (IMO) - he is still putting away 4 x 200mls.... what are your day feeds like??

Jack eats at 6am - 10am, 2pm, 6pm and has the occasional top up at 8:30 if needed... (he is pretty much a textbook routine baby :D).

xxx

[Frazzled]

usually something like this... 8am, 11.30/12, 2.30pm, 5.30pm and then a bedtime one at 7.30 which has become more of a top up. Towards the end of the day he is taking closer to 150mls... last week (1st week on formula) he put on 700grams!!!!:eek:

[veve]

LOL - he MUST have been a hungry man!!!! - and he must be heading up that percentile chart!!! :) I love a chubby bubby (lukaelmo... if you are reading this - SMALL IS OK TOO!!! :D)

you might find that after a few weeks on formula his tummy will get bigger and he will start asking for bigger feeds further apart.. rather than an extra feed... ?

the other thing to consider is the teat you are using?? Jack is now using a 2 month teat ( i think??!) .. that way he gets more milk for less effort (than a newborn) ... when they grow they get hungry but too tired to eat a feeds.. maybe in the afternoon he is just getting tired from the effort of eating?? just a thought...

I was quite concerned when Jack dropped back to only 4 feeds a day... but he is happy... energetic and still puts on weight each week... so - I guess your bubs will tell you if he is hungry... (every bub is sooo different).

xxx

[Frazzled]

He is now 6.3 kilos, he stopped putting on weight for three weeks - no milk left in these babies! He has started to fill out now and just looks so healthy!

He is having the avent 2 hole medium flow teats???

[Frazzled]

Thanx Jen, u r a champ - always love hearing from u x

[veve]

one of the most frustrating things about breastfeeding (for me anyway) is the fact that our boobs dont have guages on them :)

I dont know much about the avent teats... we use pigeon ones... I just know that when Jack got frustrated at feeding I trialled the next level up - and the first time milk went EVERYWHERE! .. so he wasn't ready - the next time I trialled it he acted like he had hit gold!!! such a PIG!!! :D

it may not be the answer to you getting more milk into him (although 700grams is a fantastic feat!!! you dont want him to do that EVERY week :p you wont be able to carry him!!! LOL) - just a thought...

xxx

- have to go to bed hon .... (SOME of us have to be up at 6am :p ) - let me know how your little guy goes...

[veve]

Thanx Jen, u r a champ - always love hearing from u x

((hugs)) no dramas- sometimes it is just nice to chat about our bubs and find out that what they are doing is perfectly normal :) LOL - us mummies are always more stressed than the bubs are!!!

xxx

[reAllytee]

Oh im so glad you found an answer hun :D
Its so hard to make that decision but results speak for themselves :D
Seriously if he is happy sleeping the way he does & keeps putting on weight etc i wouldnt worry. The main concern would be is he stopped thriving putting on weight then yeah i would wake him for a roll over feed but if he has chosen this himself then dont worry !
He is a happy little man :cool:
Yayayayay Elliot your a little legend :D

[cwsmum]

Hi
Just for comparison...my bub is the same age as yours and she only had 4 bottles today...3 were 120mls and the last one before she went to bed was 180mls. Tomorrow it will be totally different again :rolleyes: I just let her eat when she is hungry and don't stress too much about the amounts...
Oh, and Sienna also uses the avent teats with 2 holes :)

[Frazzled]

Hi
Just for comparison...my bub is the same age as yours and she only had 4 bottles today...3 were 120mls and the last one before she went to bed was 180mls. Tomorrow it will be totally different again :rolleyes: I just let her eat when she is hungry and don't stress too much about the amounts...
Oh, and Sienna also uses the avent teats with 2 holes :)

Thank u, its all so reassuring to compare - well most of the time anyway! There is just so much pressure isnt there - are u doing this right, wrong so on and so forth!!!

Yes ally, we definately made the right decision - he is a different baby!

[cwsmum]

I also forgot to mention...Sienna might not seem to drink much but hse has grown sooooo fast. She was longer and heavier at 8weeks old than my DS was when he was 10weeks old :eek:
She was 5.4kg at 8weeks...haven't had her weighed since :o

[Ky]

Sounds like you are all doing so incredibly well and that you have happy and settled bubs!

Keep up the fantastic "mum stuff" ... your bubs are obviously thriving on your care and love ...

[MrsMiggins]

I know you've got a fair few answers already, but I just thought I'd chime in!!

When DD started on a bottle, I was trying to get her to feed like what it says on the can... Pffft! That went out the window pretty darn quick, I can tell you! Someone obviously forgot to tell her what she was supposed to be having because it was nothing like what it said on the can!

When I went to see the CHN, she asked how much she was having & by that stage I couldn't even really give her an answer because I'd given up keeping track of what was what! She said that that was fine, as long as she was gaining well & thriving, which she obviously was (as is your little man by the sounds of it!) then it didn't make a lick of difference whether they fed to the recommended dosage or not. Afterall, all babies are different & feed differently when they breast feed, why should they all feed the same on formula?

DD now has bits & pieces of bottles here & there. She'll very rarely finish a whole bottle in one sitting - frustrating for me, but so long as she's doing well, that's all that really matters!

All the best!! :D

[rynosmum]

... I just know that when Jack got frustrated at feeding I trialled the next level up

Just a little note re the Avent teats. My DS is now 20 months and still uses the same ones we first bought - no deterioration on them at all. As he grew, I simply steralised a needle and put another hole or two in the teat - just as good as buying the next level up.

Here's to bubbas that sleep in - we're still up at 5:30 every morning, just in time to watch 'Dora the Explorer'.....:(

[Frazzled]

I know you've got a fair few answers already, but I just thought I'd chime in!!

When DD started on a bottle, I was trying to get her to feed like what it says on the can... Pffft! That went out the window pretty darn quick, I can tell you! Someone obviously forgot to tell her what she was supposed to be having because it was nothing like what it said on the can!




Yeah i hear ya, i tried reading Elliot the chapters in the baby books on sleep and settling too - that didnt work either!:laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

Thanks again everyone for all your help, it is reassuring!:smiliedance: